Mr_Larry 89 SE

I finally took my car to a mechanic to get the problem properly diagnosed. I had thought there was a problem with the ignition coil or even the fuel pump. It turns out the problem was with the distributor. They charged me a whopping $525 for a remanufactured distributor and 2 hours of labor (@ $125/hr) to diagnose and install it. After spending $820 on a car with a blue book of maybe $2000, she seems to be running like a champ. I've put about 200 miles on her and she hasn't stalled yet. That would be a record for not stalling. She only has 127,000 miles on her, so I figure she has another 100,000 left.

Thanks, email received. I tried logging on a month or so ago and hit a virus on the main page, and was unable to log in.

Bushmaster: That sounds exactly like what my problem is. I would check the ECU codes. If you come up with an 11, then run diagnostic test #5. If it is only the coil or the transistor controller for the coil, then I'll be happy. I've also done all the things you have done plus more. My problem has been going on for a year. I know if I take it to a dealer they will replace the fuel pump and about 4 other perfectly good parts and give it back to me still not working. Here is a thread on running the ECU diagnostics: http://www.nissanpathfinders.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=21 I also have some more detailed information on the codes if you need it. good luck.

Yeah, it's those plastic snap things in there. It kinda makes sense that you would have to take the front left fender off to remove that thing. After all, it is a Pathfinder! This might have to wait for a few days. I'm done for taoday and Ted Nugent is coming to town tomorrow and there are a whole bunch of festivities lined up. I'm sure Ted could get the air duct off. Thanks for all of your help and suggestions and I will report back in a few days.

88: Thanks for the testing procedures. I have located the coil primary and secondary testing procedures. How do I remove the big plastic air tube going from the front left fender to the air cleaner? The coil is directly underneath it and I can't get at it.

Here is the factory service manual for the 1994 Pathfinder. I downloaded it on Sunday but couldn't remember where I found it. One of our members posted it. Download the 6 zip files. I know it says 1991 on the title of the page, but the manual is for the 1994. http://www.ileana.net/91-pathfinder/

Check this link for a factory service manual: http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?authtyp...site=autorefctr username=fl2823 password=horn

Total guess here, but could one be part of the factory car alarm?

I think I'm finally getting somewhere! After getting under the carpet in the cargo area and opening the access panel, I traced my way back to the harness assembly to check that out. It was pretty muddy but inside it was clean. (Also, I took some picture with my camera phone which I may try to post later) I decided to go back and run the diagnostics on the ECU unit. First I tried to retrieve any error codes, and what do you know? Error code 11. Then I ran diagnostic test number 5, and came up with FOUR green flashes from the LED. According to the shop manual for the VG30E (Mine is a VG30i) this code means: The signal from the primary ignition coil momentarily drops off. I thought it might be something with the ignition coil originally (see my first post). Should I just go out and buy a new ignition coil for $30? Could it also be the power transistor control module for $110? If I was a betting man I'd guess it would be the $110 part, not the $30 part! Also, how do you remove that big plastic air tube that goes to the left front fender, and directly over the ignition coil? I can't even get my hands underneath that air intake tube. B: Thanks for the offer! Hopefully I get this thing fixed and we can drive some trails some time.

B: I see you are up in Petaluma. Maybe I should pick up a case of beer and drive up there and you can help me sort through it! I'm in San Francisco. I should also mentioned I just passed the smog check a few weeks ago. That was a huge surprise! I'm going to go down and try to access the fuel pump assembly through the access panel in the cargo area. I'll report back later. And there is nothing wrong with the wire to the number 5 cylinder: I tested it with the ohm meter. What I should have done while I had the spark plug out is check to see if the plug sparked. oh well...

B, It is a manual. Pushing the clutch in will not save it. It usually dies quite abruptly. A bigger telling sign may be the way it tries to start on the first try after a stall. Usually the first time I crank it after it stalls it turns over and ignites, but only reaches about 200-300 rpm and stutters and stalls, being totally unresponsive to any feedback from the accelerator. It does seem like it is being starved for gas when that happens.

The car is a manual, 5-speed. Simon, I think you are on to something with the fuel sending unit or the fuel pump may be going. Do I have to take the whole gas tank off to get at the fuel sending unit? When reviewing previous posts I recall reading one where someone said there was some sort of access panel through the back of the truck, under the carpet. Do you know if this is true of the '89? I can't seem to see much from under the truck, and the thought of pulling the tank isn't too appealing. Yesterday I spent a few hours under the hood. I checked out all the fuseable links on the positive battery terminal and cleaned them off - they were pretty dirty. Next I pulled off the air cleaner so that I could get good access to the distributor. Using my ohm meter I checked each of the spark plug cables for resistance from the bottom of the distributor cap to the end of each spark plug and they all were fine. Next, while running the engine, I would pull off one spark plug from the distributor and check for any change in the idle. Removing the plugs and replacing them one at a time impacted the idle speed for all but the number 5 cylinder. After repeating the experiment a couple of times it seemed pretty apparent that the 5th cylinder wasn't firing. I pulled the spark plug out of the 5th cylinder to inspect it and it looked fine. Shining a flashlight down into the opening I kind of expected to see the glint of shiny metal down there but it was all black. I couldn't tell if I was just not seeing anything or if I was seeing something nasty. I then took out the number one spark plug to compare to number 5 and they were identical. I am still interested in running some electrical tests on the ignition coil but I'm having trouble accessing it. There's that damn plastic air hose that runs from the inside of the front left fender to the air cleaner that is in the way (the big 3 inch diameter thing). I couldn't figure out how to remove that thing to get access to the coil underneath. Does anyone know how to pull that out? It looks like it is snapped in there with plastic hardware that will break. Thanks for your ideas.

Greetings. First off I just wanted to say what a great forum this is. I came here first about a year ago and have learned quite a bit, so thanks! My car has sufferred from stalling problems for about a year, which drove me to this forum originally. I'm not much of a mechanic, but with the aid of two chiltons and the fine advice offered up here I feel comfortable tackling most things. My car will stall without warning, driving down the freeway at 60 mph (every 60-100 miles or so). When it stalls, I lose all power including brakes and power steering. The car will also stall driving in the city. Frequently after it stalls it is very hard to start and may take 5-10 minutes. When trying to start it the engine cranks really good. Sometimes when trying to start it after it stalls it will sputter for a few seconds but will not respond to the accelerator. Sometimes I will drive a short distance to the store, come back out and the car won't start for about 5-10 minutes. Also, sometimes when I go out first thing in the morning it won't start for a while. Sometimes it will drive fine with no problems for 5-6 days in a row! When it is driving fine the engine runs strong and I get about 14.7 mpg. I have noticed that the car tends to stall more when going up steep hills, and is harder to start on steep hills (pointing up). I have also noticed that the car stalls more when there is less than half a tank of gas. I have also noticed that the tachometer jumps around a bit (+-50 rpm when idling) before it stalls. If I rev it up to 4000-4500 rpm it seems to buy me some time and the idle behaves normally for a while. Here is what I have tried so far: I have replace the air filter I have replaced the fuel filter I have cleaned the TBI unit with carb cleaner I have run a bottle of that red injector cleaner fuel additive through a tank of gas I checked the ECU codes 6-months ago and ran the diagnostics - everything came back fine I have replaced the distributor rotor and cap and double checked that the spark plug wires are hooked to the proper plugs I have cleaned the MAF (but not tried to test it by unplugging the harness) Does anyone have any ideas? The fact that it runs so good 95% of the time (other than the stalling) leads me to believe it is not the O2 sensor or a vacuum leak. I'm wondering if it might be more elctrical, like something with the ignition coil? Today I plan on inspecting fuseable links by the positive battery terminal. I'm also going to check the ECU codes again. I've also seen some references to a possible bad ignition module on the back of the coil mount. Is there a way I can test this? I have an Ohm meter. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated!