1991 NISSAN MAXIMA DIES!!!

[tmorales509]

I have a 1991 nissan maxima gxe auto with 179,000. My problem is i was driving the car and turned it off, when i went to start it again, it wouldnt start. I kept trying & trying to start it and finally it started after about 8 tries but i had to keep my foot on the gas or it would die out. So the next day i decided to drive it anyways & everytime i come to a stop or its at idle i have to keep my foot on the gas or it will die, also i was driving on the freeway and the temp gauge warmed up to normal temp, then slowly started dropping until it got back down to cold, then it slowly started going back up. What could cause this with the weird temp movement? Also recently i've changed battery, spark plugs, fuel filter, air filter, maf sensor, engine control relay, fuel pump relay, dist. cap & rotor, timing belt & water pump,pcv valve,alternator, ive used fuel injector cleaner 3 times already, fuel pump does turn on. My guesses are sparkplug wires, thermostat or water temp sensor, those are the 3 things i havent changed since i had the car which is a little over 2 yrs & i dont think the previous owner changed em either.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Welcome to NICO! Looks like you covered all the basic suggestions already. Hopefully we can help you get this figured out.

Did you change the fuel pump itself when you did the fuel filter and pump relay?

I would check to make sure the fuel pump is getting enough power.

[alexlloyd]

The engine idle issue sounds alot like an Idle Airspeed Motor. The temp is a little bazaar, if you changed speed or driving conditions when the temp came back up I would be inclined to change the thermostat. The freeway driving indicates that the rad cooling ability is overdriving the engine's heat production.

[tmorales509]

No i never have changed the fuel pump but i can hear it turn on everytime i turn the ign. on. How do i check to see if the fuel pump is getting enough power?

[tmorales509]

The temp. issue when the temp. went from warm to dropping back to cold all happened at the same speed (60mph) all in about 10 minutes. Oh yea and how much power is the fuel pump supposed to get?

[Beancooker]

WELCOME TO NICO!!! I'm guessing a bad temp sensor on that. I'll check on the fuel pump question.

[tmorales509]

Hey thanks, Im from wa too, lol. Yea i wanna start with replacing the little stuff first like the temp sensor and thermostat, I wanna be 100% sure if its the fuel pump b4 i go out and buy one. Thanks for everyones help, i went to a couple other forums and u guys respond the fastest, lol.

[Beancooker]

'Cuz we're the best! And getting better every day, with the addition of new members.

[internetautomart]

the temp variance is due to a bad thermostat, I just replaced mine and it fixed that problem.the idle may be the Coolant temp sensor not sending the correct temperature back to the computer.also check your coolant level.

in short first check your coolant level, then replace the t-stat, if you are still having problems , check the CTS, and then consider the IAC.

[tmorales509]

hey thanks, im gonna change the thermostat & temp sensor tommorrow, and the coolant level is low and it looks like its mostly water so ill add some more anti-freeze.

[tmorales509]

ok i chcnged the cts and im stuck on taking off the thermostat housing, ive been prying & prying but its not budging. These is only 4 bolts right? how can i get this housing off?

[tmorales509]

i was wondering awhilr back i was messing around with the idle adjusting screw. I didnt know what is was back then but does anyone know how to adjust it to normal because when i start my car it idles at arund 1500?

[Beancooker]

I believe idle is set at 600 for an auto, and 700 for a manual. Those RPM's are for a warmed up car. Unfortunately, I don't have the FSM's for a '91. I'll google and see what I can find.

[tmorales509]

ok i changed the t-stat & coolant temp sensor & the temp problemn is fix, heater get really hot now, lol. But the idle problem is still there when i put it into gear it shakes, i checked all wires & all are getting spark. also where can i see a pic of the temp sensor because there are 2 sensors one is bigger and the other is little, i thought it was the bigger one but the guy at the parts store said its the little one & the big one is for air or something like that.

[tmorales509]

ok this sux, i went to start my car and im back to square 1, it wont start again and has the smell of gas after trying to start it.

[tmorales509]

hey sorry for so much post but i really wanna get this fixed, neways the parts store gave me the wrong part, they gave me the water temp sender & not the water temp sensor but ill go get the sensor and see if it works.
Modified by tmorales509 at 10:50 PM 12/4/2006

[MinisterofDOOM]

A little bit of gassy smell isn't terribly uncommon with the VG, especially on cold starts, but it does beg the question: are your injectors original? If so, have you tested to see if they're good? Resistance across the body should be between 11Ω and 14Ω.

[tmorales509]

yea there original, how do i check em. Also i found something out, that the car starts when its cold but once it warms up and i try to start it again it wont start.

[MinisterofDOOM]

To check them, you need to remove them, then check the resistance across the body of the injector. For that you'll need a multimeter.

[tmorales509]

thanks, i got & changed the temp sensor today and it seems to be driving good, and it starts up good too now. So ill let u know if theres anymore trouble.

[tmorales509]

ok my car was driving good all day yesterday, drove it all over with no problems, altough it did start today it still felt like it wanted to die out and i had to keep my foot on the gas, but it did start on the first attemp and drove good after it warmed up. does anyone have pics of how to remove & clean the iacv?

[tmorales509]

dont know if this will do anything but am i supposed to disconnect the battery after installing a sensor so the computer will reset & adjust to the new part? just wondering because i didnt do it, i just switched the sensor without disconnecting the neg. battery cable.

[tmorales509]

now my hazard lights dont work, not that i need em now but i just happened to try em and they dont work at all. I checked the hazard fuse and its good, what else would stop em from working. And also when i press the brakes my lights dim.i checked voltage and it is 14.6v.

[Beancooker]

Go to Schucks, AutoZone or Pep Boys and have them check the alternator and the battery's amperage.

[tmorales509]

correction, the voltage is 12.6v,also what does it mean whenever i put it in gear than back into park there is a whistle noise for a few seconds coming from it sounds like the left side of the engine?

[tmorales509]

ok so now my car drives good when its warmed up, starts right up and everything but the first start of the day when its cold it always dies out but the second try and all day after that it drives good. Whats the problem now?