first post yay... ok well the night prior to my problems i drove my car like i normally always do, i came home parked it and the very next morning when i was going to work i tried to turn the car on and it did for maybe 2 seconds and it shut off. when i tried to turn it on again it would crank but it'd just "HANG" right at that cranking sound and will not switch over. now i had it towed to a mechanic and he said a possible flywheel, so i came back to this forums and it didn't seem to be a flywheel problem according to what i researched and maybe assumed it's a fuel intake problem? i'm not too sure as i don't know what to test or tryout. but if anyone can give me some advice on what it might be i'd really appreciate it. thanks in advance. - Sgt. Yosofi USMC (yoshiyosh!)


link to video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kvi0hSNVhC4

 

THIS VIDEO IS PRIVATE.

 

oh wow, sorry about that, thank you for mentioning it tho. the problem is fixed, it is now open to the public.

 

What year is your car? 99? Have you checked the fuel pump fuse?

 

yes it's a 99 max, 140k mileage. i bought the car maybe 3 months ago. no i havnt checked the fuel pump fuse, that's the first time i've heard about a fuel pump fuse. i'ma do a search to find where it's located and i'ma try it out now. i'll come back with the results.

 

It sounds like a pretty weak crank. Have you tried a jump? Check that battery cable connections are tight and free of corrosion. Clean them with a wire brush.

It's possible it's your starter, it is relatively easy to remove and most places can test it for you.

 

yes i've tried a jump, but i came across this thread http://forums.maxima.org/4th-generat...t-anymore.html and it seems like it works for quite a few people, so i'm actually waiting for a friend to pick me up to take me to a store so i can buy a new battery and new terminals with some 4g or 6g wires to hook up new grounds. wish me luck. oh and about the fuse from the post above, i still havn't gotten the chance yet, sorry i will get to it asap and let u know.

 

checked your MAF?

 

Does your security light on your dash stay on...like just steady on, not flash? If it does then youve got a problem with the immobilizer.

 

when should i check when the security light stays on? because it doesn't stay on until i try to turn the car on.

i used to have a MAF circuit malfunction but i already switched that out about 2 months ago. i don't see why that would be a problem, but i'll check it out.

and about that fuse, i did check it and tried a different fuse with the same amps and it was fine. same problem as before.

 

May have a clogged fuel filter? or a bad fuel pump? If you remove the fuel line from the filter and you have pressure...you should be able to rule out the pump as the culprit.

 

Looks like its your immobilizer then. The problem isnt anything with your fuel, spark, or any engine management, but with your security system.

 

i even took the fuse out for the security system, unless there's more than one fuse for it. and it did the same thing.

 

alright guys... soo i decided to take it to a mechanic, he said he checked and tested everything he possibly could, he even put on the new grounds and everything with 4g and 6g wires and still nothing. fuel is good, spark is good, everything checked out he said the only thing he can come down to with the car having problems is the ECU... he said at the dealership it runs about $925. i went on car-parts.com and i'm finding the ECU i need for about $125. (99' Maxima SE AT w/o traction control) i called the guy and asked him if this would do and he said i need to match my vin number with the part for it to work? he said you can't just plug and play with a ECU. please anyone if you can give me some input on what i should do. thank you.

 

You cant just plug and play the ecu's on 99's because of the immobilizer. The chip in your key is programmed to match the code of your ecu.

 

so if my immobilizer is bad, does that mean i DO have to change the ECU? anyhow i called the mechanic and asked him to read me the part number on my ECU so i can possibly find another match. soo maybe i'll luck out. what are my options?

also, let's say i find another ECU with the exact same part number. can that be plug nd play? or that also needs to be reprogrammed?

 

I doubt your ECU is bad, The mechanic does not know what is wrong so he blames the ECU. The imobilizer control portion of the ECU not enabling the car to start makes more sense. Changing ECU's won't fix that.

I think most people take their car to a dealer to get the imobilizer reset. Check out some of the threads on the subject to see if that is the cause and what to do to fix it.

 

If it is your immobilizer, you have to have your Max towed to the dealer for reprogramming. Price varies from $60-$80 typically. Your ECU is fine, no need to replace it.

And find a new mechanic too BTW. He doesn't sound so great.

 

thank you and for the guy above this. i live in huntington station ny and theres a mechanic literally 5 min within each other and they're all like this. i asked 4 mechanic shops to just simply add 3 more grounds for me and they all put in their 2 cents and refused to do what i asked unless i did what they wanted done first. so i'm sorry for the old heads on this forums if i come off with silly or noobish questions, i do search, that's all i do. but in all honestly not everything answer i seek comes up and it gets fustrating. hope you all understand, ive lived here for about 9 yrs and yet to find a good mechanic =/. ive owned a 1999 bmw 540i, 2000 540i, 2003 bmw m3, and now a maxima. i've done all work on all vehicles myself using forums like such. so thank you to EVERYONE that helps. it really is appreciated by ppl like me and for those that take this for granted, well i am no1 to judge. again thank you guys. i will give it a try and see what the results are.

 

Turn the key to IGN, but dont start it. Does the security light stay on? If yes, its immobilizer.


Seem's like its been happening a lot lately. Mine went out a month ago and it was a PAIN.

Where you messing with the ECU at all? Or did you try to turn the car on too many times within 5 minutes?

 

I'm going to go check right now. Before this i had other problems but fixed them by doing CEL/ECU TCM checks. I followed all the instructions i found on these forums. But i'll get back to you once i find out if my security light stays on during IGN.



Ok, turning the key until the dashboards on, the security light stays on. 2 Clicks

 

Ok, so we have came to the conclusion it's my immobilizer. Can i have a locksmith reprogram my key? Or do i have to actually take it to the dealership to get my immobilizer reseted?

 

Dealer has the only key. Consult II device.

You're keys don't lose memory. The ECU loses your key's "key" so to speak.


I dont know why it happens. I think Nissan is running a scam. Maybe on a timer or something. hehee

 

Just the other day my buddy that I occasionally flip cars with bought a '99 5-speed salvage theft recovery that wouldn't start, the place he bought it from said it needed a new ecu and had a 2nd one in the glove box for him. I started diagnosing it for him over the phone and one thing lead to another and all it has is a plain jane metal key, I chuckled a bit at the classic "I can't figure this out, it must need a new ECU". Nissan ecu's don't really ever go bad......

 

so i have to take the car to the dealership somehow correct?... =/ i'll give it a try and will let everyone know how it went.

 

Yes, nobody but a Nissan dealer will have the ConultII tool needed

 

yes, tell them to reprogram your ECU key code for the NATS system. Deny any bull**** diagnosis. If they argue, call a manager.

 

thank you.

 

ok... so you guys are gonna love this. so i finally decided to take my car to the dealership like suggested. i actually pushed it there with my hazards on and a cop drove by not caring, soo that was awesome so i continued lol. so i get it there and i take it to a service advisor, he asks me what is my problem, i simply said nothing i want my immobilizer reseted and have my key reprogramed to the new immobilizer settings, the guy said well we need to diagnos the car first to see what's wrong with it, and i simply told what was wrong with him, he tells me you don't know if there might be more problems, and i told him i kow there are no more problems and the only problem i have i'm telling you about therefore i'm telling you to just fix that and only that, so some other guy says "make sure you write it on the reciept that's all he wants" so he did. he wrote my reciept out and told me they will call me when it's ready. i asked if i can just wait until it's done but the guy said it's going to take all day just to get the car to a tech. i gave it no thought and just said ok fine and went home. well i dropped it off at 9am, i called around 2pm asking about the status, the lady on the phone had an attitude but i stayed respectful. she says the tech will call me when it's done, so ok fine we hang up, i call again at 5pm and they lady says the same thing. keep in mind they close at 6, so i said f*** it n went there myself. the girl i speak to goes gets my reciepts and says she's been trying to call me all day and hasn't been able to get thru, i took my phone out and put it on the table and i said call it. she does and i made sure they had the right number and go figure it rings. again i give them the benefit of the doubt saying it's ok i believe you. so she tells me they tried to reprogram the key to my car and the car wouldn't let the key get reprogrammed, but i simply said no that's not what i asked for, what i asked for was to fix my immobilizer and reprogram my key to that. this is when i came in with my little bit of knowledge saying they need to hook it up to a consult II, the girls kinda has a face on her showing like aahhh ok maybe but i satyed quite. so she goes let me go ask, she comes back claiming the same **** she said before and i said can i speak to your manager, she goes i just spoke to him and that's what he told me, so i ssaid let me speak to HIS manager. so she goes that's a service manager, so i simply said well there we go now we're getting somewhere. so she goes and gets this foolish guy that i'm guessin was the service manager? and he comes barging in with some horrible attitude barking at me syaing they're the professionals and they know how to do their jobs, all i said was sir i'm not saying you don't know how to do your job, all i'm saying is i know what's wrong with my car, i know how to test it out, i've been to 2 other mechanics that made sure what was and wasn't wrong with my car. you guys "the dealership" are the only ones with this machine around my neighborhood, do you think i would come here if i had a choice? the guy continues to bark at me with these hand gestures, so my friend butted in saying excuse me idk who you think you are speaking to us like that, but my friend here fought for this country and expects to have some respect when spoken to ESPECIALLY when he's been taking every rude comment you've been saying and him still calling you sir, well after a bit of going abck n forth he finally said i'll take another look at it tomorrow, oh and btw i forgot to mention, this whole time they wanted to chargew me $97.50 for working on the wrong thing and charge me another $97.50 to do what i told them to do originally, i told them there's no way i'm paying you for 2 days of work for your mistakes. if you give me an issue i would glady speak to your supervisor. soo i'm sorry for the book guys, just a lil fustrated with these dealserships. i'll let u guys know how everything works out. cheers - Sgt. Yosofi -USMC

 

I dun told ya the keys are not programmable. You have to tell them to reprogram the ECM to YOUR KEYS. The keys "codes" never change.

Anyways, sounds like the same bull**** they put me through. Nissan's service techs are a bunch of ********.

I feel your frustration.
http://forums.maxima.org/4th-generat...wonderful.html

 

are 99's the only ones with these NATS issues ? Seems to be a common problem

 

 

alright... so i went back today and said exactly everything i read on here, about the key being read-only and you must reprogram the ECU to the key with the CONSULT II IMMU and what not, i don't want to even get into what kind of arguement started at this dealership, but i was PISSED that they kept trying to steal my money for doing what THEY wanted to do rather than what I wanted to do. They swore by it that i need a new ECU and really almost had me convinced, but i read the thread that you linked me to and it was the same issue these guys were trying to pull on me, so i asked very respectfully to do it in front of me because there are procedures that must be followed in order for it to be reprogrammed and taken out of "lock mode" (ON for 5 seconds, and then off, repeating 3x) they just continued to claim that i have a bad ECU. It's very hard to believe that considering the fact that I KNOW how the car came to this state, and it was my 14 yr old lil sister trying to turn the car on for me before work in the morning (it's quite cold here in ny) and just simply didn't know how to turn on a car the proper way. (turning the ignition key on 5 times very fast without turning the vehicle on) and before anyone new comes in and gives me some advice, every other option (checking knock sensors, cam sensors, starter, alternator, grounds etc.. etc...) have been checked. The service manager said to leave it over for another day and they'll call me, i'd also like to mention everytime they've said they'll call me back they havn't not even once. 3 days in a row... even when i called just to get a quote on how much it'd cost to reset my immobilizer. argh idk what to do guys, i'm acutally worried to the point where i almost KNOW these guys will try what i said and if it works they will do something to make it not work again. i mean this service manager was soo stubborn in listening to what I THE CUSTOMER wanted he said he wants me to take my car out of the dealership and leave, and i raised my voice making sure it was heard asking "are you denying me service?" and he said yes i can do that. i said NP what is your name and who is your boss. without getting into the whole thing, anyone have any suggestions on what to do please? i'm really stumped here. i'm very limited on resources and cash, 4 yrs in the marines doing 3 combat tours and coming home to this ****, living off of unemployment and can't find a job bc nobody wants a crazy marine that's suffering from ptsd lol. even though it's the law to hire someone with a disability. regardless that's irrelevant lol. if anyone can give me some advice, or lead me the right way, i'm all open ears. thank you again in advance.

 

They told me i might need a new ECU too because the consult II technician couldn't get it synchronized until a few tries. I think he was just incompetent.

I wouldn't even put up with them keeping it for a 3rd day. I'd report them. They're legally obliged to do the service you request.

Call Nissan USA or something.

 

1.Don't pay them a dime (they didn't do the work you requested) If they give you a hard time, just call the police (I've had to go this route before). The police will side with you and let you take your car. It will be up to the dealer to sue you for the money (which they won't do)
2.Get your car out of there and go to another dealer
3.Call the service manager's boss in hopes of getting of getting that jerk reprimanded, and some compensation. (I've done this, and was given a $2000 extended warranty coverage for FREE (for the way Toyota treated me a year ago) all because I called the owner of the Toyota dealer and told him how I was treated.

 

thank you both, i will take both of your input into consideration depending how tomorrow goes. if it's the same story i will definetely take this up further. I even warned the service manager, i told him i was in the MARINES... I KNOW HOW THE RANK STRUCTURE WORKS, EVERYONE HAS A BOSS. That's when he told me to come into his office and told me he'll take a look at the car one more time. Even still... why do they have to keep the car overnight for a 10 minute job? i mean if they only did what i asked i would of been in and out of there in 10 min 15 tops... anyway again guys, thank you soo much for all of your support, i'm glad to know i'm not alone. i wish there was something we can all do to stop this because i've been reading too many complaints about dealerships doing **** like this. cheers to all of you, i'll let you guys know what happens.

 

ok, soo i go today and the service manager is no where to be found, the car was fixed, they wrote down some bs story about how my pins were bent on the ECU and the mechanic had to straightened them out. soo finally after 3 days of hell they fixed my problem. i was waiting for them to try to say they were gonna charge me storage fee's or some other bs but they only charged me the original 97.50 for any electrical work. even though it's a 10 min. job they still charged me the hourly rate. with that said i was right and they were wrong. i'm grateful i got my car back and it's working, but i am exhausted from this entire ordeal i went through. i'm thinking about still speaking to the owner of the dealership and will make sure i get compensated for my time and effort of the days. not to mention i couldn't start work because of this entire issue. luckily i still have the job and they still want me to work there. anyway thank you to everyone for their help n support. the immobilizer did it's job, the dealership did not.

 

Glad the ordeal is finally over. I bet they figured out what they really had to do (even though you spelled it out for them), but played it off (bent ECU pins....WTF) to not look stupid.

 

basically man... anyway, thanks for your advice, it definetely let me go in with the right mindset.