So I'm still struggling with my stalling issue, I have an ECTS and ETS ordered and am installing them tomorrow. I've done this so far:

1. Replaced and Recalibrated TPS
2. Cleaned TB
3. Secured Air Intake
4. Replaced Air Filter
5. Cleaned IACV
6. Reset Base Idle to 700rpm's
7. Had Nissan perform a Combustion Chamber Cleaning
8. Changed my oil & filter (Just because it was that time)
9. Changed Spark Plugs (NGK Plats)
10. Ran several tanks of Fuel Injector Cleaner
11. Replaced Drive Belts
12. Replaced Fuel Filter
13. Replaced ECTS

Sometimes its a quiet stall, sometimes it gets to 100rpms and fights its way back up. When it does do it and I step on the gas, its VERY raspy and I immediately get a strong smell of fuel. It back fired once today, paired with extreme rasp. I also checked the muffler and there seems to be oil dripping from it. It could be moisture, but it was yellowish and very viscous leading me to believe its oil. Any Thoughts on what else I can do?

 

Check compression.
Check fuel injector resistances.
What's your idle vacuum?
How do the spark plugs look? Freckled white? Sooty black?
How's your gas mileage? Leaking injector o-ring?

 

Compression must be done at a shop right?

Injector Resistances can be checked with an ohm meter right?

How do I check the idle vacuum?

Spark plugs looked fine, they really didn't need to be replaced, but since I bought new ones I did anyway.

Gas mileage at worst has been ~18, since the combustion chamber cleaning I'm at 120mi @ 1/4 tank, but with the way our gauges read it's most likely below 1/4 tank and I'm probably looking at around 350-400 for the tank (20-23mpg).

I'm actually afraid to remove my UIM and Injectors, I always hear I NEED to replace gaskets and O-rings when I just check them so I'm not so sure I want to take them out. Better to have a hardly running car than a no running car ya?

 

Compression tester tool can be purchased at your local auto parts store. Mine was around $30 I think.

Injector resistance is checked with an ohmmeter.

Hook up a T-splitter to one of the vacuum lines going into the manifold and connect a vac gauge to it.

 

Vacuum line... Which one is that heh, where does it enter the IM?

 

Theres mad vaccum lines, look all arond the lines that go to the IM for one with a crack.

 

and you can hook it up to any one you fancy, id go with the one that goes to the brake booster personally

 

Hmmm ok, btw what should the vacuum gauge be reading?

 

and I take it I should be doing this with the car running

 

check the MAF sensor ground, see this thread for more info

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=502009

 

I'm such a car newb, where will the MAF ground be already? And what gauge wire did you use to reground?

 

Replaced ECTS today, will attempt re-grounding the MAF... Saturday

 

are you sure you should be using platinum plugs??? i have a 95 and they said standard ngk's only, i've heard horror story's about plat's on the wrong max. good luck man>>>>

 

NGK Platinum = OEM stock, lasts ~60K miles.
NGK Copper = suitable OEM replacement, lasts ~20K miles.

 

check the damn fuel pressure regulator.. probably ur problem...

 

I'll check my Haynes when I get home on how to do that and get to it, replacing it altogether isn't very expensive either

 

I noticed a sound of rushing air near the gas tank, but if there's a crack in a fuel line wouldn't fuel simply be leaking not air?

You can hear it around 11 seconds

 

i think your worriyin over nothin dude. my car sounds exactly like that, sounds more like exhaust to me. or, a air hose or intake, maybe y-pipe. have a local mechanic check it, as long as your runnin ok, i would'nt worry.

 

Doesn't run ok though, stalls out, I suppose I'll get to checking my fuel pressure soon. Thing is, it doesn't always do it, but I don't really want to invest in an Fuel Pressure gauge for inside the car. N/A gauges ftw -_- no

 

Got my FPR today from fanaticrockford and went outside a minute ago to see what I had to do.

Even though it was dark I figured I'd start taking things apart and see what kind of trouble I'd run into. Relieved fuel pressure, disconnected battery, removed air intake, removed fuel return line and loosened the clamp on the fuel line and went to take the FPR off and the screws on there are on there pretty good. I didn't want to strip them, so I sprayed them down with WD-40 and am going to let it sit overnight hopefully they'll come off easier tomorrow....

Anybody have suggestions for hard to get off screws?

 

Vise-grips FTW! Just clamp them so tight it hurts your hand trying to 'lock' them down.

DUDE!! Be careful!! The "oil" dripping from your exhaust plus the hissing sound leads me to beleive your muffler is filled with gas and the gas is dripping from the muffler combined with all the gunk in there it LOOKS like oil. My car wouldn't start well because of a bad bellhousing ground after removing the tranny and from all the cranking while diagnosing my muffler filled up with gas, check out the aftermath thread HERE

 

Oh god, that looks like fun -_- and this is why I'm fixing my problem before I put on my Sp2 lol, wouldn't want it exploding on me. My sister said she drove behind me and saw black smoke come out, thoughts?

 

Your sister seeing black smoke just reaffirms that you're running really really rich, don't drive your car until you swap that other fpr in there. excess fuel being dumped into fuel rails/engine/exhaust=fire hazard, I saw a sweet M3 burned to the ground because of a faulty fpr, guy ignored the backfiring, extreme loss of power, and giant clouds of black smoke and REALLY regretted it since he didn't have fire coverage..........

 

check your MAF sensor GROUND

 

I tried I need a voltmeter with smaller probes :-(

Mine are too big and can't get in the connector to the metal to get a read out. I have a circuit checker that light up on the circuit, but no read out on that.

 

Went to check again and put a paperclip in solve the probe thing, but it turns out the actual voltmeter is shot, touching it to the battery and nothing -_-

Oddly enough the resistance checking aspect of it worked, unless it was just that when nothing's connected the resistance would be 0

 

check the back of the multimeter, should be a cover somewhere, remove it to replace the blown fuse.....

 

Will have to try and get around to that tomorrow, don't have any fuses around the house

 

Oh so aggravating. I decide to get my own multimeter since my fathers has a blown fuse and I'm always borrowing it anyway. I go to Radioshack, walk in, buy my multimeter and somehow the sunny day is now a torrential down pour -_-

Ok Anyway, I shoved the positive lead into the black wire on the connector port, and grounded it in the negative battery terminal.

So I tested and the voltage was as follows:

Idle / On

Red: 14.000v
White: 0.430v
Black: 0.028v / 0.022v

I suppose I need to reground it?

 

Simply back probe the black wire on MAF connector with positive lead of the voltmeter and negative lead pressed to one of the ground connections on the engine block.

The voltage at idle should be less than 9mv (0.009v), if it is above the value the sensor should be regrounded.

once the sensor is regrounded , the voltage should drop significantly.
Mine was around 0.277 at idle and 0.187 with ignition on ( engine not running)

after the fix the vlotage dropped to 0.005 at idle and 0.002 with ignition ON.

 

Sorry I did probe the black one with those numbers, I accidentally did the red first and typed it up and realized my mistake. Forgot to correct that part though. I'll get on re-grounding tomorrow, I made the wire tonight.

 

nick, was your problem intermittent? Mine stalls when it feels like it, or runs just fine. But if the voltage is the problem, wouldn't it run like $hit all the time?

 

Well there was a partial success I suppose. Broke a 10mm bolt in the process, but whatever.

Old numbers: 22 mV on, 28 mV running
New Numbers: 2.8 mV on, 3.6 mV running, 4.4 mV @ 2krpm's

Unfortunately I turned it on, and it immediately turned off -_- . Then I turned it on again and it idles @ 300 consistently, I revved it to 6,000rpm's and it killed the bog and the car idled fine until I turned it off, but it also spit out black smoke and black fluid out of the exhaust. I'm letting it chill outside right now with the battery disconnected hoping once everything resets something will magically fix itself.

Pictures! Excuse the camera, it's my cell phone =/

Spot I tried to use but accidentally tightened too much


New Spot


Stuff my car spit out

 

Problem persists :-(

It ran fine for a good 10 minutes, then died and has been giving really crappy performance since