It's been months now with this no start problem . The car will crank and crank all day long , the car will smell like fuel and you'll even get a little smoke here and there . I've replaced the starter , alternator , battery , coils and wires , plugs , I cleaned the entire intake system and injectors , I replaced the fuel pump , MAF sensor , crank sensor and cam sensor , and even wired a push to start directly to the starter. Now here's the thing , it'll start right up if I pop start it and it'll run and drive perfectly . What could this be? With the push to start going directly to the starter it bypasses all "safety" switches or anything like that. I don't get how turning it over with the starter is any different than turning it over with a pop start , I could really use the help or have some ideas thrown at me!

 

Inmobilizer or whatever the name is, the car wont turn on at the ignition if the system is not working right, have you look at it?

 

Might also be a bad key. the chip in it might have gotten corrupted.

 

I had a similar problem that was fixed by replacing the fuel pressure regulator. The regulator is located in the fuel tank as part of the fuel filter assembly. It's a relatively cheap ($40? if I recall) replacement and I'd recommend doing the filter as well ($20) if you decide to replace it. Not sure where you're located but I usually order from www.nissanpartsasap.com in TN. If you don't mind waiting for shipping their prices are hard to beat for OEM parts...

Here's a link to the parts page you're looking for (This link is for an '02 with a 3.5)

Fuel & Engine Control

EDIT: If you decide to replace the regulator make sure you get new O-rings as well. One for the fuel tank compartment and one for the regulator. Here are the part numbers you'll need from the link above...

17342 - Filter compartment O-ring
16400Z - Fuel Filter
22670Z - Fuel Pressure Regulator
16618X - Regulator O-ring

housecor has a great write-up for replacing the fuel filter. You can follow the same steps to replace the regulator...

How To: Fuel Filter Replacement

 

For those that are saying immobilized or bad key, that is not the case here. If the immobilizer is active, it cuts off the fuel injectors. Since the op can smell gas, the car is not immobilized. The gas smell also says the fuel pump is good and pumping away.

If this no start problem started after the push to start button was installed, I can believe it. Wiring it directly to the starter solenoid does by-pass safety features, but it also turns on an anti-theft feature. When the ignition key is turned to the start position, the ignition switch sends 12 volts to the ECU on pin 42 (I think for all years of the 5th gen). If the 12 volts is not there, the ECU will not allow the engine to start.

 

Did you ever find out what the problem was? I am having the same issue with my 02 3.5 gle. The starter bypass is an awesome idea. I'm gonna hook one up ASAP. Then I won't have to get in the car to crank it! Hopefully