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Will auto-tran cause engine shut off?

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Old 12-14-2006, 11:02 AM
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Will auto-tran cause engine shut off?

About a week ago my car turned off on the free way in heavy stop'N'go traffic. I was shifting the auto-tranny from first to 2nd to D and then nuetral while stopped and then my car turned off in the middle of the free way, kinda like it choked.

I turned it on, and it did it again, this time with the car just in D.

After that, the transmission feels like it shifts from the P to Reverse really hard and my gas has been dropping really really fast lately. I just filled her up and already the needle is dropping.


Any ideas?




also, At what RPM is your auto-tran at when going 60mph in 4th gear? just wondering.
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Old 12-15-2006, 03:46 AM
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Well we can start with stop shifting your auto-tranny. If you want to shift then get a manual. Only exception is if you have a VI (or extended rev-limiter). I was stupid enough to do this with my 95 GLE and I ended up paying a grand to get a new transmission. It started shifting hard at first, but then it turned into slipping. I couldn't tell yah why the gas is dropping ... check for a KS code.
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Old 12-16-2006, 05:25 PM
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Thanks.

I was never manually shifting the tranny when driving. I was stuck in traffic and I happened to shift from Drive to 1st, 2nd, D, and N and then the car shut off while idle-ing along freeway traffic.

But why would the engine stall or shutoff?
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Old 12-20-2006, 05:30 PM
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UPDATE

Today, i drove around for 5 minutes, came back home to pick something up. I then turned on the car to leave, put it in Reverse and it turned off again. It only did it on Reverse this time for about 4 times.

Any ideaS?
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Old 12-20-2006, 08:51 PM
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BUMP!!!!!!!
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Old 12-21-2006, 07:50 AM
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Check For Codes
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Old 12-21-2006, 08:19 AM
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your tranny is on its way out. When i first bought my maxima(i was 17) I used think it was cool to shift and after a couple years of that i was having the same problems as you. I could start the car, it would run but as soon as i went from p to r the rpm's would drop and the car would die.
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Old 12-23-2006, 04:18 PM
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check ur break padle linked with the shift mechanic parts. if you shift to the D position you can't stared the engine again.
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Old 12-23-2006, 04:30 PM
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Originally Posted by shadyonedeath
also, At what RPM is your auto-tran at when going 60mph in 4th gear? just wondering.
Probably something like 2500 rpm would be my guess
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Old 12-23-2006, 04:34 PM
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check your throttle position sensor, because it related with the a/t solenoid and a/t control unit.
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Old 12-25-2006, 05:22 AM
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Thanks guys, i'll check the TPS sensor.

--What should i be looking for when checking it?

check ur break padle linked with the shift mechanic parts. if you shift to the D position you can't stared the engine again.
Sorry, i had trouble understanding ^^, could you re-write that?
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Old 12-26-2006, 02:52 PM
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mine is having the same problem...except mine shuts off when i hit a bump in the road or as soon as i try to put in in reverse when parallel parking....i'm not sure what is going on..i'm investigating...if anyone knows anything please tell cuz i dunno how long it will take me to find the problem.....shady sorry to use your thread for my own purposed but maybe it could help you too
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Old 12-26-2006, 11:42 PM
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I dont mind. Did you do anything to the car? any repairs, modifications, previous problems?

Maybe we can narrow it down.


BUMP.
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Old 12-27-2006, 10:25 PM
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bump 10char.
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Old 12-28-2006, 06:57 AM
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Originally Posted by shadyonedeath
UPDATE

Today, i drove around for 5 minutes, came back home to pick something up. I then turned on the car to leave, put it in Reverse and it turned off again. It only did it on Reverse this time for about 4 times.

Any ideaS?
tranny might be on its way out. when mine died, i could start it in park, but as soon as i shifted into reverse it would die. and sometimes it would die in drive. get it looked at sooner than later. youll save a bunch of money by taking it in soon. i waited and waited, finally it **** the bed and stalled and i only had 1st gear. $2000 to fix cause it was so F-ed up.
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Old 12-28-2006, 06:16 PM
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I think your Solenoid valve is either bad or is has some other electrical issue. This is very common.

To confirm this notice that when you first start the car the O/D light blinks 16 times. You can refer to FSM for exact procedure to pull out TCU codes.
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Old 12-28-2006, 06:30 PM
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Originally Posted by nitink
I think your Solenoid valve is either bad or is has some other electrical issue. This is very common.

To confirm this notice that when you first start the car the O/D light blinks 16 times. You can refer to FSM for exact procedure to pull out TCU codes.
Thanks man, today i took everything apart, cleaned the Engine coolant temp. sensor, cleaned the MAF sensor, and re-positioned the Throttle Position Sensor correctly (i hope) and then adjusted the IACV adjust screw to set the RPM's.

I did notice the O/D light blink the first time i turned it on, but im not sure if thats from having the battery unplugged for a couple hours while working on the car.

Does the O/D blink a diff. number of times depending on the problem? Ill check it out to see if it still blinks.


Thanks again. For now, its running smoother and hasn't turned off on me...but i've only driven it for about 10 min so....yea.
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Old 12-28-2006, 09:36 PM
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OD light blinks 16 times, if all 16 blicks are of same length that means no code. If any blink is larger than other you have a tcu code. If solenoid is bad I think first Blink will be larger than others.
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Old 12-28-2006, 09:47 PM
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I checked about 1 hour ago by turning the car on and i didnt get any blinks. Im presuming thats a good sign...?


Ill give it a good drive tomorrow and report back with details. For now, the shifting seems smoother, doesnt jolt anymore. I think it WAS the Throttle position sensor, as it was mis-aligned.
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Old 12-28-2006, 11:18 PM
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check your engine harnes. I bought the car knowing it would shut off at anyminute . My car would shut off sometimes in drive, and sometimes in R at random times. The second i bought my max i pulled the motor and got a new engine harness. I have not had a shut off since. Its been about a year now. Then again i never attempted to shift my tranny since its automatic. Thats just dumb your asking for trouble. The auto tranny have enough problems due to there high heat-factor. My tranny now has 185k on it still original. Amazing what you can do with proper maiteneance. Also i have the stage 2 vb since about 100k.
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Old 12-29-2006, 10:08 AM
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No OD blink is good sign, Your tranny is fine, As others suggested don't manually shift tranny. and if car still turns off it might be something else.

DcMan :where did you purchased harness? how easy was it and how much costed? Is there any write up? It occured to me also to change harness but somehow I was thinking its difficult and expensive.
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Old 12-30-2006, 12:43 AM
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Well, i took my girlfriend out for a 30 min drive to the promenad, and on the way home at night, the car turned off again after exiting the freeway and coming to a red light.

Seems to always happen this way...after a good drive and then coming to a stop. Im still noticing my Engine coolant temp. sensor going out of wack, dropping after the engine is warm.

Anyone replace this part yet? Price?
Thanks
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Old 12-30-2006, 05:54 AM
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The engine coolant temp sensor WILL cause your car to stall. It happened to me. The car's RPMs would just dive for no apparent reason. Just get it fixed. If I told you it was 500 dollars you would still get it repaired so quit stalling.
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Old 12-30-2006, 06:31 AM
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this is an easy and cheap part to replace. A number of members have had to replace this part more recently due to the age of our cars, and more specifically, the age of the sensor. price should be somewhere in the 20-30 buck range, as I recall.
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Old 12-30-2006, 02:16 PM
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Great, ill call up Autozone, see if they have one.

By the way, Should i replace both of the sensors? There is another one next to the Engine coolant temp. sensor.
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Old 01-01-2007, 01:43 PM
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Originally Posted by shadyonedeath
By the way, Should i replace both of the sensors? There is another one right next to the Engine coolant temp. sensor.
Bump^^
10char
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Old 01-02-2007, 10:58 PM
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UPDATE - Replaced ECTS, still stalling!

UPDATE - Replaced ECTS, still stalling!


I bought a new ECTC (engine coolant temp. sensor) and replaced it, took it for a ride and it was going fine, but then after about 5 minutes of driving, the sympstoms came back.

While coasting to a red light, the RPM's dropped to below 500 and once i stopped, the car turned off.



Any idea's? Was i supposed to replace the sensor next to the ETCS? Please give any info, i cant stand it dieing randomly...people behind me are starting to hate me.
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Old 01-03-2007, 06:09 AM
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My 95 GLE does the same thing. Someone said it was the MAF but I haven't got the $ to replace it yet.
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Old 01-04-2007, 03:25 PM
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bump 10char
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Old 01-04-2007, 03:57 PM
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ima tell you exactly what the problem is. you need to start saving for a new tranny... your transmission is sliping, i just finish dealing with that problem about a week ago, give it about a month and it will start leak, i was doint the exact samething you was doing
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Old 01-05-2007, 12:47 AM
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when O/D light blinks @ you your car is telling you to start saving for a new transmission
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Old 01-05-2007, 01:58 AM
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i'll be getting a refund for the ETCS then...


:cry:
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Old 01-05-2007, 01:35 PM
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I assume you have already taken care of cleaning IACV, TB, MAF, Fuel Filter, Spark plugs, distributor cap, rotor and Checked fuel pressure so we are sure that fuel supply & ignition is present.

if your rpm fell to 0 when car is stopped, I would say its IAC Valve is bad.

if rpm goes to 0 when car is in motion, I would think its some electrical issue. press MAF plug it should be tightly connected.

Generally Nissan have one of the better transmissions, I would suspect a bad ground somewhere in circuit.
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Old 01-05-2007, 06:44 PM
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Originally Posted by nitink
I assume you have already taken care of cleaning IACV, TB, MAF, Fuel Filter, Spark plugs, distributor cap, rotor and Checked fuel pressure so we are sure that fuel supply & ignition is present.
IACV- Yes
TB- Yes
MAF- Yes and just finished cleaning it again and checking the connections inside the MAF.
Spark Plugs- Replaced Jan. 05 along with Front left coil.
Auto-Tranny Flush - Not shown in Juffylube records (could this be a problem? w/144k)
Fuel Pressure- Not that i know of, should be fine.
Fuel Filter- Not shown in Juffyboob records
Distributor Cap- No, what is it?
Rotor- No, What is it?



if your rpm fell to 0 when car is stopped, I would say its IAC Valve is bad.
This HAS happened at a red light

if rpm goes to 0 when car is in motion, I would think its some electrical issue. press MAF plug it should be tightly connected.
This HAS also happened while idling to a red light.

Generally Nissan have one of the better transmissions, I would suspect a bad ground somewhere in circuit.
Install a new ground kit?
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Old 01-06-2007, 06:39 AM
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4th gen+ Maximas have a DLI, or distributor-less ignition, system. We have coilpacks on each individual sparkplug, and the symptoms of a failed coilpack are more along the lines of cylinder-specific misfire, rough idle, poor acceleration, a whole plethora of unpleasant noises, but not the smooth drop of RPMs followed by stall, you are describing shady.

Sounds like the engine is choking for juice (electricity) or air. If airflow is the problem, IACV, EGR (clean the tubing and/or replace the valve), PCV ($2-5 @ dealership) should be checked or replaced. I am however agreeing with nitink that the problem is likely to be a corroded ground somewhere. No, an aftermarket ground kit is not likely to rectify this condition. You'll have to get a nickel sized piece of sandpaper and spend some time detaching stock grounds, sanding them free of corrosion, and then re-attaching. It's a good cheap place to start. Also, you stated you dont know when the fuel filter was changed? This is bad. Change the fuel filter to a 300zx filter and put half a can of Seafoam's Deep Creep in a 3/4 full gas tank. You should do that maintenance to effectively rule out the possibility of your engine stalling from an overly lean condition. You might have gunk or pieces of fuel filter clogging up your fuel delivery.
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Old 01-06-2007, 03:47 PM
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definately change fuel filter, might be an issue with fuel supply.
Since you don't have code, its going to trial and error only.

Do one thing start car (don't drive let it idle) open the hood wait for 15-20 min or till car shut down. If car does not shut down in idle, than close the hood little hard, if car shuts down, most likely you have broken wire inside your wiring harness .

Sorry can't think of anything else
Good luck
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Old 01-06-2007, 05:30 PM
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Would a leaking water pump cause air bubbles to enter the engine and then cause stalling?

Even though i replaced my ETCS, the Temp. reading on the guage cluster seems better but it still drops and rises here and there moderately. Never steady.


And thanks for the info, ill search around for fuel filter instructions and see what i can do.
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Old 01-07-2007, 02:30 PM
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Thanks so far guys, your help is greatly appreciated.
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Old 01-08-2007, 01:07 PM
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bump to question 2 post's up.
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Old 01-08-2007, 01:16 PM
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If the car is stalling when you put it into gear, it means the hydraulic pump is failing on your tranny. get it checked out by your mechanic to verify.
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