j30 not starting - please help

[fred]

I really need some help here! I have a 1995 j30 - 176,000 miles on it. I have put the last 76,000 on it. Has been a great car -- about 4 months ago the check engine light came on..... of course I continued to drive it! Now it will not crank.

let me describe to you want the car is doing. The motor will spin over and sometimes (after sitting for a few days) it will start for about 2 to 4 seconds and idle rough. after, I continue to try to start and start it -- it will stop cranking for the 2 to 4 second intervals. At that point it will only spin the motor over without starting.

I then installed new spark plugs - no changei then installed a new fuel filter - no changei then removed the fuel pump from the tank and checked and it is working properly.oh yes - I think the timing belt needs to be replaced - but because it is running for a very seconds.... could that be it? also, I used a can of starting fluid and was able to keep the car running about 13 - 17 seconds? Not sure what that means?could be the cpu is triggering the fule pump to shut off?

is there anyway I can pull the codes off the cars computer ... without buying special equipment? I have pulled codes from GM vehicles for years. I really need to fix this car without taking it to the repair shop - i just lost my job and need to save money, so if anyone has some suggestions I would greatly appreciate them! thanks Fred shepherd - cell # 256-658-9149

[Q45tech]

Ignoring the MIL for 4 months not at least finding out what was causing the light? Never use starting fluid on a modern injected engine but that tells you something to measure the actual rail fuel pressure since it ran longer with the Ether.

[Mayhem_J30]

there is a way to get the engine code yourself. do a search in this section for 'check engine light' and you'll find instructions in there.

[fred]

thanks for the emails and replies posted - it will be saturday before i can work on it.......so it will be then until i can post what worked and what didnt work with my car.

so after i try everything that people have suggested i will post the results- so PLEASE dont forget about me - look at my posting in 4 or 5 days! first i will check fuel pressure - then pull codes

question though - 1) i had to pull the battery off to rechage it, so will the computer still have the codes saved?2) can we rule out timing belt if it will run while spraying starter fluid in it ( with lubricant ) because it will try to run? 3) when i pull the kick panel to expose the computer - then retrieve code(s) what is the sequence the light blicks to create a number - for gm vechicles it blinks each number 3 times - A code 12 first - then what follows are the trouble codes. if a number blinks 2 times it means 2 or 3 times it means 3 ....and so on. Are the nissian codes the same? 4) it sure acts like the fuel pump ...... can the fuel pump make the humming noise but not pump? the ones i have ever replaced stopped working all together. thanks again ! fred

[Mayhem_J30]

i would pull the code first and get right to the problem. no the unplugged battery will not remove any stored codes. you'll have to reset the ECU to reset the CEL.

use this to get the code it for a maxima but it'll work.http://vbxmaxima.8m.com/ecu.html

It will give you two numbers. First # is the amount of times it blinks slow and the second number is the amount of times it blinks fast. (It might be the other way around)Use this to easily find what the code is:http://vbxmaxima.8m.com/ecudecoder.html