fawnner Posted April 9, 2009 Share Posted April 9, 2009 hi. im fawn. im new here. just over a year ago i bought a 94 pathfinder xe for $1700. he's had his share of issues.... too big of tires that were rubbing and making a "cronk" noise, fixed that by putting regular sized tires instead of 31s. no heat for over a year, caused by a stuck thermostat, fixed that 2 months ago. broken windshield caused by a drunk friend, fixed that and broke his face lol. both door locks are broken, bought a fob sometimes it doesnt work and i gotta climb thru the back. demon door locks sometimes lock me in and i cant get out too lol. but now the BIG problem. about 2 weeks ago i drove him 12 miles one way and while waiting for the person i was picking up, he started idling really really bad, tach was jumping all over the place. and then he stalled out. he started right away. drove the 12 miles back to home but once i was in town, anytime i slowed down or turn or stopped, he stalled out. he always starts right away. if i put it in neutral at the stop signs and going around corners, he idles really bad but doesnt die. i tried checking the codes. there were none. it might have been operator error. we just changed the fuel filter today but it was fine, not clogged and he's still running like crap. i dont really want to take him to the shop cuz they'll wanna do all sorts of unnecessary things cuz its a small town and they can get away with it here. also he blows white exhaust and theres a strong gas odor when i start him. anyone else have problems like this? thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indigent Posted April 9, 2009 Share Posted April 9, 2009 I would guess the Idle Air Control Valve because it happens at idle. It can get crap in it and mechanically stop moving, or the solenoid that controls it could be shot. Get a multimeter, disconnect the only wire harness by the oil cap that has two wires in it and read the resistance on the side that goes to the solenoid(the side pointing away from the battery). It should be right at about 10ohms. If there is no resistance, then either the solenoid or the wires to it are bad. If it reads good, then it is probably stuck. It is a pain to pull it because the whole plenum has to come off. There are probably a bunch of other things that could be wrong, but it only takes a few minutes to check the resistance of that solenoid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unccpathfinder Posted April 9, 2009 Share Posted April 9, 2009 fixed that by putting regular sized tires instead of 31s 31s are stock...you just may have needed to crank the Tbars and/or trim a little on the front valence but thats just a little extra info demon door locks sometimes lock me in and i cant get out too common problems...i think its usually caused by one of the locks sticking (usually passenger side door) he blows white exhaust and theres a strong gas odor when i start him white exhaust is fine if its a cold morning probably just burning off condensation...the strong gas smell could be the clamps on the fuel lines at the fuel rails are loose and if you tighten those up that should take care of that hope that hleps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 9, 2009 Share Posted April 9, 2009 Also try cleaning the MAF sensor, check for broken or loose vacuum lines, and check the wiring plug for the MAF sensor, sometimes it hits the underside of the hood and causes an intermittent connection at the MAF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fawnner Posted April 10, 2009 Author Share Posted April 10, 2009 thanks guys i'll get to it tomorrow after work. oh one thing i forgot to mention with my "issues" is that less than 2 weeks after i bought him, some drunk hit him in the front end....NOT fixin that tho....adds character! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldSlowReliable Posted April 10, 2009 Share Posted April 10, 2009 im thinking about buying a 94 pathy soon to sit next to my 91 WELCOME! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alkorahil Posted April 11, 2009 Share Posted April 11, 2009 Also try cleaning the MAF sensor, check for broken or loose vacuum lines, and check the wiring plug for the MAF sensor, sometimes it hits the underside of the hood and causes an intermittent connection at the MAF. Agreed, sounds like the plug/wire on the MAF sensor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fawnner Posted April 11, 2009 Author Share Posted April 11, 2009 yesterday i went to one of the local parts store and got some fuel system cleaner. i put it in with a half tank and drove 65 miles round trip. so i used a quarter tank. he ran great. no stalling no sputtering. so today i left work on my 15 min break and as i turned into the gas station, the whole damn thing quit. the interior light was still working, the clock was still on but i had nothing. no dash lights, no click when i turned the key. nothing. i caught a ride back to work and had a couple of friends go look at it. they opened the hood, wiggled the battery cables and turned on the headlights. then tried to start it. of course it did. i havent had any troubles as of now. there must be a short somewhere.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unccpathfinder Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 it could be corrosion on the cables or the cable joggled loose...but I will tell you of one very scary event I had in my 87... I drove across the state of NC in the snow to pick up the gf at the timeto take her home b/c her mom wouldnt come get her and i guess there was some important event going on...well I drive 300 miles and as i get into the town my truck sputters and kicks off acouple times and then starts back up...well I get her and we start to leave and it died 3 times and i was like wtf and it was just acting funny so i decided to pull into a parking lot before hitting hte highway...well when i did i lost everything...when i popped the hood i noticed lots of nice white smoek and quickly grabbed my wrecnh and went to undo the battery cable and when I did the post pulled out of hte battery...the + cable that routes from the battery to the starter had chaffed through on the frame and was insulated by the dirt/grease whatever that was there well water got between the wire and the frame and froze completing the circuit and causing hte melt down...i doubt this is your problem but it may be beneficial to just overlook b.c if I wouldnt have acted and tried to investigate my 87 wouldn't be with me today Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 Check your fusible links at the battery. One of them feeds power to the dash and ignition. If it's loose, no ignition, no run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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