2003 Maxima GLE, 160K

So, strange issue - I had a code a while back (can't remember it) and brought the car in. Mechanic said new throttle body and I said, wait. Brought it to the nearby dealership (whom I've liked so far) and they "cleaned" the throttle body a bit while doing a couple of other items - had some good smoke coming out of the tail pipe when I picked it up, so I guess I'll believe them...and they didn't charge for that. Anyway, them cleaning it out apparently turned the code off, but now the car kind of "skips a beat" every few seconds while idling and in drive. It's not a pattern, and sometimes does it more than other times. The rpm's stay pretty much the same, though maybe there's a kick down a little. Shifting into neutral, there are no skips. Of course, I'm thinking the recent repair over other problems, and specifically maybe the MAF - ? .... Hoping it's not a transmission problem.

Otherwise, the car runs great! Any ideas?

 

I know the electric throttle bodies can sometimes do weird stuff when they are replaced or cleaned. They are calibrated from the factory, so if the position of the valve is tampered with, it can also cause problems. As far as I know, it may be worth trying to go through the process to relearn idles for your car. Maybe that's causing the issue.

 

Thanks Cotozic - the rpm's do seem have something to do with it. When it is first started, i.e. higher idle rpm, it doesn't do it.

Will have to check that out.

 

Turns out it was the coils. The car started missing like a cylinder was out and then failed inspection. They said it was a bad coil on one of the back 3 cylinders...wanted $150 for the Denso coil (!!). I said no and took it home. Went to RockAuto and bought 3 Denso's for $150 and had a neighbor mechanic replace all 3 on the back for $150 labor, when the shop wanted $250.

And, the skipping is gone. So, coils with 170K miles on them might cause funky issues until replaced.

 

Good idea replacing all three while back there. Hopefully you changed the plugs and valve cover gasket as a target of opportunity.

Thanks for the update.