just a quick "thank you" to emax95, medicsonic, suzd & daniel b martin & nismo98! i just installed the new (well, remanufactured) mafs and my max is back on track! i couldn't have done it without your help. with your advice i was able to save myself money, down time at the garage & now i have the haynes manual & multimeter for future use. you guys are great.
let the record show that with my stalling/ bucking syptoms, a new mafs was the answer. also, i paid $199 at my local "national auto", which is a good price, i think.
thanks
maury

 

I too had that same problem and fixed it with the help of the ORG members. Isn't that what this forum is about anyway?

 

Thanks for the success story. Your good experience may encourage other Maxima owners to tackle their own repairs. The man who services his own car ...
- saves money
- learns more about how his car works
- takes pride in his skill and self-reliance

 

bravo

 

I am happy my advice helped you out . MAFS are a real pain in the but, they seem to be the #1 broken part these days.

 

hmm..my 95 max is stalling everytime i start it. I turn the key and nothing happens and then i gotta rev the gass to kepp it going. one friend told me its a starter, another told me it was that I need a tune up..any idea? also my engine light is on

 

well, now that i took some good advice from friends here - i now have the trusty haynes manual. do you have one? if so, check out chapter 6 and get the trouble code from your car. in theory, that will tell you why the check engine light is on. in my case, it correctly told me my mafs was bad. also it warned me that my knock sensor was bad too - but lots of people here say that may be a programming error on missan's part. good luck.
maury

 

It's hard to make out your problem with the strange discription you provided. What I mean by that is you say you turn the key and it does nothing, next you say you have to hit the gas to keep it from stalling. Maybe you meen the car takes a lot of cranking and then it starts but wants to stall? If the starter cranks when you turn the key, that means the starter is most likely working properly. Please explain better .

 

The Check Engine Light is evidence that something is wrong. That "something" may be any number of things, some major and some minor. It might be nothing more than a loose fuel filler cap. The Engine Control Module (the computer) detected a problem and turned on the Check Engine Light. At the same time it stored one or more Diagnostic Trouble Codes.

Please read the Sticky Thread Important: ECU Diagnostic Trouble Codes . The first post in that thread contains a pointer to a Web site with detailed instructions for doing a DTC readout. No special tools are required. When you know the stored DTCs, you will have a fair idea of what repairs are needed.

 

Sorry, I missed the original thread - What is a "mafs"?

 

MAFS stands for Mass Air Flow Sensor. This is one of the most important sensors in the Maxima's electronic engine management system. The MAFS is located just downstream of the air cleaner. It measures the amount of air drawn into the engine. The MAFS is not generally repairable. If it goes bad, it is replaced. The cost for a replacement depends on whether you buy a used unit, an aftermarket unit, or a new factory part. A used MAFS might be had for $50 and a new one for more than $300.

For more information about the function of the MAFS and a test procedure, please refer to the Chilton repair manual (page 4-16) or the Haynes repair manual (page 6-9).

 

Sorry about my previous post, I'm not good at explaining things. But I did check out the engine codes...I got 3 slow 4 fast and that means "Knock sensor" I also got 1 slow 3 fast...which means "Engine coolant temp sensor". I Have no idea what these mean. i am a complete moron when it comes to cars. My problem is this, I attempt to start the car..and nothing happens..then I sit...wait. turn key..nothing, i hold turned key for 3 seconds, car starts starting...but will only run if i rev the engine, if i don't rev the engin after I start it, the car slowely turns off..RPM meter slowely goes down. other then the starting process, everything is fine. If anyone knows a way to help me, it would make me happy

 

Seeing that you know nothing about cars you have 2 optiones, either buy a repair manual{and read the whole thing} or go to a mechanic. The reason your car does not start properly is most likely becuase of you have a weak/bad starter, it could be other things but thats my first guess. The reason your car wants to stall is most likely because of your broken "engine coolant sensor", this will make your car behaive like it is already heated up{in this case}. If I were you I whould first wait for what DBM say's and then if he agrees with what I am saying your next step will probably be to replace your "ECS" and starter{easy to do}. I whould also go ahead and clean your throttle body out and replace your PCV valve. BTW check out www.car-part.com for awesome deals on great used parts.



BTW Daniel B., a while back I posted a problem with my car not starting correctly and thanks to you I believe I pin pointed the problem. Like you said, it may be the Crankshaft Position sensor. I tested it out today and the sensor is dead. Thanks for your help!

 

You read out two Diagnostic Trouble Codes, 0304 and 0103. I suggest you ignore DTC 0304 for the time being. It has nothing to do with your engine symptoms.

Please read the Sticky Thread Important: ECU Diagnostic Trouble Codes. The post titled DTC 0103 in the Sticky provides instructions for testing the Engine Coolant Temperature Sensor. Please make this test or pay a qualified person to make it for you. There may be a defect in your ECTS or the associated connector and wiring. This kind of defect could cause the problems you report.