My 95 with 180k miles is started to shutter while idleing in gear and it feels like it misses at high rpm, in 2nd & 3rd gear, while accellerating on the freeway.

I replaced the plugs a few months ago with NGK's I have a new fuel filter but haven't installed it yet, could that be the problem?

 

are your rpms dipping when it shutters?

 

No, not at all, the tach doesn't move at all.

 

are you sure you gapped the plugs properly. This is what happened when I replaced mine and they weren't the right gap.

 

They were gapped properly, and it was a few months ago and the shuttering just started.

 

bump.......

 

well...you have any codes? mine did this too when i was idling in gear...it took a while to throw a code though...i got "random/multiple cylinder misfire" or somethin like that for a code, and i had to replace my coils. cost me about $420 for all the coils. and i saved $400 by doin it myself..and it only took me 45mins...stupid stealership.

 

Got engine shutter problems, too.

My babe is 99 GLE/auto/90k miles. I am using "89"-grade gasoline. Just picked it up from dealer for 90k services.

Before I went to services, I got serious engine shutter. It happened about every 30 seconds while vehicle idle (such as waiting for traffic sign, at gear "D"). It was two weeks since shutter first occured.

The dealer replaced spark plugs and cleaned the TB, which is very very dirty. After the services, it runs much better, but I still experience some engine shutter. The shutter occurs about every 5-6 minutes and it feels softer than before services.

But something strange is, when I drive on the road and wait for traffice signs, the shutter occurs more frequently. When I park the car in parking lot, geared at D, the shutter seems occur less frequently. Any thoughts?

I plan to drive one or two more days. If the shutter continues, I will bring my car back to dealer for further inspection.

By the way, my ignition coil of cylinder #2 had been replaced few years ago when it is still under warranty. At that time I experienced check engine light on and obvious power loose.

 

I know its not missing, because when I changed my plugs I forgot to plug in a coil, and you could see the tach drop when it missed.

The tach does not move, and at WOT it loses power until over 4k rpm then it gains it's power back and launches.

This makes me think it's fuel related, I'll change the fuel filter tonight, and I've only got a 1/4 tank of gas, so I'll fuel up with gas at a station that I've been going to for a year with out any problems. My fill up Sunday was at a station in the middle of now where.

I'll post what happens.

 

shutter= shudder=

 

Ive got the same problem, only when its in D and idling at a stop light. In neutral its gone... so i suspect its something to do with the tranny?

 

You may want to try upgrading your gasoline for a week or two just to see if you're getting knock. Check your PCV, Fuel filter, IACV, MAF, Coil packs, even possibly injectors. Clean your IACV and TB, And check your TPS too. All these I checked on my car when I got shudder/ fluctuating idle. Seemed the onlything that's made a big difference is the IACV so far.

Terms Used;
PCV: Positive Crankcase Ventilation valve
IACV: Idle Air Control Valve
MAF: Mass Air Flow meter/sensor
TB: Throttle Body
TPS: Throttle Position Sensor

 

Ok I filled up this morning with 91 octane, and drove 25 miles, and no change...

 

Well, try all the easy cheap stuff first, like gaskets to the TB and IACV, clean both of them out too. Run some chevron with techron(2bottles) and see if that helps any, or seafoam. Change your PCVvalve and Fuel filter they are fairly cheap. Find someone in your area to switch MAFs for a day to see if that's it too...

 

The dealer ran the ignition coil balance test and found the coil of #5 cylinder is not balanced. However, there are no codes.

They replaced the coil of #5 cylinder then my car went back to quiet/normal idle. The engine miss/shutter was gone.

Next time I will DIY.

By the way, can somebody show me how to identify the cylinder #1 to #6? Only thing I know is, there are three cylinders facing forward and the other three are facing backward.

 

SHUDDER......

 

| 1 3 5 |
| 2 4 6 |
\______/
/|\---/|\
If I remember correctly

 

My car died last night, and had to keep the rpms up so to keep it running. Lucky I was in my neighborhood. I went home and changed the fuel filter & cleaned my throttle body, and it idles smooth, but still is sluggish while accellerating.

 

what is a coil balance test?

 

I have no idea about that. That's what the service department told me. They mentioned that they've checked/monitored the current through each ignition coil. Then they found the current on #5 coil is obviously different from other five. That's what I know.

I've read the "how to" section already. There was a post about checking the resistance values of six coils with multi meter. It's similiar to checking currents.

That's simple electronics, I think. Let's recall the ohm's law.

Voltage = I (current) * R (resistance)

Assume the voltage supplied from generator is steady, a change of either current or resistance will be easy to detect, and sufficient to show something wrong.

What I mean is, a bad coil could have different resistance value from others. Such difference would cause current change (outside the spec). And it will affect the whole ignition.

Just my $0.02

 

Regarding testing your coils, I have read in stickies that testing coils is almost useless if they test well. If all 6 test fine, they can still be the problem because you are testing them at relatively cold temperature. In the engine, they get very hot and inperfections in the coils are multiplied.

If you suspect coils, buy all 6 and kill the entire problem at once.

 

Man, you are absolutely right. That's why the service people performed the dynamic tests.

It's good to kill the problem at once.

But, how long will the new coil packs last? Are there any average numbers?

 

How much did it cost for the dealer to diagnose?
Coils are supposed to last the lifetime technically, but they undergo such high heat and voltages, so its hard to say. I heard the Hanshin ones tend to last longer and have not as many problems.

 

So I changed my cleaned my throttle body again, and ran Sea Foam throught he engine, and the idle ran smoother, but didn't solve my problem...

 

bump......

 

fuel filter could possibly the the problem but if you've replaced it within the past year I would probably rule it out, but its an in-expensive thing to rule out.

Try, with your car idling, disconnecting one coil at a time, the one (or multiple) coils that dont cause a change in your idle are the bad one.

Did you clean the IACV? has it ever been clean? My engine shutters and rpms drop but I'm quite positive its my very clogged IACV.


Coil are suppost to last the life of the engine but sometimes the die out before that. I say you should atleast be able to get a good few years of sure out of new coils, more than likely more.

 

I changed the fuel filter right away, and the rpms do not drop while idleing, just shudders & hesitates above 3000rpm in gear only, it runs great in park.

 

Any follow up? Kill all the problems?

 

Yeah I bought a 5th gen with less miles.


See:

 

I still haven't sold my 4th gen yet, so this morning I hosed it off and started it up. As usual it was hard to start and the battery was low. I warmed it up then took it around the block and it ran great!!!

I guess what ever the problem was 3 weeks of sitting with intermintant starting cleared out my problem.

 

I don't know nothing about cars yet, im tryin to learn but when I have my car in Drive and im at a light, my car seem like it jumps, like somebody hit me in the back, I just changed my plugs and air filter... I dion't know what the problem is?

 

Coil packs, mostlikely. Very similar to what I experienced couple of months ago.

Do you get any "check engine" light? If not, Get an OBD reader to see if there are any (pending or ghost) codes. Then try to swap coil packs or replace all of them. Of course, do a TB(Throttle Body) cleaning and MAF (Mass Air Flow) sensor cleaning first.

 

^^

Oh Okay, I was going to take it back to Leblanc Nissan.