Here's the deal, I have a 2000 5spd maxima with a CAI, Cattman Y-pipe, and an after market B-pipe. Those are the only performance modifications I have done to my car. My problem is.....whenever I'm driving and then I kick it to neutral, 90% of the time the car drops below 500RPM's and sometimes it even just shuts off on me while im coasting. Does anyone have any idea on what my problem could be? Any ideas would be really helpful. Thanks.

 

That was exactly the problem I had.

You likely need to have the Fuel Cut TSB done. There are several threads on here about this - even recently. The TSB fixed my problem and they also bumped my idle a bit.

First, you may want to try cleaning your throttle body.

If that doesn't work - take it to the dealer for the TSB. I would reinstall the stock air box, though.

 

I took my car to the dealer last month for ECU update. I bought the car with 37K miles so I had to pay out of my pocket. Well, I had the same problem. My car used to stall most of the time whenever I came to stops.
My idling was like (still is) 0.57-0.62K rpm. I told the service manager that my car's idling a bit low, I like to get it pumped up a little. So he was like let we have a look we'll tell you. 20 mins later, he called me in the office and told me that my car needed an ECU update. The check-up fee was $90 and the reprogramming fee was $95. Total was almost $200.
That was for what, less than 20 mins and they charged me $90, bastards.

Anyway, when I got the car back the idling is still the same. I asked the tech to raise it and he said that it cannot be done. Everything is controlled by computer?????

However you just said that they bumped your idle up a bit??? So he wasn't telling me the truth?

 

They are morons.

Using their Consult II computer they can set and change the idle on the car. (Just like advancing timing).

I would go back and harass them. You paid for them to fix your problem but they didn't do it completely. Now they are telling you they can't fix the idle? What a bunch of crap.

 

I will try to go later today. Thanks man
BTW do you know what should my idling rpm be? I only know that it's lower than auto's

 

MAF sounds be to the culprit.. ALso chcek for air leaks around your CAI..

 

I don't think it is the MAF. He seems to have had exactly the same problem that I did and just as in my case, updating the ECU solved the stalling problem.

I had the same low idle problem associated with my ECU problem and they solved it by bumping my idle a bit after reprogramming the ECU.

That problem was in stark contrast to my MAF failure (years later) which made it nearly impossible to even drive the car.

I agree about the air leaks, though. Leaks between the MAF and the throttle body could cause stalling.

 

mine used to stall on me too....i cleaned the throttle body and the stalling problem went away for good.

 

Had the exact same problem on my 2000 5sp. I decided to take the MAF sensor out and spray it down (had a extra MAF just in case) with electrical cleaner and try using it once it dried out. Stalling problem disappeared and has not come back since. Moral of the story, try cleaning TB and MAF before anything else, you might save yourself some money and grief! Good luck!

 

Damn......thanx alot for all the advise......you all have been very helpful......I'm going to try what all of you told me to do and i'll tell you how it goes. THANX ALOT again!

 

I had the same thing happen to me when having problems with the Service Engine Soon light that kept coming on. The car was stalling at highway speeds when letting up on the gas and putting it into neutral. The Nissan Service told me that then idle was low and performed an Idle Relearn Procedure. They charged me $85.

4 days later "Service Engine Soon" lit up again. This time they reprogrammed the whole ECU under TSB NTB00070. Covered under emissions warrenty.

They did that two weeks ago and have not had a problem since...but it was so nerve wracking in case it does stall that I am constantly on guard! Usually I pop the clutch while in gear and it starts back up, but it was so frustrating.


2000 SE 5 Speed

 

My car never actually shut down on me but close. It usually goes down to 450-500, sometimes down to 350-400 rpm, then bounces right back up. My idling is currently about 580-630. How was your car idling before that trip to nissan dealer? The thing is my SES light never went on. And these techies keep saying that it's normal for the rpm to drop to around 500. I'm paying them for almost nothing. The problemis still there ...

 

When I first brought it in for Service the SES Light was not on. When letting up on the gas, the rpm's would drop as low as 200 rpm and quickly recover. I would say that one out of every five times it would completely stall out. The Tech reported a Low idle and reprogrammed it little higher, or so the Service writer told me. It now idles like at around 700-800 rpm, thats about normal.

 

Wally - that is exactly the problem I had. Once they fixed the idle and reprog'd the ECU it went away. Many times I had to pop the clutch while rolling down the road to restart.

 

I am having this problem too, for a while already. I've got Max2K,manual, idling is about what it is supposed to be - 600 rpm...

How do you clean your throttle body? I took off my intake air duct, looked at the throttle itself, everything looked pretty clean - what to clean there, how? Thanks!

 

Proper idle on my 5spd 2000 (not sure if it's had any ECU reprogramming done) is around 620RPM, consistently (read from OBD-II)

I used to have a problem where, letting the RPMs drop (i.e. revving in neutral, or throwing it in neutral while coasting) would result in the RPMs diving to around 300-400, then quickly recovering to 620. I cleaned the throttle body (and MAF sensor, but that's a different story) and the problem's solved--RPMs drop straight to idle, no lower.

 

MaScott- Manually open the throttle by turning the pulley at the side of the throttle body. The chamber directly inside the throttle plate tends to get pretty dirty. Plus the very edge of the throttle plate gets dirty... and that's where it counts (the carbon buildup at the edge of the throttle plate effectively reduces the throttle opening)

Clean it with the engine OFF, and don't spray the cleaner in--put it on a rag and wipe that **** thoroughly. Get the top and bottom of the chamber, wipe the throttle plate as best you can.
I use GUNK Air Intake & Throttle Body cleaner.

If you have a 2002+ model with the 3.5L engine, I'm not sure how they work (they use an electronically-controlled throttle, so I dunno how you'd get the throttle open...)

 

I had that problem except mine was auto.....everytime I rev up my car RPM drops and start struggle to stay alive and it drops completely and dies out......I got new MAF and no problem

 

Great! Thanks a bunch! Indeed, I did notice that the throttle edges were a bit dirty, but did not pay much attention to that, because it was just on the edge and very little of black soot type stuff...
I will certainly do that *tonight*. Thanks again!

 

this thread helped me too, i tried to clean the tb last night but did not have a long enough screwdriver or ratchet to get to the bolt in between the battery and air filter box jawn...last one i had to remove before taking the whoel assembly off, damn....going to buy more tools today and try again -- for the MAF, where do i buy the electronics cleaner to clean it? learning quickly, though a mechanic i certainly am not...

 

RadioShack should have some.

Be VERY VERY VERY careful with that MAF sensor... I did not spray directly onto the MAF, but sprayed just above it (basically drenched the whole plastic housing in the stuff, and watched it run down the MAF wire... it looked a little more shiny when I was done)

 

awesome, thanks for the tip, i'd have probably f'd it up somehow... appreciate it!

 

Don't replaced anything or make a wrong assumption but do get your ECU scan first, then go from there. The last time my car did that, my # 6 coil was the culprit. It's was shot.(dead). So i got fuel but no spark. see what i'm saying....run like sh*t, stalled and cut-out.

 

I have had this problem for the past three years. I just accepted it because it costs so much to fix. What I am wondering is, will my car pass smog while like this? Or4 do I have to get it fixed before I test the car?

 

Well... I replaced my faulty ignition coil #4, and the idling definitely improved - the engine runs very smoothly, however, it keeps stalling on me, almost like before. I take it so coil replacement did not help cut-outs, and I am looking forward to cleaning throttle body tomorrow before I go anywhere else...
(it could also be the MAF, but I need more to do some research about it before making conclusions...)

 

Yes!!!
Just cleaned my Maxima2K's throttle body - you would not believe, I used up 3 whole rugs on it! Took the first test ride, AND IT WORKS NOW!!! :-)
BTW, a self-locking plastic strap (like one they use to hold a bundle of electrical cables together) worked great as a retainer of the throttle pulley.
Thanks to everyone on this thread, especially to spirilis.

P.S. The only cut-off that's still seems to remain is when I turn the hot/warm engine on.

 

Now, not such a good news... It's been some 20+ days, and the car started stalling on me again during driving. I thought I cleaned literally every little corner of that throttle body. What could be wrong now? I doubt TB got dirty over such a short time... Any ideas?
Thanks!