Well my car had a short which I fixed. Checked the ECU for some coded and it gave me a couple codes that occured when it was shorted (expected) but gave me a 44 after I cleared it and tried it again. So I had someone jump my car, but it would not start. Crank yes, plenty of power. So I have come to the conclusion it has to be with the igniting of the fuel, since my intake is fine, and fuel pump _sounds_ like it works fine. So my next steps (thanks to Sarin for info) is to check for a spark, see if my rotor turns, and check the crank angle sensor.

So question is what is the exact procedure for checking for a spark?

Thanks for any help.
Zellix.

 

Simple. Just pull one of the plugs out, attach the lead, and touch the end of the plug to any metal part of the engine. Then get someone to give the engine a quick crank and if you have spark, you'll see it. There should be a small blue spark at the end of the plug.

 

yep. you can do that on your coil wire too. but you prolly already knew that.
this is where a timing light comes in handy.

Dan

 

Well I checked to see if there was a pulse in the primary wire with the timing gun, and no pulse. So further talking with Sarin and testing the ignition coil and power transistor, it either has to be the power transistor or the Crank Angle Sensor. But I looked in my Chilton for a way to test the CAS, and I do not see anything. Does anyone know how to check that and what readings I should get etc?

I am coming to the sad conclusion it has to be the CAS with Sarins discription of where it is and what it does. Because the shorted wire was going directly to the lower part of the Distributor. The short had to have blown out the CAS most likely. Still want to check it tho cause that is a pricey part

Thanks!

 

To the trusty FSM!!!!

I had my cousin hook up jumper cables one time to my old VW I had, and he hooked em up backwards... after that, the car would crank but it wouldn't start... after about a year of working on it off and on, I pulled the ignition module out of a scirocco that'd fit and stuck it on mine... turned the key... fired right up.

okay, I'm scanning the diagrams now. be back soon.

 

I am studying the Electrical Diagrams right now. I am not an expert, just know there are lots of lines and stuff on the page :P But I do see the 4 wires that were shorted and I repaired, so I am going from there.

 

how bad of a short? one bad enough can kill the ECU. so much as touching the pins with your finger can send static through and mess up one of the IC chips. I'm not sayin that's what you did, I'm sayin that's how fragile those electronic components are.

Dan

 

if you have the FSM, go to page EF&EC 80. there's the diag procedure for the crank angle sensor. if you're using a chiltons or haynes, it probably won't be in there. if you'd still like me to scan the pages for ya, let me know.

Dan

 

Well the short happened from my failure to put the timing belt cover back on after a last endeavor. Stupid mistake I know, just never got around to it. So the wiring harness fell down against the belt and got cut by it. Luckily it only cut 2 wires, rather than all of them :P, which were in the protective shielding bundle that go to the CAS. I wish I remember which two got shorted, but they were pretty much melted together at the ends by the plastic coating and the wires were definitely in contact. It did not blow out the ECU tho. I have been using the ECU for codes, and everything except the CAS seems to be in working order.

I don't have the FSM, just the Chilton. And I looked around and could not find a diag procedure for it. So if you are willing, I would be very appreciative if you upload them. Would help a LOT. I really want to make sure the CAS is fried before spending a lot of money on it.

Thanks.

 

you got it, just give me a few minutes.

 

got it. but a short wouldn't necessarily "blow out" an ECU. it could have merely shorted a transistor or an IC and you'd never know about it. everything else, including the inspection lamps could work fine.

anyway.... here's page 1.

 

and here's page 2.

 

and I'd recommend doing whatever you gotta do to get your hands on the FSM for your maxima. at least if you plan on doing any work on it. they're the size of a phone book or a dictionary, but they'll cover anything the haynes or chiltons guys cover, and then some, ten times better. chiltons and haynes are good for replacing fuel pumps or heater cores, but when it comes to diagnosing the engine controls and working on the electronic ignition, go with the guys who built your car. they know it best. I got mine off ebay for about $25+shipping. it's been used and seen its days of service, and updated pages have been pasted over the old ones, but it's still in great condition. I'd like to find a hard cover binder for it. it paid for itself when I did the timing belt. the FSM goes over, quite literally, every last screw, nut, and bolt on that car.

of course, I no longer have that car now, so my FSM is now reading material when I get bored

 

Wow, thank you very much. Those will be priceless right now for me. I am definitely hoping for the best, like maybe something simple, like a fuse or something else I can repair manually, since I have had some experience in computer repair with soldering even tiny tiny parts.

Thanks again for the scans, I will get back on my findings hopefully tomorrow.

Thanks.

 

no problem.

let me know if you need any other pages scanned.

Dan

 

Ive been reading the FSM for weeks. I still can't pin down the solution. The car cranks sometimes and sometimes it dosen't. I thought replacing the + battery cable would help but it still does it. Anyone with a FSM could you point me in the right direction.

 

hmm... sounds like either a bad connection, a bad solenoid, or a dead spot on the starter commutator. next time it doesn't crank, pop the hood and tap the back end of the starter with a hammer or large wrench. that usually dislodges the brushes and gets it going. if that doesn't help, take a screwdriver and take it across the 2 large posts on the starter, but make sure the car's not in gear! that will send battery voltage directly to the starter and bypass the ignition and solenoid. if it cranks that time, you've got either a bad connection or a dead solenoid.

 

Thanx for the help!

 

Well let's see. The first two steps seem to be fine ([A] and [B].) But then it asks me to start the engine on [C] but that is kinda hard when my engine won't start :P But I went ahead and did the N.G. for it and it seemed to check out just fine. I visually checked the rotor plate and slotter plate, both seem to be in excellent condition.

So for [C] would kind of simulating the slotted disc spinning work? Like I have someone manually but very slowly turn the plate under the sensor while I check for readings on ECU terminal. If not I don't know what else can be done. The wiring I repaired seems to check out perfectly so it is not that. Only option is the actual sensor unit.

Thanks.