96 nissan maxima automatic 66000 miles
i already cleaned the TB, IACV, tried using a different MAF, changed the catylic converter, replaced the fuel filter, replaced fuel pump relay and the KS.

for about amonth already the car idles at 700 then slowly dies out...
at 1st i took it to a mechanic and he changed the CAT and it worked for a week, i took it back and he changed the fuel pump relay and it worked for a day.

i said screw it ill work on this... i got on this forum and read and read
so i replaced the fuel filter and cleaned the IACV plus the TB and car ran fine for like another week

acted up again ... i went to autozone got a OBDII reader .. KS was bad so i changed it.. now the car runs real smooth.

i though i was done that i fixed it but then this wednesday it did it to me again.

i dunno what else to do ... the car does not throw any other codes.
it does this to me whether hot or cold

only weird things iv noticed is: when i start it sometimes it does like a highrev or a loud hum sound and second every now and then the TEMP needle wont go all the way up even though the car is warm.

car does not smoke, does not burn oil and has no leaks

worse part iv been trying to sell her... and these things dont help with the sale.. plus paying for these parts are screwing my possible profit gain.


ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh please help .....

 

Does it die when you first start it ? or does it die anytime you come to a stop (i.e. so the engine speed drops to idle)?

 

temp sensor?

 

it dies when ever it feels like it....
whether i am stopped or i am not yet when i am driving before i changed the knock sensor it would randomly choke and then id rev hard and it would catch on again, after i changed it i have not experienced it dying on me while driving.

temp sensor where the heck is that located and would that cause this to happen or is this just to resolve the temp needle thing?

thanks guys

 

Could be a fault MAF or a bad coil... As mentioned also replace the coolant temp sensor. This does not control the temp gauge. Get a Haynes for location/replacement instructions.

What exactly is the problem with the temperature gauge? The needle should end up about half-way (and stay there).

 

well i got a MAF from the junker i actually tried 2 diffrernt ones and same thing, i also tested the ohms on it i think it was

ok ill see if i can do that....the coolant temp sensor... i have to see how much and how hard..

the temp needle either just moves a 1/4 of the way up or sometimes it goes right below the middle. i dunno if this is related to my problem in anyway...

how can i test a bad coil?

 

temp sens is easy, didn't help me though. i have the same prob. my old one is good, if you want, pm me with your address and i'll send it to you.

 

its hard to be accurate when testing bad coils, my '99.5 used to stutter and misfire right around the 4k rpm range under hard acceleration. It was easy to figure out once i pulled the codes from my ECU and noticed it was throwen bad coil pack codes left and right.

as for the temp sensor, I've herd of this causing some problems for other maxima drivers, I've never experienced it myself. so you might want to try to test that and see if its still good.

I also had studdering problems in the low rpm range when I installed my CAI. I just so happened to losen one of the wires connecting the MAF and when it didn't get a good conection the engine would choke or feel like an misfire, really it was going in and out of "safe mode" which is pretty much idle. However my CEL flashed and stayed on and threw the MAF code at me when i checked it.

Our maxima's are pretty smart in the way of knowing whats wrong, the codes should be able to tell you where the problem is, they haven't failed me yet.

good luck buddy,

let us know how it goes

 

see thats the weird thing it isnt throwing me any codes at all
only thing it ever said to me was that the KS was bad.,...other than that the ecu did not show me an engine light or anything else..

tomorrow ill test the coolant temp sensor and ill check ohms on the ignition coils.
ill even swap one of the extra maf sensors i have just for the heck of it.
thanks for the help guys

also hehehe she is for sale if any one interested let me know $5000 O/B takes her... used to be my wife's car (color drak green, SE model ..basic basic..)
66000 miles, flush tranny fluid in may, did breaks in june changed spark plugs in may, plus all the crap i listed above that i either changed or cleaned..or will change or clean

 

test your TPS, that and a vacuum leak was the problem when I had the same thing happening

 

well today this happened to me i was driving along and began to accelerate slightly and car began to stutter and kinda struggle....i slowed down and accelerated again and it did the same thing i pulled over and car died on me....i got hte car homw by tow truck and attemtped to started it started but for a few seconds while it sputtered below 500 rpm.............

i checked the cel codes and it gave me 0505.........no failure recorded or detected...so yeah


i was told that the engine coolant temp sensor cause this and sometimes wont show up as a code ima check to see how much the sensor is and i will post up of any new information if anyone else has an answer please let me know

 

ditto /\/\/\ any info from what 95prmx mentioned should be helpfull

i tested the tps and checked out fine

i guess to check for vaccume leaks id need to take each hose out and check for cracks correct???

 

Could indeed be coolant temperature sensor or thermostat. Once, for some reason, i puted a chrome cover on my radiator cap (dumb idea because of the valve in the cap). When the car warmed up, the engine died but every accessory were still ok. Waited a bit and manage to start again and go home. ECM threw me a coolant sensor and knock sensor code one day. I think coolant problem often comes with knock code. The temperature needle is suppose to slowly go up to the middle range, then thermostat opens. Good luck.

 

ok well for the past 6 hours i been reading up on the org for any other problems that have arisen like mines....................all i can find is that the coolant temp sensor and the fuel filter have been a main cause for this problem....tomorrow ima buy these and change them and i will post up if it fixed my problem.........i just pulled the codes of my ecu and still says the same thing 0505....so ima do that and see whats up...........


thanks guys i love this org for this reason...well i will let you guys know tomorrow

 

Make sure you replace the correct ECTS. It's the one closest to the block.
If that doesn't cure your problem, the next component to look at would be the IACV.

EDIT: Have you checked the PCV valve? Very small inexpensive, could be all gummed up and sticking. May very well cause idle problems if it gets caught open.

 

cool thanks njmax ill see to change it anyway

 

Just a note on the sensors. When they go bad they usually fail for a moment and then go back to normal. This is how semiconducters usually fail. The Temp sensor might be failing at a certain point and then returning to normal. So when you test it it might give a normal reading. But When it's subjected to operating vibration and heat, it fails temporarilly. A lot of people seem to think it's the temp sensor. I would change it. It can't hurt.

 

well hey guys i changed the fuel filter and the stupid coolant temperature senor and stillt he same the car starts and just sputters wildly hear valves ticking and it takes for ever to start it just cranks and cranks and cranks.....my friend also noticed whitish grey smoke coming out the tailpipe not sure if this would have anythign to do with it.....also thats pretty much all hoses were clamped back on correctly nothing left loosee.....any mroe ideas let me know


................if anyone knows any nissan mechs down here in south florida please let me know

 

6:30 pm..........ok so today after changing hte fuel filter and everything else i was told to do with no change i decided eehhh let me check the spark plugs brand new i just paid ubber power iridiums.....well turns out they are no more than 3 weeks okld and are black i mean blackkkk............so well i look up the part number and its for the vg model of the nissan...not the vq they gave me the wrong part they gave me zx6 instead of zx5

oh i am just flamining at this point....i called the performance shop....*****ed at them and tomorrow they are calling em back or i will knock their door down.....

i noticed that when i changed them my car went from gettig 350 miles per tank to 250 if i was lucky....never paid attention figured better power more gas...oph well stupid me.....wellllll.........now it comes to find out by eddie that my car is running rich as hell and well may have caused the problem who knows i am off to buy the ngk bkr-5e-11 and will post up

830 pm.......now i just put the ngk's in and the car starts but is just rough altogether.....my friend that is a mechanic told me to remove the spark plug from the hole that had the smashed plug in it.....and run the car without it so all the metal pieces could come out that was left in there i have yet to do this......cause it just about started to rain........

but when i did get it started i believe i saw smoke coming from the engine bay or the mfufler not sure really it was dark and didnt have a chance....the engine is bogging its just sputtering and whatever.....so its about to start rtaining i said pull the ecu codes to see and now it came out iwht 0407 which is the Crankshaft Position sensor (reference)....now what please someone let me know

 

changed coolant temp sensor but did not change the actual temp sensor next to it, yet i did clean the contact and the needle did begin to move appropiately
yet i still have the same problem that the car decides to idle itself off...
i changed the pcv valve and nothing
when i cleaned the TB i removed the rubber peaice b4 it and sprayed in and wiped it down from the outside in ..using carb cleaner and a rag... some one told me to remove the whole TB and go to nissan and get a new gasket and see how things go...
if someone gives me 4200 they can have the car....
ill see if tomorrow i remove all hoses and check for leaks

 

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

could my fuel pump be intermittently going and randomly not supplying me enough fuel pressure at low idle... cause when i press the accelerator hard it will respond fine at high revs but at low it dies out,.....

 

dude, 95PRMax, DON'T DO ANOTHER SINGLE THING TO YOUR CAR

My advice at this point -> get it to an experienced and professional mechanic and let him check it out, If the wrong plugs is what really caused your problem, them everything else you've been doing might be creating more problems for your engine.

I ran into the same problem with my first car, I went in circles trying to find the cause of a similar problem only to find that i was doing more harm than good.

I'm always an adviocate of DIY jobs, but this one seems outta reach.
If i was you, I'd shell out some cash to pay someone with the experience and the tools to correctly determine the current problems with your car, trust me on this one

 

Were they covered in oil like if you touch it wet or was it because your running rich. But if your plugs are black and kinda wet chances are your spark plug chamber grommits need to be replaced. I dont know if having th plugs filled with oil would affect your idle but i do know if you have a bad plug your car will idle poorly. So hopefully all you have to do is replace the plugs and pray that its only the front valvecover that needs the spark plug gromets to be replaced. Good luck. Also i had that problem it turned out it was my EGR valve celenoid was stuck open. Causing my car to idle roughly and then die.

 

no leaks on hoses ...
my idle drops and dies whether hot or cold....
wtf wtf wtf wtf wtf
im gonna have to take it to someone and waste more money on this crap so i can try to sell it....
im scared to take it to nissan and get raped with dealer prices....

 

'


no i replaced the spark plugs this time with ngks and the center rear one i removed the next mornign after trying to start it and it was smashed again....

i spoke to two nissan techs today and they said that my head gasket is blown, piston is shot to hell and motor as well....as of right now me and my dad are seaking an attorney for this


thank you guys for everything

 

That would be money well spent.
Your efforts proved to be expensive and worthless.

 

damnnnnn super putting me down....
i just wanna fix this to sell it ...i just found out my wife is pregnant and i need money and i hate this stupid nissan..ahhhhhhhhhhhhh
and how the hell did this thread become about that other guy and his spark plug problems....

sorry nothing personal just needed to vent

 

lol i thought it was you i didnt read who started the thread. Well man i have kinda good news. Do you consider your self a mechanic ? Well If so vq30 engines are only 350-400$ with low milieage. I had one put in my 95 with 40k.

 

id doubt id need a whole new engine..
this car just drives me crazy .. i dorve it last night for a good while i turned it off and on and off and on and no problems .. watch me drive it today and it will act up on me...

 

Just reinforcing a lot that has been said... bad coils, fuel pump, i know you changed the relay though, uhmmm...dont know what else from those symptoms and you have changed a bunch of stuff. sorry about all that, good luck

 

Stupid nissan?