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idle relearn not working, need help!

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Old Jun 8, 2008 | 10:54 AM
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idle relearn not working, need help!

I have a 03 altima se and decided to clean out the throttle body a bit ago. I took the TB off and opened the plate to clean it and all that. After I reconnected it I had the infamous p0507 code and a high idle. I did the manual idle relearn about 10 times. The idle would be correct at the last step of the relearn but once I started the car again, the idle would be high again and after a couple driving cycles I would have the ses/code again too.

I went and bought a different oe throttle body on ebay off a lower mileage quest since I was told that moving the TB plate by hand messes up the throttle body (still dont know if that is true or not, thats what the dealership told me). Installed it and did all the relearns w/ the idle air being the last. Still the same problem. Tried it about 5 times, still the same problems with the same P0507 code.

On the scanner I have it looks like my ignition timing is off about 10 degrees at idle. Im also getting pretty poor gas milage compared to what I'd normally get.

What Im lost on now is what my next step should be. I called the dealer and they are already telling me Im probably going to need a new throttle body. But this is a different one now....But I know there is also a TSB concering issues like this and something about a PCM reflash.

I know I will probably have to take it to the dealership, I just would like to have my info in order so they dont try to get me to buy something I dont need.

Ive posted up these questions at nissanclub but in my searching of posts there just seems to be alot more intelligence/knowledge here...I hope you guys can help me out, thanks!
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 10:59 AM
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It's a hit or miss. I clean my TB all the time, and get the code initially, then it goes away when I perform that procedure a week later.
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 11:07 AM
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i cleaned my throttle body...had to replace it and the ECU
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 11:16 AM
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Originally Posted by SoonerFan
i cleaned my throttle body...had to replace it and the ECU
Damn, why the ecu? Did they try to reflash 1st?
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 11:20 AM
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Originally Posted by MikeSDA
Damn, why the ecu? Did they try to reflash 1st?
i tried all the relearns...the service department tried (several times over a couple days)...they determined that the bad TB messed up the ECU so it wouldnt take the relearn
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 11:26 AM
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Some get screwed, others live with it for a week, and then it is all good.
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 11:32 AM
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Originally Posted by NmexMAX
Some get screwed, others live with it for a week, and then it is all good.
true....but most service department wont even clean it so i recommend that people play it safe and leave it alone...it cost me a lot to fix the problem
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 11:55 AM
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I have the same exact problem. Cleaned the TB, the relearn works immediatly after I do it, but after I restart the car the idle goes back to 1100rpm. I already have a new ECU waiting to get reprogrammed, but looks like I need a new TB first.
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 06:27 PM
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Meh this blows, so I may need a new ECU too? Nissan should sell the car with a huge sticker on the TB that says "dont even think about touching it"

Im trying to find more info on the one TSB that deals with this problem, I just want to read it to see what it says. The tsb is, TSB: NTB05-067

I saw nissan took a TSB and turned it into a recall...that would be nice if that happened here too..lol I know Im dreaming. But really this seems to be a really common issue between all the 3.5's

I also dont understand why any of this would take out the TB or the ECM, Ive taken my other TB apart and other than the electric motor, 3 gears, 2 return springs and TPS sensor located in the black cover underneath another black plate, thats about it. Moving it manually or not or cleaning it I just dont see where the issue would arise other than the plate doesnt need to be as open as it used to be since the carbon is no longer blocking airflow. I know thats a simplistic view on it but it just all seems like overcomplicated BS as compared to non DBW set ups.

Last edited by MikeSDA; Jun 8, 2008 at 06:44 PM.
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 10:12 PM
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Originally Posted by MikeSDA
Meh this blows, so I may need a new ECU too? Nissan should sell the car with a huge sticker on the TB that says "dont even think about touching it"

Im trying to find more info on the one TSB that deals with this problem, I just want to read it to see what it says. The tsb is, TSB: NTB05-067

I saw nissan took a TSB and turned it into a recall...that would be nice if that happened here too..lol I know Im dreaming. But really this seems to be a really common issue between all the 3.5's

I also dont understand why any of this would take out the TB or the ECM, Ive taken my other TB apart and other than the electric motor, 3 gears, 2 return springs and TPS sensor located in the black cover underneath another black plate, thats about it. Moving it manually or not or cleaning it I just dont see where the issue would arise other than the plate doesnt need to be as open as it used to be since the carbon is no longer blocking airflow. I know thats a simplistic view on it but it just all seems like overcomplicated BS as compared to non DBW set ups.
simply put -
you mess up the throttle position sensor in the TB...it sends a signal of where it is to the ECU...well now that value is off and the ECU has a different value...sends that back to the TB...TB uses the ECU value and changes....then uses its own value and changes again...signal goes back and forth....the TB goes back and forth between its value and the ECU's...this is why the idle is so erratic...after a while, the ECU starts having problems
Old Jun 8, 2008 | 10:36 PM
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Hey everybody, I'm new here, been reading the forums for a while though, and this is a great place. But anyways, I just thought I would throw this out there, the Haynes manuals for maximas up through 2004 says we shouldn't touch our throttle body insides, not only for the sake of the electronics, but also because there's a special coating that is supposed to prevent the build up of carbon. I don't think it works too well, since people are having problems after cleaning out the carbon that's not supposed to be built up in there, but oh well. Good luck.
Old Jun 9, 2008 | 08:43 AM
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I read a thread that suggested to perform the idle relearn, throttle reposition and reset the ecu. Can't remember in which order, but some folks had luck doing that. If the steps are performed in a certain order, the idle should remain correct even after shutting the car off.
Old Jun 14, 2008 | 12:56 AM
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I ended up going to the dealership for the idle air relearn, they did it and it kept it, im driving on my 4th day now and all is good. I guess there is somethings only the consult 2 can do?
Old Jun 14, 2008 | 02:24 PM
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Originally Posted by MikeSDA
I ended up going to the dealership for the idle air relearn, they did it and it kept it, im driving on my 4th day now and all is good. I guess there is somethings only the consult 2 can do?
How much did that set you back?
Old Sep 9, 2009 | 03:47 PM
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I took the chance and cleaned my TB. I removed it and moved the butterfly by hand, sprayed the crap out of it and scrubbed it clean; all the things that were highly unrecommended. Guess what? P0507 and messed up idle. Surprised? I wasn't. But what I didn't figure was what a B to do the relearn.

The idle relearn would work every time but would reset when I restarted the engine.

Until today. I tried everything the org could offer, but to no avail. I did the relearn and unplugged the battery, thinking that was the key. Not a chance. Three weeks later and I'm pulling my hair out, deadset on doing the relearn every time I was going to start the car.

That was it. Doing the relearn twice in a row. Fixed. Period.

Hope this helps somebody, someday.
Old Sep 9, 2009 | 04:55 PM
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You got lucky then. Same thing that happened to Sooner happened to me. Luckily the ECM was covered under warranty. But still, not a cheap fix.
Old Sep 9, 2009 | 06:40 PM
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what happens if you make up your mind that your not going to clean the TB? Are you guys cars running bad making you have to clean the TB? I am thinking about buying a 02 max but after reading up on this hair pulling problem I just may buy a 5.0 gen instead.
Old Sep 9, 2009 | 07:51 PM
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Wait wait wait.

Before everyone goes and buys new ECU's and TB's, there is a TSB for this exact issue that many people/dealerships don't seems to know about.

I can email it to you all, just let me know.

It involves unplugging the front 3 fuel injectors to force the idle lower and trying the relearn again.

The idle relearn will not take if the idle is too high to begin with.

This forces the idle back into the acceptable threshold.

Check some of the throttle body cleaning threads for my other posts, as they go into more detail.
Old Sep 9, 2009 | 08:40 PM
  #19  
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Originally Posted by cmax1
what happens if you make up your mind that your not going to clean the TB? Are you guys cars running bad making you have to clean the TB? I am thinking about buying a 02 max but after reading up on this hair pulling problem I just may buy a 5.0 gen instead.
If doing it correctly, nothing happens: http://forums.maxima.org/6848584-post28.html
I have done it with my car several times without any issues.
Old Sep 10, 2009 | 07:52 AM
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Originally Posted by Unklejoe
Wait wait wait.

Before everyone goes and buys new ECU's and TB's, there is a TSB for this exact issue that many people/dealerships don't seems to know about.

I can email it to you all, just let me know.

It involves unplugging the front 3 fuel injectors to force the idle lower and trying the relearn again.

The idle relearn will not take if the idle is too high to begin with.

This forces the idle back into the acceptable threshold.

Check some of the throttle body cleaning threads for my other posts, as they go into more detail.

I can confirm this as I just did it with my car and was able to relearn the idle. I know mine is a 01 but had a similar problem and had to replace IACV, TPS and ecu. Relearned the idle with the consult 2 and everything is good to go. I only had to unplug one coil though, not 3 fuel injectors. The coils are easier to unplug anyway.

Idle issues finally resolved. Now looking to sell the car.
Old Sep 10, 2009 | 10:23 AM
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Originally Posted by 94maxteamrtv
I can confirm this as I just did it with my car and was able to relearn the idle. I know mine is a 01 but had a similar problem and had to replace IACV, TPS and ecu. Relearned the idle with the consult 2 and everything is good to go. I only had to unplug one coil though, not 3 fuel injectors. The coils are easier to unplug anyway.

Idle issues finally resolved. Now looking to sell the car.
Unplugging the coils will do the same thing.

I just say to unplug the injectors because even when you unplug the coils, gasoline is still sprayed into the cylinder from the injector, and it makes its way down into the cats where it can be burned and cause damage.
Old Sep 10, 2009 | 12:24 PM
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Originally Posted by Unklejoe
Unplugging the coils will do the same thing.

I just say to unplug the injectors because even when you unplug the coils, gasoline is still sprayed into the cylinder from the injector, and it makes its way down into the cats where it can be burned and cause damage.
Hmm. Didnt even think of that. Oh well the relearn will only take a min after you unplug anyway but I guess fuel injectors would be better.
Good Luck to all with the problem and finding someone with a consult II. It is not impossible but a pain to relearn the idle without it.
Old Sep 10, 2009 | 06:32 PM
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Originally Posted by cmax1
what happens if you make up your mind that your not going to clean the TB? Are you guys cars running bad making you have to clean the TB? I am thinking about buying a 02 max but after reading up on this hair pulling problem I just may buy a 5.0 gen instead.
Throttles will get dirty no matter what kind of intake filter you use. Blow-by, at any amount, will crud up your throttle plate regardless of your intake filter. Too much crud will make the throttle sticky, which to me seems the worst case scenario for any electronic TB.

The differences between the 5.0 and 5.5 should be a no-brainer. The 02-03's have extra goodies. VQ35DE is also a good thing.
Old Nov 25, 2009 | 12:01 PM
  #24  
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Here's some more info on this whole subject that I learned the hard way:

1 - Leaks are a big problem. I cleaned my TB and put in new plugs and when I put it all back together, my idle was about 1500. I tried everything I could find on here, but to no avail. I finally broke down and took it to the dealer, where they told me I needed some new gaskets and that the whole fix would be about $550. I bought the plenum gasket (6 holes) for about $50 and paid $100 more for their diagnosis, and decided to do it myself. After getting it together, still idling high. Back to the dealer - ugh! Fortunately, the mechanic showed me a trick. By spraying carb/throttle body cleaner at various connections, he showed me that it was leaking where the double-barrelled tube from the TB connects to the plenum. I made the mistake of taking that off. Don't do it! If you spray the cleaner at the joint, and there's a leak there, the idle rpm will drop briefly. Anyway, I decided to use the gasket-in-a-tube because I couldn't get the OE gasket to seal. Still idling high! CRAP! So I sprayed cleaner at where the TB connects to the double-barrel aluminum tube. Sure enough, another leak. Another goo-gasket, and I finally got all the leaks.
2 - After fixing the leaks, it still idled a little high (around 1000 rpm) which lit the SES light after a reset at Auto Zone. (my 03 doen't have a CEL, it has a Service Engine Soon light, just to be clear). So I still had to do the relearn. The dealer wanted about $115 more, so I tried several times and finally got it to work, using the sequence I found on one of these boards from maxima dude. Where he says CEL, read SES light. I did go through the whole procedure - ECU Reset, Accel Pedal Release Position learn, Throttle Valve Closed Position learn, and last Idle Air Volume Learn. I had to do it several times, and as maxima dude says, timing is critical.

I hope this helps someone avoid the headaches I have been through.
Old Nov 25, 2009 | 06:35 PM
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I used the procedures on (i believe) the owens family page.

The timing is critical, took me 4 tries. It's pretty cool when you think you need a new TB, then magically you start her up and it idles@ 700rpm.
Old Jul 28, 2010 | 01:53 PM
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Originally Posted by atomicplague
I took the chance and cleaned my TB. I removed it and moved the butterfly by hand, sprayed the crap out of it and scrubbed it clean; all the things that were highly unrecommended. Guess what? P0507 and messed up idle. Surprised? I wasn't. But what I didn't figure was what a B to do the relearn.

The idle relearn would work every time but would reset when I restarted the engine.

Until today. I tried everything the org could offer, but to no avail. I did the relearn and unplugged the battery, thinking that was the key. Not a chance. Three weeks later and I'm pulling my hair out, deadset on doing the relearn every time I was going to start the car.

That was it. Doing the relearn twice in a row. Fixed. Period.

Hope this helps somebody, someday.
What relearn code did you try?
Old Aug 21, 2010 | 10:50 PM
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Originally Posted by NmexMAX
Some get screwed, others live with it for a week, and then it is all good.
to that after installed spacers had a rough idle tried the relearn didn't work and drove for a little bit went away completely two days later and the code went away about a week or so later was like hell yeah!!
Old Sep 12, 2010 | 05:39 PM
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Idle Relearn Fixed

I FIXED MY RELEARN PROBLEM. AFTER I PUT IN A NEW BATTERY THE ECU WOULD FINALLY STORE PROPER IDLE RPMS !

Few days ago I fixed my idle relearn problem and I decided that I should share it with others on this forum. I will try to quickly explain my situation and make long story short.

About a year ago I decided to replace my spark plugs for colder ones due to extensive engine pinging (helped a little but not much). While replacing spark plugs I saw a very dirty throttle body and decided to clean it. Of course after I got the higher idle RPM.
I have tried many solutions to make the ecu remember the correct rpms after the relearn (I did the relearn procedure at lest 50 times over the course of a year). Nothing worked, ecu did not remember the correct rpms. Finally I learned to live with higher idle rpm. This summer I decided to change the battery and relearn came to my mind. It worked like magic! One time only and its been good since then.

Hope that this help to some people, new battery was my solution to relearn problem.

Just some more info. I tried many things before like hooking up a charger to the battery while relearning (FSM says that the voltage needs to be right). I did unplug one and two injectors, I also tried relearning procedure few times in a row. I tried several things and its pointless to list them all.
Old Sep 12, 2010 | 06:29 PM
  #29  
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REPOSTING THIS AGAIN.

I cleaned my TB and had the same symptoms, tried idle relearn procedure many times but no luck and then finally i found out on infiniti forums that if you disconnect the battery for about 10-12 hours leaving headlights on and then do the idle relearn. Trust me it worked for me, i was in the same boat like you but got lucky. One important thing you also have to perform following procedures too before doing the idle relearn.


Accelerator Pedal Released Position Learning



DESCRIPTION


“Accelerator Pedal Released Position Learning” is an operation to learn the fully released position of the
accelerator pedal by monitoring the accelerator pedal position sensor output signal. It must be performed each
time harness connector of accelerator pedal position sensor or ECM is disconnected.

OPERATION PROCEDURE


1. Make sure that accelerator pedal is fully released.
2. Turn ignition switch “ON” and wait at least 2 seconds.
3. Turn ignition switch “OFF” wait at least 10 seconds.
4. Turn ignition switch “ON” and wait at least 2 seconds.
5. Turn ignition switch “OFF” wait at least 10 seconds.

Throttle Valve Closed Position Learning


DESCRIPTION


“Throttle Valve Closed Position Learning” is an operation to learn the fully closed position of the throttle valve
by monitorizing the throttle position sensor output signal. It must be performed each time harness connector
of electric throttle control actuator or ECM is disconnected.

OPERATION PROCEDURE


1. Turn ignition switch “ON”.
2. Turn ignition switch “OFF” wait at least 10 seconds.
Make sure that throttle valve moves during above 10 seconds by confirming the operating sound

After performing the above procedures then perform idle relearn.Hope fully it will work for you.
Old Sep 13, 2010 | 07:24 PM
  #30  
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I have been messing with the dreaded P0507 code on my 5.5 gen for a few months now but never could get the idle air volume learing sequence to stick. It would work for a few hours but then the SES would come back on. But now I think that I have figured it out. This is what I did and it's worth a try if you have problems with it too.

Warm up car to operating temp and turn off all accessories.
Reset ecu/"SES" light.
Accelerator Pedal Release Position Learning.
Throttle valve closed position learning.
Idle Air Volume Learning (Throttle Position Learning).

Upon completion of resetting the idle air volume learning sequence I did not turn the car off. I drove for about 30 miles and it seemed to keep.


Old Aug 29, 2011 | 09:32 PM
  #31  
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my 2001 i30t strarted acting funny like the rpm's wont go over 2200 rpms even when i hit the gas pedal all the way down, it started doing it sometimes but now its undriveable it feels like it had clog injectors, so most of my research got me to conclude that i need it mass air flow sensor, idle position sensor and throtle position sensor i got all of those part and decided to install my self my the car is still acting the same. is there a way to reset the ecu without going to the dealer???? thanks any help is greatly appreciated
Old Aug 29, 2011 | 09:56 PM
  #32  
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That idle re-learn is crap, i never had any luck with it no matter how much or hard i try. I did the procedure right the CEL blinked and so on and so forth the whole sha-bang of the re-learn. what i end up doing? i bought a remanufacture throttlebody and unplug my battry(both terminals) for 48-50 hours then BAM! havnt had the code for 2000miles+. i hate that code, motor eats a crap load of gas . g'luck tho. replace your ecu and go to the stealership as your last resort but unplug battry for 48-72hours first, then if it dont work move onto somthing else.
Old Aug 30, 2011 | 06:20 AM
  #33  
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Originally Posted by myotherwoman
my 2001 i30t strarted acting funny like the rpm's wont go over 2200 rpms even when i hit the gas pedal all the way down, it started doing it sometimes but now its undriveable it feels like it had clog injectors, so most of my research got me to conclude that i need it mass air flow sensor, idle position sensor and throtle position sensor i got all of those part and decided to install my self my the car is still acting the same. is there a way to reset the ecu without going to the dealer???? thanks any help is greatly appreciated
Your MAF is dead.

Originally Posted by vq_ryder
That idle re-learn is crap, i never had any luck with it no matter how much or hard i try. I did the procedure right the CEL blinked and so on and so forth the whole sha-bang of the re-learn. what i end up doing? i bought a remanufacture throttlebody and unplug my battry(both terminals) for 48-50 hours then BAM! havnt had the code for 2000miles+. i hate that code, motor eats a crap load of gas . g'luck tho. replace your ecu and go to the stealership as your last resort but unplug battry for 48-72hours first, then if it dont work move onto somthing else.
Different things work for different people, glad you're free of the code currently.
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