My coil packs went out last year so I bought replacement coil packs on eBay for about $200. I swapped them out and changed my spark plugs. It hasn't even been a year and they have gone out again but this time it is even worse. The car is pretty slow and the check engine light flashes without stopping the whole time while driving. My cat converter shakes like crazy at idle. This is really frustrating so I am debating on if I should fix this again or buy another Nissan.

Here are my questions

1) I overheated my engine last year because my radiator blew up. I replaced the radiator but now I have a hissing sound in the engine bay. The car drove fine but if there is a leak, where likely is the problem? Is there a general area that is common for leaks in the 2000 Maxima?

2) Could the overheating have an effect on the coil packs?

3) Before spending $200 again on new coil packs, is there somewhere else I should be looking at or testing?

4) I lost a bolt that holds down one of the coil packs. What size bolt is it so I can go to the hardware store (No dealerships around in my rural area)?

5) My car has had a check engine light for the past 7 years and the only way I passed smog was by resetting the ECU and then passing smog before the light came on. I have a Cattman Y Pipe so one cat is missing. I am guessing I should change the remaining rear O2 sensor and catalytic converter. What else should I change so that I don't have to deal with the check engine light without replacing the Y pipe?

6) I have an EGT gauge and I am noticing that on the freeway at 65mph, it is a tad above 1400 but did get to 1500 yesterday. Is this too high?

7) Am I damaging my engine by driving with the faulty coil packs? It has been a month I'd say.

 

[QUOTE=DOM;8168436]My coil packs went out last year so I bought replacement coil packs on eBay for about $200. I swapped them out and changed my spark plugs. It hasn't even been a year and they have gone out again but this time it is even worse. The car is pretty slow and the check engine light flashes without stopping the whole time while driving. My cat converter shakes like crazy at idle. This is really frustrating so I am debating on if I should fix this again or buy another Nissan.

Here are my questions

1) I'm assuming that you believe you have an intake/vacuum leak since you said 'hissing sound'. The 'general' area to check is the intake and vacuum lines. It's that simple. You'll have to do some hands on or give it someone that can.

2) Yes. The coil packs are susceptible to heat damage. Are yours bad? You'll have to test them individually.

3) If you can't afford replacement costs, don't buy Autozoo electronics.

4) I'm not sure of the exact size off the top of my head. If you're taking a trip to the hardware store anyway, take one out and match it. No room for questions that way and it only takes a few seconds.

5) You need to elaborate on the CEL. What was the code? If it's the secondary O2 sensor, no biggie. Search anti fouler mod or O2 simulator. You'll find a couple of easy options for a secondary O2 sensor code.

6) IDK these specs from memory, but I would say you typically start running into problems above 1500 °F. It also depends how far downstream you're measuring.

7) YES!!!! Anytime you drive with misfires, you are doing damage and causing accelerated wear. Think about it. The whole system suffers. Fix your problem or bum a ride until you do.

 

I can't answer everything, but I'll do what I can.

1 - A hissing sound could be a vacuum leak, an exhaust gas leak or a very small coolant leak. Coolant leaks will get worse over time, so I doubt this one. An exhaust gas leak will change volume/tone with the engine rpm. This is a maybe. A sound of a vacuum leak would be fairly constant regardless of engine rpm. You have not provided enough information for me to make anything other than generalized guesses. You need to try to isolate the sound to a more specific area.

2 & 3 - Not if you had a quality coil pack. If you paid $200 for 6 coil packs, I doubt if you got quality stuff that would last a long time.

4 - If the hardware store has metric bolts, because that is what you need, take another coil pack bolt out and match it up at the hardware store.

5 - Since you are missing an O2 sensor, the check engine light will always be on. You can either weld a bung onto the y-pipe and insall an O2 sensor or you will have to get an O2 simulator.

7 - If you have a coil pack that is not firing, you have raw gasoline that is not getting burned. 2 things are possible. The catalytic converter will get very hot burning the raw gas and will evenually plug up and need to be replaced. The engine cylinder could become worn from the raw gas washing the oil off of the cylinder walls. The raw gas could also get past the piston rings and down into the oil pan and dilute the oil. This would take a long time before problems appeared, but it is possible.

 

Thanks for the replys. I don't have a tester and the autozone where I live said they don't have the equipment to do the scans. The check engine light flashes nonstop while I drive. It used to be 8 flashes but now it is constant flashing the whole time.

The problem is not that I can't afford the coil packs, the problem is I would hate changing these every year $200 a pop. I would rather do this once and be done with it for a long time.

The hissing sound is something I can hear when the hood is popped. I cannot hear it from inside my car.

What is a brand that I should stay away from? Who do you recommend? I see lots of different places selling them on the internet

 

Where on earth do you live that Autozone doesn't do basic OBDII scans? Are there any other part stores in the vicinity? If not, it's time for you to buy a scanner yourself. It's usually cheaper than taking it to a shop a couple times. Plus, you'll probably never own a DD again that doesn't need it. It's worth the investment. You have no choice at this point.

 

It seems that parts stores in California no longer do this for free. It used to be that you would put down a deposit for the scanner, go out to the parking lot and pull the codes, return the scanner and get your money back. They don't let you do this anymore. At least, that's been my experience.

But whatever the reason, yeah just buy one. I got one from Walmart for around $40. It's definitely worth being able to pull the codes yourself and not have to rely on someone else.

 

Okay, I ordered an OBDII scanner from amazon.

I am guessing I need coil packs still though and the ebau ones are crap. There are car websites everywhere that have each coil pack for around $35 while Nissan has them for $89 each. I am hoping I don't spend $534 on a Nissan part with the same warranty the cheaper brand is offering.

So any suggestions?

 

$534??? The chances that you have 6 bad coils all at once? Slim to none. Pinpoint your misfiring cylinder(s) and buy the appropriate amount of coils from Nissan. If you want to save money and buy the aftermarket, be prepared to possibly change them again in the near future. It's really that simple.

 

I had a pretty similar problem with mine having hesitation / misfire and it turned out to be an intake leak causing a lean misfire. I overtightened my IM and cracked it slightly, so maybe its something along those lines

Also think of the other causes of a misfire to start troubleshooting
- No spark (bad plugs or coils )
- out of balance A/F (Intake leak or fuel system issues such as bad injectors, fuel pump etc.)
- Loss of compression ( do a compression test to rule this out)

 

$89 coil packs for an 03? I only wish. I just priced one at the stealership and was quoted $107.

 

I had a similar problem myself with the ignition coils. When I first got the car it was running rough and the 5th gens are notorious for $hitty coils. So without thinking, I bought cheapo coils of ebay. However, they worked fine, but you'll continue to get a check engine light from the ecu. The code will be "Ignition primary" because the computer doesnt "recognize" the aftermarket coils. SO in the long run it will be the cheapest and easiest way to buy 6 new genuine nissan coils, and they have them online, I got a set not but 2 or 3 weeks ago for 350 or so. Basically, w/o genuine nissan coils, you'll always have the ignition primary code. I know it's a b!tch dude, especially when it comes time for inspection.

 

Have to disagree... I know there are some third party coils that do work correctly because I have them. From two sources: 4 from an e-bay source (maybe it was Amazon, can't remember) and 2 from AutoZone. They are working fine so far... except that one came apart, leaving the boot behind, when I tried to replace plugs.

The Autozone replacement, once I dug the boot out of the plug well, was $65.

I don't know how long they'll last in service, but they are working fine for now.

 

Yea I had the same problem, Pain in the a$$. But, do you still have the check engine code on? It's rumored that w/o the genuine coils you cant get the ignition primary to go off. But that may just be some bull$hit that the stealership tells you.

 

nelledge what symptoms you had when you had bad coils ? apart from CEL ..... And is it neccesary to have CEL on a bad coil pack ?

 

Ok,
So I purchased new coils and spark plugs from Dave B. (who was great by the way).

I just spent the evening removing the old coils and spark plugs and putting in the new ones.

I started up my car it was idling rough, died...I started up again and it was so rough I just turned it off. It sounded off as well. I have no idea what I could have done wrong. These things are pretty much plug and play, just a pain to get in and out (the rear ones).

I disconnected the battery, then all cables. I removed all coils painstakingly, then 1 by 1 I would remove and replace all spark plugs. I then reinstalled the appropiate new coils and now it sounds worse than when I first set out to "fix" it.

I checked, all connections are secure, all coils are snug.

Any thoughts before I relegate having it towed to a mechanic?

 

I think to check what it is you need to double check everything you did. Make sure all connections are in the proper places! Something like this happened to me and it turns out a little piece of rubber was somehow stuck in between a spark lug and a coil. Car would idle super rough and then die. Pretty much did the job again and found it.

 

Did you ever get the code scanner you ordered from amazon...What codes are you getting ? maybe its not A coil issue...leaks can cause problems too