I believe it's transmission related, it fits.

So the problem is intermittent, does not happen all the time, and has varying degrees of being screwed up. Starting on the not so bad end and escalating, sometimes when I come to a stop, the engine will stall, shift to neutral, turn key, engines restarts, drive, go. Once it does that it will either go away, or continue every time I stop for a while, then as fast as it started, bam, back to driving like a champ. So on top of stalling, upon accelerating there will be some hesitation, sometimes just a little, sometimes it barely feels like I am pushing on the gas, then it will kind of jerk, and sputter. On the bad end, accelerator fully depressed, rpms will raise slightly, just enough to get a little forward momentum, then drop, and stay there, kind of going up and down between 400-700, and when it does this there is a thumping noise on the drivers side coming from inside th engine bay. Then out of the blue, it will run fine for a few blocks, then go back to the light end of the problem.

Also while this is happening it guzzles gas really badly. My dad suggested that it may be the transmission filter, which I can not find in the service manual, but ...http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/de...QFFFT1151.html,
Anyone have a link to the process to change this? Anyone think that could be the issue?

 

This does not sound like a transmission problem. You have fuel problems. Your intake is on the drivers side and I suspect what you here "thumping" might be backfiring into the intake. Also the excessively high fuel consumption and poor running/random acceleration could be fuel pressure related or from bad injector o-rings. My suggestion would be to leave the transmission alone and focus on engine management, the trans is a red herring in this case.

 

Forgot that the OD light blinks rapidly sometimes when it is acting really bad, while I am restarting the engine. I originally thought it was fuel related, but I don't see how it could go from running perfectly to running that bad, and back again if it were fuel related. Also the thumping was mechanical in nature, and I could feel the feed back through the gas pedal when it would happen. It has only got to the extreme bad side once, and that was day before yesterday, I parked it yesterday, and drove it to work today, and it was back to fine/not toooo bad, and got worse the longer I drove.

 

Could a bad MAF sensor cause something like this?

 

Since the OD light is blinking, you should get the codes from it. From what you're describing, I wanna put my money on the throttle position sensor since both the ECU and TCU rely on it for proper operation.

 

I tried following the directions posted here to check the codes, but they do not make sense.

How are you supposed to turn the ignition/OD off ...if it's already off?

 

Definitely an air/fuel issue. If TPS checks out, inspect the MAF.

 

Not sure about your transmission issues but I had the hesitation/loss of power issue you talked about and it turned out to be bad coil packs.I just went ahead and replaced them all since the car was so old but it could have been just one or more...who knows.Anyways,after that I never experienced the problems you described again.

 

So I pulled the MIL codes and got the following -

0104 - Vehicle Speed Sensor
0503 - O2 Sensor Fault
0707 - O2 Sensor Fault
1104 - 2nd Gear Signal
1105 - 3rd Gear Signal

Looks like a trip to the junk yard to get the VSS, not sure about the gear codes, it says shift solenoid A, and shift solenoid B, or hydraulic control circuit for both of them.

 

Oh man... didn't notice you have a 97. You better get those solenoids replaced ASAP. There is a TSB out for your year about this. Maybe you can get the kit cheap form your dealership. DOn't continue driving unless you want to swap the tranny.

 

Check with the local Nissan service center, he said there was no TSB associated with my VIN, and replacing the valve body would cost about $2,300, the part along is over $1K.

 

Check the wiring that goes to the transmission first. Worst case would be that one of the solenoids failed and you need to buy the solenoid pack. And Courtesy sells that part for a little over $300

http://www.courtesyparts.com/31940n-...-p-133037.html

 

Sidetrack:

Most dealers and their technicians do not like to work on older vehicles, so they quote outrageous repair costs. That way you don't go there, or if you do they make a huge profit for the work they didn't want to do, and may not even be competent at anymore. Their certified technicians are trained to diagnose and repair recent models.

 

This may be true but regardless of how old the 4th gen gets, the engine is still being made (VQ) which makes parts for us available for a long time.

 

Having worked in a dealership once, I can vouch for the reluctance and inexperience in working with older cars (unless you have a 20 year veteran).

As far as quoting outrageous costs, that won't happen. Dealers have one hourly rate, multiplied by the flat rate hours that are set by manufacturer (Nissan). For example $90.00 X 1.5Hours=$135.00.

That said, I have never been a service writer, and don't know what goes on in the billing office, they could be dishonest

 

well i would like to chime in with my 2 cents

this may be trans related it sounds like it may be slipping and falling out of gear do to faulty solenoids if there on their way out they can cause sporadic symptoms

now im going to ask you the same thing i ask everybody with an auto trans issue

what is the level and condition of the fluid?

 

Level is perfect, color is good, light red, first thing I checked

 

Anyone replaced these solenoids/valve? Is it a pain in the butt, would it be more beneficial to just get a "new" transmission for $180 from the junkyard?

 

on lift with air tools its a snap

but on the ground it can be tricky and at sometimes downright frustrating. if you've never worked on an auto before it can be overwhelming. this is all said because the valvebody must be removed. which means the 16 pan bolts have to be taken out the pan has to be dropped and cleaned and the 13 valvebody bolts need to be removed and installed in the correct order and torqued (they're all different sizes) it doable it just messy and time consuming


swapping the trans is worse not buy much but the freeking thing is heavy

 

Do the solenoids. You have the P/N to get the solenoids cheap?

 

If you decide to do the solenoids, this may help. http://forums.maxima.org/4th-generat...solenoids.html