well my car died the other nite, all of a sudden it jus started putterin and if i gave it gas it died, then jus died and i havent been able to start it since, i turns over but wont fire, ive checked everything all i kno is its not gettin spark to the cylinders, got from the coil but none to plugs jus changed distributer caps...nuthin
so idk. its gettin fuel. im kinda lost the only thing i can think of is the transistor to the coil is shot any ideas or advice?

~mike

 

Could be Maf Sensor gone bad.

 

Nah, my MAF sensor died and the car still started up and ran, albeit very horribly. The ECU has preprogrammed fuel/air mixture ratios that will allow the engine to run up to 2000 rpm so you can limp home or to the garage. If you try revving the engine past 2000 rpm, it'll act like it's going to stall out.

Check your distributor, spark plugs, and wires.

-C-

 

youre right, I know. It was a long shot guess.

 

i doubt its wires or plugs cause they are les then 1 month old
i think its the ditributer and rotor, possible even the trasnsistor on the coil cause thats wut regulaters the powerful spark boost, ive been shocked by spark plugs before and that barely shocked me to the point of dropin the wire if the coil had full power it would have thrown me like it did with my old max and a lawn mower...hehe
so i think my problem lies there but only time will tell or im gettin rid of the car i dont have the $$ or the time to be with out a car

~mike

 

if you know its spark trace it down to the problem area. got spark at coil but not distributor then check your dist sensor/modules. I keep spare parts of all kinds including a high output coil, if I think the coil is bad I use the high output to double check. volt meters are handy as well. another good idea is to use a spare plug and plug wire if needed, ground the plug and have someone crank the engine over. no spark makes it real clear. if you have a spark then the problem is elsewhere.

 

yea i agree, but which sensors should i check? are u talking about the actual points in the distributer? if so i did file a new surface on then but i think the problem lies in a few places, the power regulator/ transistor or the actual distrubuter rotor itself, cause if the distrubuter rotor isnt making contact with the points because they have filed down far enough which i think is the problem, there is no connection close enough to the points which means no transfer of spark, so thats an easy only like 7 bucks for the rotor, but we'll see

~mike

 

if you think its possible then try it like you said 7 bucks. but i personally doubt it, the spark can jump 1 in. as long as the ground is within 1 in. it will jump. i dont see the gap being over an 1 in. apart.

if you are getting spark from the coil to the cap then there could be a grounding in the dist. it could also be an ignition module issue (havent worked on allot of maxima's) but the workings should be basicly the same. typically a bad ignition module means no spark at all though.

 

1. Your car information says you have an 85 Maxima, is this correct?
2. There are no points.
3. Have you verified that your distributor turns? You do this by taking off the cap and watching while it cranks. If it does not turn, you lost your timing belt.
4. The next suspects are the crank angle sensor and the ignition power transistor.
5. Take off the distributor cap and rotor. Remove the dust cover in the distributor. Blow out the distributor with compressed air, if a bunch of dust comes out, reassemble and try it now. If no dust comes out, replace the crank angle sensor, which is under the dust cover and the slotted disc. Get a distributor from a boneyard Maxima, 300ZX, 200SX SE V6, V6 pickup, or Pathfinder. Make sure it is one that looks like yours. Don't remove your distributor, you can change the crank angle sensor without removing it. I have done it. At Nissan, the CAS only comes in a whole distributor. $$$$.
6. From that same boneyard vehicle, get the power transistor, change it too.
7. Report back, how it went, or if you have any questions.
8. Enjoy your Maxima. They have activities that do not involve driving down roads. This is one of them.

 

well basically if t costs moe than 100 then im not gonna even bother,
i drive alot for work and this can get to be a pain, but i will try a few more simple things if they dont work car will junked because i will not hand this car to anyone knowing the problems it has, im sad to say it but if it has to be done it will be

~mike

 

The things I suggested are the simple things. If you are restricting yourself to simple things, fixing a motor that had a bad timing belt is out. It involves cylinder head replacement, and some other parts, or engine replacement.

But you have to rule it out to go on. It is simple to take off the cap and see if the rotor turns when you switch on the starter. If you don't do this, there is no need to do anything else.

A boneyard distributor and power transistor should not cost $100. $40 should cover it.

I advise not removing your distributor, because re-installing it is technical, not difficult, but technical. I posted re-installation directions for when the distributor was removed without getting number one cylinder at TDC of its firing stroke, but it was removed. It was correct, but it was removed. It was in response to someone wondering how to do it, but it was removed. Hard to understand that.

Putting in a crank angle sensor and a power transistor from a wrecked car is simple, and a wreck was probably running before it crashed, so the parts will probably work.

I am looking for Maximas that owners give up on, if the body is not rusty and the glass is good. Location is very important though, because hauling them can cost more than they are worth after a given distance.

 

well i live in north new jersy, idk how far in relation to u is but this goes for everyone this could probly be a quick fix or it probly not idk all i kno the car wants to run and is not gettin spark to cylinders, yes rotor does turn it was one of the first things i checked, quite possibly be the transistor could possibly be the CAS but idk, im gonna try another coil/ transistor if that doesnt work well im givin up on it, as for rust there is minor rust on all fenders, slight dent in trunk lid, rusted out frame damage to the rear rite side under the trunk, any one needs a parts car its yours for $150 has 176k on it and jus got an oil chage 2 weeks ago, any other questions feel free to ask, as for parting it out i cant because i have no where to store it, so offer is out there

~mike

 

not knowing you full problem or length there of, i can sympthies with your problem. I have another car, the former work car that has similar issues as well. The difference is its had its issues sorted out and it just needs an engine (bad rings), but the car isnt worth the cost so donation time.

my new (to me) 84 max is the new work car. 110K and 1 owner is a great deal for a work car, little rust but nothing i cannot handle.

 

yea i agree, i work for an dealers only auto auction, so im gonna try to go about gettin a car thru that. if no luck jus go about it the conventional way...car of choice is a 89-94 240sx....i want a SR20DET enngine swap...hehe

~mike

 

well its final, i tried a new coil and nothing at all still will not start, ive been lookin for cars and im stuck between a 84 VW scirocco low miles immaculate 5-spd, or 86 firebird with worked chevy 350, i personally kno the owner all it needs is valve cover gasket and seals,
and rear drivers side rotor needs new studs. suggestions? opinions?
thanx

~mike

 

I smell a paradox........... the world is comming to an end when you put a chevy in a GM.

which reminds me......

 

Hmmm....a chevy engine in a GM...a chevy engine is a GM motor.

Captain Obvious has stuck again!

Why don't you look for a 2nd gen SE, or a 92 or newer 3rd gen?

S

 

I personally would go with the firebird of course seeing as I already have an 89 IROC 350/auto with TPI but thats me.

do you want speed or mpg's though? I drove my IROC daily until recently when I moved further away from work and the cost of gas really started hurting me. I averaged 18mpg in the ROC, but now that its a weekend car its more like 5mpg.

 

Jesus the rating for the max during city use, 2nd gen, is 18!

 

now you know why i have a work car and a fun car

some 3rd and 4th gen camaro/firebirds get better mpgs then this, mid 20's, some even high 20's. but speed costs not just in cash but miles per gallon as well.

 

well the good thing is its stick...a rare find. but im undecided i have about 1 month to decide but if a 89-94 240sx comes my way before hand then im takin it..same witha 90-95 300zx, but we will see how things go

~mike

 

You gotta keep in mind, a camaro/firebird is a totally different class of car, it would be trying to compare apples against oranges. If you were to compare our cars to lets say...a toyota cressida, or a acura legend, then you can make a good comparison.

S

 

what are you talking about? camaros and firebirds from the 3rd gens on have the same engines and drivetrains with similar drag coefficent so the mpgs have been very similar for both. this same mpg comparo comes up on the 3rd and 4th gen boards. 1 camaro may get much better mileage then a similar camaro, same for firebirds. I've seen guys post 10mpg higher numbers average than my car got stock for no real apparent reason. then again I have seen people with lower mpgs on basicly stock engines, 15's and what not.

as strange as it sounds not every car gets the same mpg even a similar or even same model will vary a bit. but the 3rd generation camaro's/firebird's seem to be a bit extreme to me.

 

Mine wouldnt start for 2 years even trying every thing these folks said, after all the trying it turned out to be something simple. the distributor ground was oily and wouldnt allow the distributor to give a spark, after I cleaned the ground it began to start.

 

Sorry, I though you were making comparison of a camaro/firebird to a maxima. :P I was going to say....umm what the hell? LOL!

S

 

Ah I gotcha!!! no that would be like comparing my geo metro to a school bus, its not going to work. but maxima to maxima or camaro to firebird when they are similar in yrs and options its fair. I dont consider comparing a 305 to a 350 camparable, the same goes for mods of course. a hot cam will throw the mileage right off completely.

 

call me dumb but where is the ground?

~mike

 

thats not dumb The ground is connected to the distributor house. Look under the bolt that you remove the distributor with. {theres only one bolt} That bolt has a black wire that leads to the body of the car. Well anyway, I removed the side connected to the distridutor and cleaned off the oil and dirt and mine started. Not saying this is your problem, but mine was doing the same thing yours is. You also may want to set the TDC just to be on the right track.

 

well if i get it runnin that would be great, but im still not keepin this max i want a stick shift so im on a mission to get a car with one and ironically ive come across 3 so far that are stick both the same color, light silver one really low miles like 78k runs like a beauty and another with 155k both at my work on auction if niether of which has been sold i will make an offer to a dealer and see wut i come up with...wish me luck

~mike

 

GOOD LUCK!!

 

well thats no go, all grounds are connected well and clean, im clueless as to wut the problem is. did god take her off life support or wut. still no spark to plugs but spark from coil. i took coil wire stuck plug in there and grounded it and got spark continious blue spark but im losing it somewhere in the distributer, im lost and i need a car bad. im givin up soon

~mike

 

Did you try a new cap & rotor, if that's the case?

 

yup!

~mike

 

What about a new distributor. Or a used distributor?

 

OK,
Lemme get this straight...you have spark from the coil. But when the coil is connected to the cap, and you test for spark from any, or all of, the cap's plug leads, you get nothing? For this, the distrib is only turning with the cam shaft. The spark should go from the coil, to the coil lead on the cap, feeding down to the center electrode on the rotor. As the distrib rotates, the spark bridges the gap between the rotor and the other plug terminals. So, in this case, if the cap & rotor are known good, the coil wire gives spark, but after passing spark through cap, there is no spark, then either the distrib is broken (ie, the shaft is broken, and not rotating), the timing belt is broken (ie, the cams are not turning with the crank, allowing the the front side cam to turn the distrib), or your plug wires need to be replaced...

If the distrib does, actually and physically turn when cranking the engine, the belt and distrib are good as far as mechanically. This points to plugs, wires, cap or rotor...g

good luck!

 

It maybe good to note, the last guy who had a similar problem super20G, he ended up replacing the crank angle sensor. That is a very good possiblility that it is bad too.

S

 

That could be a possibility...

However, if the coil is producing spark...the plug wires and a plug should also produce spark if the cap, rotor, plugs and wires are all good, the the distributor turns with the cam. The crank angle sensor is used by the ECU to determine timing, so it can fire the fuel injectors at the right time.

 

well i do kno that when i crank the engine im getting a strong fuel smell, tho i did read in my chiltons that if u disconnect the crankangle sensor the engine should still run, idk im clueless but i dont have the $$ to be putiin out no more so she is parked till i have areplacement car then im doneating her to the heart and lung cacer society, i believ thats it if they dont take it she is goin to the grave yard

~mike

 

after reading that was my next guess. When my top end was rebuilt they messed up somewhere and had to get a new/ used distributor because they messed up the crank angle sensor if thats shot you got nothing. That has to be it. Thats my guess too good call Sarin

 

She flooding...that's not good.

S