dmpesso

belt parkway/van wyck, That is highway driving except when theres traffic, now thats a different story.

stocked out max

iTrader: (2)

if your commuting in the morning then there is no way in H*ll that your driving at these speeds,

stay off the brake, don't tail gate, coast, and ease the trottle.

and if that doesn't work sell your max and get a prius.

dmpesso

in the morning it is fairly easy to go 60 and 80 but not all the time, but what im trying to say is, my driving style is definitely NOT what the problem is...

Rydicule

Count the number of times your car "shifts" (RPM needle drops). If it shifts four times, your torque converter is locking. If it only shifts 3, then it's not.

dmpesso

so will on a straight roadway letting it shift at 2 RPMS be fine? and your saying if it shifts 4 times then there is no problem?

STILLENGLE

he said three not 4 you see what people mean by you not listening.

dmpesso

maybe ur not listening, he SAID IF IT SHIFTS FOUR TIMES ITS LOCKING MEANING IT WORKS, if its shifts 3 THEN ITS NOT SO IM RIGHT

Count the number of times your car "shifts" (RPM needle drops). If it shifts four times, your torque converter is locking. If it only shifts 3, then it's not.

magdocjr

Why are you trying to give someone answers? You have started so many worthless threads asking questions when most of the answers you have asked are in the stickies in the various forums dealing with the questions you asked. You have made it very apparent that you know nothing about your car much less anyone else's car. Please quit posting until you learn to use the search function and have read/comprehend all the posts dealing with your search.

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

It didn't shift that time My shift_light went on though, you see it there in yellow?

PandaXpress

iTrader: (80)

must be a tip-tronic the gen 5.75 max

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

stillengle, maximumpower01, and maddocjr, please don't make stupid wothless' posts, regardless of wether or not he has done so in the past that doesn't give you the right to, that's mad hypocritical.

Yes, the lock-up tourqe converter will feel like a 4th shift, almost like having a 5th gear, it only occurs at highway speeds, so you won't feel it until around 60mph at very light throttle, and the rpms will only drop roughly 2-300. Accelerate slowly from a stop and count the shifts like nmex said. FPR= fuel pressure regulator. To test the fuel pressure on your car (unless you have adaptors to connect to the flange connectors) you would have to releive the fuel pressure, disconnect the battery, then cut the rubber fuel line and 'tee' into it with a fuel pressure gauge for a fuel-injected car (high pressure), once the gauge is connected inline with the fuel system there are specifications for fuel pressure during idle and with the 'key on'. But then, afterwards, you would need to fix the line that you cut, so you would have to insert some tubing and clamps to safely and properly 'repair' it, even if you have adaptors so you could unbolt the connections and tee into the fuel system without cutting the line it is still alot of work. Price, it all depends, me personally I would charge $50, but I tend to be on the cheap side.

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

I wouldn't say it's an FP issue. Also, even if it was, how do you remedy easily? I would like to see AFR's but that's just me.

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

but he's starting to run out of possibilities, though I would love to see even a tail-sniffer result.

just to clarify, you are on stock rims/tires correct? That will throw your mileage off a little for two different reasons.

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

You mean having aftermarket will throw off for 2 different reasons? The reason i need to clarify is because the way you typed it there, it almost seems to imply that having stock wheel/tire combo will throw mileage off

One reason being, weight and rotational mass. And I'm not sure on the other, but if it is what I think it is, it may be flawed. Were you thinking overall diameter? This will affect REAL mileage (taken from a GPS or similar device). The reason I say this is because if you do not have such a device, the entire car as a whole will give you the same calculated MPG, but it wont be truly real.

This is because even if the tires are smaller/larger, these offsize tires are still connected to VSS, which gives the same false signal to the Speedometer/odometer/trip meter/RPM, in affect, giving false data.

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

yeah I meant if he DIDN'T have stock overall diameter. yes that's what I was getting at, wow, I just confused the heck out of myself reading your post and then trying to visualize everything.

SEmy2K2go

iTrader: (10)

dmpesso - Earlier in the thread you mentioned that your family mechanic performed a tune-up on your car and replaced the spark plugs. Were you present while this work was being done? The spark plug swap on the 3.5 is a bit more in-depth than what it is on the 3.0 or many other cars due to the amount of work involved with removing the intake. If he happened to do something incorrectly, it's quite possible that you might still be having MPG issues. You also mentioned that you did have a CEL (engine light) and then he "plugged in the green thing" which sounds like the connector for one of the o2 sensors. If this part is actually faulty, it also may need replaced.

dmpesso

It wasnt my family mechanic, it was 2damizzax from NYCMAXIMAS who installed new plugs and found my old ones to be cooked and the rear 3 to be drenched in oil. im positive he did it right, i watched him take the whole IM off and he knows alot of what hes doing. after installing the new plugs i got a CEL, it was some code about a throttle body position sensor i think, he plugged in the green thing under the hood a little harder, erased the code, and it never came back. he said the reason the code came up was he must of unplugged it and didnt plug it back in enough, besides that the code never came back. I used to always see 16 MPG in the computer but now it always says 18.1 or 18 even though i dont really see any difference. So yea i guess the spark plugs helped for maybe 1 MPG or so but obviously the problem is deeper than this because my problem is still not resolved. And considering the horrible condition my old plugs were in, i mean they were like BLACK and the rear 3 were drenched in oil, we thought this wud fix the issue, but of course it didnt.

dmpesso

I have toyo proxes all over except for where I sit there is a bridgestone toranza. Reason being Is i had bridgestone toranzas in the front, the passenger side was ripping so when i got it replaced they put a toyo proxy.

dmpesso

well yesterday i tried and tried to feel those shifts, but i could only make it to about 3, it takes FOREVER, i was already going like almost 50mph when it shifted the third time and i couldnt get it shift a 4th time, your saying on a highway from a deadstop or so, it should shift all 3 times but then the last shift should drop the needle a very small amount? and if i dont have this then wat? BTW i notice that if i press the gas kinda hard my tranny doesnt shift, the RPMS just fly up, is this supposed to happen, like under wat circumstances is ur tranny NOT supposed to shift? and for the fuel pressure test, does this usually happen to maximas or is this more of a check this as ur last resort typa thing? becuz i spoke to some mechanic who was standing outside of autozone in queens the other day and he said for a fuel pressure test hed charge me 50 bucks. is it true you have to perform all those things u said? is that the ONLY known way to test it? I really dont wanna go thru all that if i dont have to. I heard it mite be that my MAF is GOING bad so that way im not getting a code but its going bad so that will reduce my MPG. could that be it? im gonna try a MAF swap with someone else and see the difference, wat i dont understand EVEN BY READING the threads and searching so please dont flame me, how EXACTLY do u know if u need a TSB ECU reflash after installing a maf, what if the maf is used? thanks lemme know please

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

the rear three were drenched in oil on the top of the plug correct? NOT on the tip or inside the cylinder right? broken rear valve cover, fairly common problem. Now were getting somewhere. the lock-up tc shift is very hard to notice, but it is noticable. I'll let one of the more experienced 5th gen guys reply about the maf question. hold off on testing your fuel-pressure for now.

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

Aside from how many times it shifts, RPM/speed is important.

Page 3 http://forums.maxima.org/showpost.ph...9&postcount=86

dmpesso

yes, top of the plug, then when we took the plugs out, i guess the oil went through so he says... I took it to the stealership and they said they tested the valve covers and they werent leaking but the water pump was so they replaced it, cuz they said there was no oil on the plugs, so obviously its a very small leak that accumilates over time because i brought it there with the brand new plugs so the oil probably didnt get through yet.. Lets say it was leaking from the bottm, becuz i do remember oil getting on the electrodes but that may just be because it dripped down becuz i do remember him saying theres a bunch of oil on top of the plugs, but if it was on the bottom what would THAT mean besides rear valve covers? stealership says there has to be oil on the plugs for them to replace the valve covers under warranty.. guess ill wait a couple months then bring it back hopefullly if the problem still exists there will be oil on them

dmpesso

so is it supposed to shift even thought your kinda punching it?

STILLENGLE

OMG! Please go to a car dealer and trade your car in then go to motor vehicle and hand in your license!! we are tired of looking at all your worthless threads you apparently dont want our opinion because you argue with us. you do not belong near a car or a nissan. please take the bus to work for now on that way you wont have car trouble.

SEmy2K2go

iTrader: (10)

"The little green thing" Did you even read all of what I posted? That's a connector for one of your o2 sensors. If the sensor or the connector is faulty, this could be contributing to your poor gas mileage. I'd look at replacing the o2 sensors at this point.

dmpesso

It wasnt an o2 sensor code though, he wouldve told me, it was a throttle position code or something like that...

SEmy2K2go

iTrader: (10)

So why not get the throttle position sensor replaced then?

dmpesso

And that will help my mileage? I figured if that piece was a problem, the code would come up again, but it never came back so we figured it was just not plugged in enough or something.. I highly doubt thats the reason for my MPG

SEmy2K2go

iTrader: (10)

Everyone's offering you help and suggestions, yet you shrug them off and "doubt that's the reason"...then figure it out yourself.

dmpesso

im not saying that, SO UR SAYING SINCE THE CODE CAME UP AND IT NEVER CAME BACK AFTER WE ERASED IT, JUST REPLACE THAT PART, you expect me to replace everything everyone says, ive never heard of that causing a loss in MPG, if the code came back then i can understand why ur saying that but being that it was deleted and never came back doesnt that mean the there is no problem? and BTW the stealership told me my drive belts are cracked.. can that contribute to MPG loss?

sweetjackal82

I am riding with a damaged front main o2 sensor (with CEL) causing mine to run rich and still getting 28.6 mpg on the highway in 6th gear at 80mph!!!!

Sorry for your luck...

dmpesso

my point exactly, that there is definitely a problem, and its not my "driving style" or "living in new york"

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

sorry, but recommending someone replace parts without proper diagnoses isn't such a good idea, lots of people waste lots and lots of money doing that, and besides, he got the tps code immediatly after removing the IM, and they checked the first logical thing, which turned out to be the problem from what it sounds like. dmpesso, at this point I'm going to recommend you either trade the thing in for a 6-speed so you can get closer to the mpg sweetjack is getting AND this thread can be over with, or option #2 test drive another a/t maxima just like yours, unless you don't mind waiting, next time I am driving in my moms car on the highway I will record the mph vs rpm at a given highway speed, and also take a closer look at when the shifts and tourqe-convertor lock up occur

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

If for some reason your belts were over-tightened that could cause a mpg loss, god if that was the cause that would make this thread great, lol.

CoolMax

iTrader: (7)

Yeah that was my buddy, dat thing fast yo. I dip on em dough, wanna race 4 pinks? I took an '03, I figure an 02 is a cakewalk. nah pinks is to much, tell you what though, $200- and I'm completely serious, I'll drive halfway to cleveland and we'll find a good place to do it.

kukx30de

iTrader: (4)

01 gle auto here... 140K miles....

in normal street driving i can easily feel the tc engage at 40mph with the rpms at about 1600 or a little more... at 60mph i am at 2000 or a little higher and about 3000 rpms at 90...

hope this helps...

fyi.. this week i have been really driving short trips and a few freeway trips... my mpg has been at 15 or little over.... but i did a highway trip last week and i got 26.7 not bad for the auto.

mist max2000

iTrader: (16)

why hasnt this thread disapeared yet . . .


to the OP are u sure you calculated your mpg correctly to begin with .. 15mpg x 16.5 (filled to the brim) is roughly 250 miles per tank, whichis slightly below average... 18mpg which is more realistic x16.5 gallons comes out to roughly 300 miles per tank, also- shooting down suggestions FTMFL ,... i think its time to see a new mechanic . . .

Puppetmaster

iTrader: (48)

People are not asking him to throw money at the car for no reason... he asked for suggestions on what to look for to solve his problem and that is exactly what he got. We all know that there is no way to be correct w/o seeing or driving the car in person, which is why people are throwing out suggestions, I agree that some suggestions are more educated than others, but people have at least been trying to help.

Although, since he is shooting everyone's suggestions down, so what he is really looking for is for someone to fix his "problem" and give him the 20+ mpg he wants, all via the keyboard.

upstatemax

iTrader: (15)

If he does not want to use the info... I say do what is normally done with his threads.

Puppetmaster

iTrader: (48)

I've kept it open because the discussion has been constructive for the most part, but its starting to lose steam now. We'll see....