My girlfriends 96 Maxima (auto trans/140k) -

Has a hesitation while accelerating probably once a day.
It almost feels like a transmission issue, because power drops for a second, than kicks back in like its kicking back into gear...although it wouldnt surprise me if it was a sensor issue.

Happens both on the highway, and city driving.
Most commonly between 2nd and 3rd gears.

I've checked the ECU for stored codes hoping that I'd find something to narrow the search but came up with none. Was thinking possibly a MAF, or Knock Sensor. She did have one about 5months ago regarding the EGR, but the code was reset and never came back. I havent pulled it to clean it yet, because it looks like a major PITA.

Plugs are only about 15k old, and the fuel filter was done about 10k ago.

I've cleaned the MAF this evening in hopes it'll make a difference.
Any other suggestions?

 

no pointers?

 

coils?
-pull them out and take a look at them

 

SO you havent puled codes lately?

 

I know plugs only have 15K, but If you can't find any other cause you may try changing them. Only $15 for a set of quality copper plugs and about an hour of work. Sometimes you just have to eliminate all the possible causes one at a time to solve the problem. When in doubt try the easy cheap stuff first.

It's probably the plugs misfiring or an injector/fuel problem with many possible causes.

 

- I pulled the coils. Is it common for them to intermittently act up?
How can you test them? I noticed one looked more brown compared to the other 5.

- I did pull codes from the ECU manually. It came back 0505 so no stored codes.

- where are you seeing sets of plugs for $15? You mean $15 EACH?

 

Installed high quality NGK (NGK 6953) copper blugs in my 98 Max SE, total for six with tax $12.33. $1.89 each. One hour job - tops worth a try.

 

Copper plugs are only supposed to last like only 30K miles compared to platinum 60k or more, but as easy as plugs are to change in a Maxima, who cares. Some people prefer copper.

 

never seen them anywhere near that cheap -
it's not the plugs anyway. it did it before and after replacement

 

OK then it's not the plugs, trust me on the prices of copper plugs as opposed to platinum or other metals. As far as checking coils you would need an ohmmeter and know how to use it. FSM says Check resistance between pin 1&2 if not zero ohms (shorted) then coil is OK. I would compare readings between several coils they should all be fairly similar. Anyway if you have faulty coil you should throw a code saying which cylinder is misfiring. If that happens then you can swap coils and see if trouble moves to another cylinder. With no code this does not work.

 

As far as fuel injectors go FSM says listen to each one while the car is idling. Place a wood stick or other suitable device on the injector so you can hear it. You should hear a clicking noise. All injectors should sound about the same if not I would suspect that injector. These intermittent problems are difficult to repair. If you are having this problem despite changing plugs and fuel filter I guess coils and injectors are the next place to look. Maybe you have a clogged injector have you tried a good cleaner?

 

FSM also suggests checking ECU connections including grounds when having intermittent problems. If it was my car I would pull the connectors from the ECU and plug them back in just to make sure I have good contacts.

 

I could be wrong but I don't think it's a transmission issue, more likley a misfire or injector.

 

my 96 auto did that to me couple times found out it was a faulty TPS sensor...

 

JoshBarber, you're experiencing EXACTLY what i just fixed. It feels like you car goes, looses power (stutters almost) then quicks in vtec, haha.

-NOOOO, it is not normal for the coil to be brown. I had a misfire in cylinder 5 and when i was replacing the coils... guess what... cylinder 5's coil back was brown.

-your cheapest option is to replace that particular coil pack and see what it does after that. I took the expensive route and replaced all of them, but do what you want.

-any other problems could be a bad injector or manifold needing re-done... $$$ tho. trust me, start with the coils.

 

o yea... and i was throwing the 0505 code also

 

very valuable info! thanks a bunch. I'll pull that coil again tomorrow and take a look. its very surprising that it never threw a code though.

how much can you get a single coil for? maybe I'll try to find on at the junkyard to give it a shot.

 

how did you know you had a misfire in cyllinder 5 without a code?

 

it threw that code before it actually threw the misfire code. the misfire code threw when it got REALLY bad, like the car would barely go down the street. nissan told me thats what it threw. sorry for that confusion.

I work at a shop and got the coil at price, which is 45 bucks i think. if you don't know anybody that can get parts for cheap, then itll be about 100 bucks a coil. like i said, if your not looking to spend much money, start with replacing the bad coil and go from there.

 

BTW - this hesitation she claims happens at 2k rpms, and will not happen if she turns the OVERDRIVE off....only happens with the overdrive on. Does this info point to anything in particular?

 

ehh, mine was finicky. it started about a year and a half ago and wasn't bad at all. It just recently started getting really bad and that's when I started paying more attention to it. Mine never did it depending on what was done, it just did it when ever it decided too.

I know that when i was at lights it would do the hesitation and jump RPMs, but if i put my car in neutral, it wouldn't do it.

If your problem is persistent and you are positive it will do it, get a coil and replace that brown one, then see what you have. I am almost 90% sure that is giving you a problem.

Do you have an local friends willing to lend you a coil for a few hours?

 

does this look like signs of a misfire?

 

That's exactly what mine looked like. I wish i still had it, but I chucked it.

Just curious, which cylinder is that coming from?

 

I tried a different coil pack from the junkyard and same deal. No change.
The plugs are good so Im not sure why that one was burnt looking unless its been that way since before she bought it.

It's the front pack, on the passenger side.

 

what exactly did it do when it turned out to be your TPS?
and did you get a code for it?

 

Most of things mentioned will pop a code,MAF alot of times will not.

I would shoot for TPS sensor.

Or just find a friend that works at a Nissan dealership and run it on their Consult.


If you live near East TN i would check it for free.

I get in trouble for that alot at work unfortunatly

 

Do EGR clogs or problems usually (or ever) cause hesitations?

 

Yes they can have you cleaned you EGR tube lately?
It's usually more like a small jerk when they clog though,but you can feel it.
Should have a light on if it's the EGR though.

 

she had a code for it before, but it was about a year ago and never came back on after it was cleared. it looks like a misery to remove so I just ignored it

 

The tube itself isn't too hard to remove,cleaning it out is the biggest pain.

 

I agree! Took me some time to clear it. I replaced the injectors and the knock sensor at the same time, not sure which made the most difference, but runs much better.

 

hey guys dont mean you jack your thread or anything but i have a 96 maxima(134k) with something similar i thought it was due to my clutch because it felt like a slip
but when the car is in neutral and i step on the gas between idle and 2500 it feels like a bad miss. No lights are on in the car just changed the plugs to bosch platinum +2 plugs i dont really know to much about this car since i just got it but any help would be appreciated

 

Ditto....TPS is bad or out of adjustment. Test yours with the procedure in the FSM and replace it if bad. Make sure to adjust the new one, or you'll have issues with the transmission shifting.