I recently bought a 2001 SE with manual transmission for a commuter ride. Was getting a misfire on cylinder 2 so I replaced all 6 coils and it ran good for about a week till the starter went bad (no crank, just clicking). Replacing the starter got it starting but it was cranking hard and would sometimes stop cold like it hit something after one or two revolutions. It continued to worsen for a few days until I left it sit over the weekend, then it wouldn’t start on Monday. Up until this point it had ran great once it started, getting normal fuel mileage and make plenty of power. I cleaned all the battery ground connections and the terminal for the starter and that helped it turn over a little stronger but still no start. Pulled a spark plug and it’s getting plenty of fuel but no spark. Checked power to the coils with key on and it gets a solid 12 volts. Tried replacing front crank sensor and cam sensor with no results. Had a scanner hooked up to it and there are no codes. Cranking it pulls the battery voltage down to 10 volts which seems low, but I don’t know if that makes a difference, and trying it with jumper cables made no difference. There is still the crank sensor on the bell housing which I have tried to test by back probing the plug with a multimeter. This didn’t read any voltage but it’s a cheap multimeter and I don’t know if it would even detect the output from the sensor. Also I would think it would through a code If it was a bad crank sensor but I could be wrong. I’m wondering if the rear crank sensor could be the culprit even with the complete lack of any engine codes? If not could someone maybe give me some clues as to what I’m looking at?
Hopefully this confusion can make sense to someone?🤷‍♂️
Thanks in advance for any help.

 

MY5THGEN 00-03

5thgen Nissan Maxima Quick Guide to No-Start Problems



Symptom (when turning the ignition switch to START)

Likely Cause

No Crank, No Nothing (not even dashboard lights)

If the car starts with a boost, then the battery is bad. If not, suspect the ignition switch, the battery cables, fuses, or ground/power distribution.

No Crank, just a Faint Click

Bad PNP switch, or Clutch Interlock, or Inhibitor Relay or fuse #20 (AT) or fuse #21 (M/T), both in the Fuse Block.

No Crank, but the Starter Clicks or Spins very fast

Bad starter or starter solenoid

Cranks But No Start (starter cranks, but the engine does not fire up)

If the red secuirty light is ON during cranking, then this is a NATS problem. Otherwise, bad Camshaft Sensor, or bad ENG CONT1 fuse (in Fusible Link and Fuse Box), or bad/no fuel delivery.

Engine Starts, then Dies

Bad MAF, IACV, Cam/Crank sensors, Coils, or Injectors stuck flooding.



Fuse/Relay Box Locations:

• Fuse Block (J/B): Lower dash panel, by driver’s left hand
• Fusible Link and Fuse Box: Engine compartment, driver side, next/left to battery
• Relay Box 1: Engine compartment, pasenger-side, next to P/S
• Relay Box 2: Just behind front driver-side light

Anti theft system
Disarmed phase: The theft warning system is in the disarmed phase when any door(s), hood or trunk lid is opened. The security indicator lamp blinks every second.
Pre-armed phase and armed phase
The theft warning system turns into the “pre-armed” phase when hood, trunk lid and all doors are closed and locked by key or multi-remote controller. (The security indicator lamp illuminates.) After about 30 seconds, the system automatically shifts into the “armed” phase (the system is set). (The security indicator lamp blinks every 2.4 seconds.)