Uneven acceleration/throttle in 1995 Pathfinder

A forum for the legendary Nissan Pathfinder and Infiniti QX4.
bf781
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Dec 26, 2012 7:38 pm
Car: 1995 Nissan Pathfinder XE 4WD

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I recently purchased a 1995 Nissan Pathfinder XE 4WD wiht 163k miles. Prepurchase inspection revealed it to be in good shape, no fault codes, no leaks, etc. A small leak around oil sender sensor and a cracked front left CV joint boot, but no big issues.

In general, vehicle is running very well. However, I notice a slight, regular hesitation when accelerating, particularly on hills. It is very consistent and seems to happen around 2500 rpm (+/- a few hundred). Every 1.5-2 seconds, the engine sound drops slightly in frequency and it feels as if the throttle drops off for a second. I don't see the tach noticeably drop down, but it feels like the engine is working, then drops a bit or encounters some resistance, working strong again, then hesitates for a second, then works strong again, etc. It's pretty subtle but I can hear it slightly and also feel the resistance for a fraction of a second.

A fair number of forum posts mention rough idle or throttle and recommend various options: cleaning the MAF sensor, throttle body, fuel filter, air filter, intake manifold, idle air control valves, etc. However, few of those posts mention the power dropping off slightly in a very regular way with a frequency of every 1-2 seconds. Might this indicate some mistiming or misfiring with the coil/plugs/wires?

It's pretty minor right now, but I just want to correct in case it becomes a bigger problem later.

Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated -- thank you & Happy Holidays! :)


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Towncivilian
Posts: 4868
Joined: Sun May 23, 2010 10:21 am
Car: 2001.5 Nissan Pathfinder SE 3.5L 2WD A/T
2007 Nissan Altima 2.5L CVT
2012 Nissan Sentra 2.0L CVT Special
2012 Infiniti G37 Sedan 7A/T
Location: Florida, USA
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Welcome to NICO.

I would start with the fuel filter and cleaning the MAF sensor since both are inexpensive and simple to do. Check under the distributor cap for excessive dirt and dust build up and check the rotor for excessive scoring/arcing marks.


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