Paul S

Hi guys. Thanks for taking the time to help me out.my 96 Maxima ran like a champ until 110,000 miles. Once it warms up, it tends to stall out at idle speed and sometimes hesitates at highway speed for a second as if it were low on gas.If it stalls out, it always starts right back up.It can stall after 3 minutes of driving or sometimes it takes 20 minutes before it stalls.

I searched the forums and found a few likely culprits.I saw dirty throttle body, dirty TPS harness and IAC valve. I also found possible engine coolant temp sensor ,intake manifold gasket and would lke any additional info you might have to share.

Here's the long story if it helps. I brought the car to my usual mechanic and he cleaned the throttle body and changed out the fuel filter. It had zero effect. I brought the car to Napoli Nissan thinking that they would fix it for sure. After 2 grand, they did nothing to solve the issues at all.

But here's what they claim they did. They had a code for knock sensor and the O2 sensor behind the cat converter. THey changed those .They said one injector bank was running rich and one was running lean to compensate. Also , they said they :
-Changed all 6 plugs
-Checked all vacuum lines for leaks
-Tested fuel pump
-Pulled and tested all injectors

Please let me know if I can provide any more info and thanks a lot.I'm ready to listen and start working on my cars again.It's been a long time.

mikeg75

Hi Paul - I knew very little about cars when I first joined Maxima.org several years ago but one of the first things that made me seek it out was the same problem you are having.

You will hear from many people after me I'm sure that the Mass Airflow sensor (aka MAF, aka mass airflow meter, etc) is a very likely source of the problem, and it is a surprisingly easy thing to switch out yourself, with basic tools.

I changed mine myself 2 years ago with a $135 ebay part, on my 95 maxima SE, after my own mechanic could not stop the stalling. I was about to get rid of the damn car from frustration but it completely stopped the problem. Search and read a lot of the threads dealing with stalling and MAF sensors and take it from there.

Good luck.

njmaxseltd

iTrader: (19)

Your going to have to troubleshoot a bit.
I'll take a guess and point you towards the MAF sensor.
Seems fuel is OK, a failing coil pack wouldn't really stall the engine and should throw a code.

Paul S

Thanks a lot guys. The MAF sensor could cause the hesitation at speed as well ? That's the part that seems to be throwing mechanics.

skim35

bad fuel pressure regulator can also cause random stalls like this.

cashoit

clean your maf using maf cleaner and see if that helps. and look at coils like NJ suggested

DBear

Yes. In fact, it can feel like you just hit a brick wall for a moment.

Fauken

iTrader: (6)

Can a speed sensor cause the hesitation while driving, we had found that to be the problem in my friend's Camry, and now she doesn't get that "brick wall" hesitation, and her problem was fixed

Swazey

MAF should only cause hesitation under load. The car sill start and ilde fine, but when you put the car in gear and try to drive you won't get very far.

Swazey

O2 sensor would cause hesitation and bad gas mileage. So would injectors, dirty IACV and TB, failing coils and dirty plugs. Did they fix the banks running rich/lean?

Like everyone said, start with cleaning your MAF. If your injectors or coil packs were failing then your check engine light should be on.

How's your gas mileage?

2 G's at the stealership? DAMN SON

Paul S

According To Napoli Nissan, changing out the bad O2 sensor fixed the fuel mix between the banks. I tend to believe that because the car starts up nicely now where in cold temperatures, it tended to stall and need some gas pedal help to start. it's not very cold right now so it only takes a few minutes for the engine to reach the temp where the computer drops the motor to low idle .Then at any time, the car can stall. Could be 2 minutes or 20 minutes.

As for gas mileage, I felt like it has been low over the last year or so.And I've been changing plugs a lot, meaning once every year. Seems like a lot for a non high performance car.

And I'll never get taken for a ride by a dealer ship again. I'm done trusting businesses.

Swazey

I've been burned by the dealership also, only took 1 time for me to learn my lesson. Ask around about local mechanics and find a trusted one. Get to know the shop on a personal level and you won't have to worry about not trusting them with your car of having a large bill.

A bad 02 could be why your gas mileages suffered, but you should try to figure out exactly how much you are burning through. Wait until your gas light goes on and fill the tank until the pump shuts off automatically. Before you start driving, make sure your trip is zero. When your gas light goes on again, fill up until pump shuts off automatically and divide the miles driven by the gallons it took to refill the tank. Then you will have a very accurate value for your gas mileage.

You car might not be breathing properly, did you clean your TB and IACV? That might help

Paul S

THe throttle body has been cleaned.The back side was really dirty. But I haven't gotten to any of the other controls yet.I'm going after the IACV and Mass Air next.

ENv95

I am having the same situation right now and results with cleaning the MAF yet? Or just swapping? I completely tore out the metal screen and i have a POS ebay sri in there could that also. Be. The problem?