taylor21

Please fellow 4th gen lovers lend me your ear. Recently purchased my second 4th gen ( i have a 1995 as well ) Maxima. Its a five speed that was advertised as could not start. I paid $600.00 but now I wish I hadn't. Me with the benefit of this Org. jumped at the possibilty of a good find. I replaced both crankshaft sensors, cleaned MAF, heard the humming of the fuel pump when the key is on, sprayed starter fluid into breather. What's next? Car seems almost ready to start but no cigar.

Amerikaner83

iTrader: (17)

Three things to ignition: FUEL, AIR, and SPARK.

Sounds like you at least have a little fuel flow with the pump priming so that's good. Is it a good pump? Could be bad from being run on empty...

Spark..do you have it? Have you checked for it?


The starter itself could be bad...same with alternator...

asand1

iTrader: (1)

If the starter spins the engine over at a pretty good speed you can check the starter and alternator off the list. Pull a coil and lay it on the valve cover with a sparkplug in it, have someone crank the engine over and look for spark. Test the fuel pressure and check for injector pulse (listen with a screwdriver for clicking). Do a compression test.
There are MANY things that could be at fault. Faulty ignition switch, harness, bad grounds, sensors, etc. Start diagnosing each aspect.

taylor21

Thank you. I heard that even if you replace the crankcase sensor they may need to be adjusted. When cranking it does seem to turn slightly faster than normal. How does one check the fuel pressure? Lastly, could the timing chain be the culprit?

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

Does the timing chain look as if it has been fiddled with? In other words, is the case that houses the timing chain show signs of being opened?

Anyway, timing should NOT be an issue, and if it is, you have WAY bigger problems, like replace the motor problems.

DW

bksmax11203

iTrader: (1)

If im not mistaken you said you sprayed starter fluid into the breather valve?? If im correct and this is the way i did and it worked, spray the starting fluid into th intake manifold thru the throttle body.

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

When you say almost ready to start do you mean that you hear the motor kindof turning over from spark firing but not quite? Like the spark firing is just not quite enough to keep the momentum going to lift off, so to speak? Sounds almost like it may be flooded, but thats too easy a fix.

Also, when you put in lighter fluid, it does not start at all?

Replace the fuel pressure regulator if the original one is still there. Maybe its failing so bad now that no fuel is getting to the injectors.

Basically, with lighter/starter fluid, the car should start and then die. If that happens then it means you are getting spark and air. So the problem is fuel. FPR. Do that definitely for starters.

If your car shows no sign of starting with lighter fluid, then you have spark problems. Check ALL fuses. In the car , drivers side right by your left knee. The fuesbox next to the battery, also the relays next to the power steering reservoir on the passenger side.
You may have some sort of ignition problem that affects the ENTIRE ignition system.

Check engine light? Get the codes. Because the car is not starting I guess you cant tell, but get the codes anyway. The car's computer may be able to tell you what's up.

Also, how loud is the fuel pump noise you hear? It should be barely noticeable. On my car I don't hear the pump at all, but I hear the fuel being pushed from the tank to the fuel rail. If the fuel pump noise is kindof loud, then the fuel pump is definitely dying. Replace it.

DW

maxima2fst4u

Not always tho if a fuel pump being loud is it going bad i hear mine everyday past 4 years its the loudest when there is a quater tank of gas or less...on s10 blazers u here there fuel pumps 24/7 only time u dont hear there fuel pumps is when they arent working lol

ShocknAwe

iTrader: (3)

Never rule out bad spark plugs even if they are new. Ground the starter to the frame and see if that helps

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

Let me see if you can follow my though pattern here. I compared the fuel pump sounds of my 1998 I30 to your 1999 maxima.....pretty much the exact same car, so the sounds should be the same.

You mention a Chevy S10 blazer. OK, so how about I mention a Mercedes Benz S-class from the 1980s, where the fuel pump was located outside of the tank. They should sound similar, right?

DW

maxima2fst4u

No im just daying because a fuel pump that is loud dont always mean its going bad...

maxima2fst4u

Try undoing the ground from the block i just did it to mine fired right up on first crank and is back to 100 percent performance and everything idk y but its not grounded to the block and runs perfect now...weird i know but unbolt it from the block leave it hanging start it up and see if it works

taylor21

First thanks to all that commented thus far.When i went to check spark from plugs two out of three in the front had damaged ignition coils. In other words they were in seperate pieces. Need to order new coils. Could that keep it from starting? The fuel pump did not seem overly loud but one could hear it without being in trunk compartment. The timing cover did not appear ever to be tampered with....whew!

maxima2fst4u

Yea bad coils could be the blame..replace those and along with some good ngk platnium and give it a try...if u can hear ur fuel pump i say u are just fine...

maxima2fst4u

Ngk spark plugs i mean lol

taylor21

Thank you...will do!

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

Be careful which coils you buy. Aftermarket ignition coils are temperamental. Get OEM. Even used OEM. I suggest going to car-part.com and pick some used originals because new ones can be very expensive. Like $300 for all 6.

DW

asand1

iTrader: (1)

They would all have to be dead to cause a no start, not likely and a lot of dough for a shotgun fix. download the FSM and start testing things.

Brokimus Maximus

Just wondering if you found a solution to your problem? I am having a similar issue in that my 99 will crank til the battery dies but it refuses to fire. Not even an occasional pop. plenty of fuel but can't get any spark. No codes, no fuses, no other symptoms. :-(

FrankRedd

Where r the 4th gen grounds located??? I think thats wats wrong with my car