For the last couple days my maxima has been having a whole lot of trouble idling.. which could easily have something to do with the fact that it was around -20* this morning, but it just cant seem to keep running without me giving it some gas for the first 5 minutes or so... and that really made stop and go traffic a bitch today on my way home. is there anything here anyone has experienced or could suggest a fix for? oh.. and i replaced my maf a couple months ago so its not that
thanks

 

Is it just on initial start-up? Or even after it's warmed up? Any CEL?

 

if this occurs after warm up as well might want to check your idle sensor or see if you are pulling any codes.

 

well its hard to tell becuase it doesnt normally do that when warmer and it is exceptionally cold right now. no cel, except for when it goes on after the engine dies (which i assume happens naturally with a stall because it turns off right away)... it seems like it should be warm enough to run.. and it seems like it should be warm by the time it dies... for comparison, i started up my old '89 camry and that one didnt die on the idle after sitting next to the max in the driveway, so i figured if that car could do it my 2000 maxima shouldnt have a problem..

..that and i couldnt keep it going in traffic coming up on a 4 way stop about half a block from where i was parked, so for a good 10 minutes after the intial start it was dying or struggling to keep running when i didnt give it gas. hmmm.. i guess i rambled a bit. does that explain it better?

 

anyone?

......

 

my car has been idling funny too when its warming up. its smooth but very rough (best comparison - old muscle car with cams with high lift and long duration)...i can feel it in the floor board and steering wheel. im pretty sure its just the cold weather because its fine when it warms up and its driving fine.

 

yeah i know what you mean, but mine doesnt even seem to idle rough like that.. its more just dead when i let off the gas. it used to do that before i did the maf though..

 

your car will do that if you drive it cold.
i "preflight" my car. turn car on...heater, seat warmer, and steering wheel warmer on.
go back inside to fill up my travel mug with coffee
get back in the car and drive

 

To me it seems like you're not running as rich as you should be when the engine is cold. Like the intake air temp sensor is not working right.

 

sooner, i know what you mean. thats usually what i do too, but when the car cant hold the idle i cant go inside because before i can even get back into the house the engine dies, so it cant warm up unless i'm babying it for a good 3 minutes at the very least. does this show any specific part malfunction besides the air temp sensor as kenshi said?

 

Actually what makes more sense is coolant temperature sensor, but could be either.

 

Have you tried building a fire pit under your parking spot? JK Haha

No... that sucks about the idle... but I did a search and came up with this:

Thought I'd mention it... Hope it helps... GL

 

alright thanks guys. i'll check that out.. but i'm not really feeling it right now. the temp hasnt been above 0 since last week

kinda tough to do much of anything outside