Issues with cold and hot starting

[digimaus]

Hello everyone,

 

I'm trying to diagnose an odd issue with my 95 Pathfinder XE 4x4.  It's sat for several years but now with my being unable to work due to a health issue and the necessity of having a vehicle, I'm trying to get my Pathy reliable again.

 

What it's doing is this: when starting, the starter will spin just fine then suddenly starts to barely move, acting like it's starving for current.  Eventually, the Pathfinder will start.  But if I drive it until it gets hot, the engine will refuse to turn over, usually just giving me clicks of the starter relay, for at least 30 minutes (longer if it's really hot out).  The battery is also being drained after about a week of sitting.

 

The engine itself runs decent though it has some issues I will cover in another post eventually.  Once the vehicle starts, it is drivable.

 

I have replaced the battery, starter, and alternator ... and about $5000 worth of other parts on the vehicle, maybe more.  I'm now in so deep with my Pathy that trying to get rid of it doesn't make sense ... besides, once it starts, besides needing the anti-knock sensor replaced, it will drive and the 4WD system works just fine.

 

So I am trying to figure out where to start.  I did go back several pages worth of posts in this forum and I'm suspecting the distributor may be bad and the fusible links may be shot also.  The distributor is easy enough for me to figure out but how do I go about replacing the fusible links?

 

Once I am able to work again, I'd like to get the Pathfinder going ... I've replaced a LOT of parts on it like the water pump, timing belt, the front CV axles, a transmission rebuild, new tires, new shocks, new battery, new master cylinder, new starter, new alternator, new belts, new A/C system, new heater core, new heater fan ... so it behooves me to get the Pathfinder running again.

 

Any help is appreciated.

 

dm (Sean)

 

[Mr_Reverse]

Is it an automatic transmission or manual? If it is an automatic, I suggest replacing the ignition switch on the back of the ignition lock. It is a common fail part that causes a lot of starter issues.  

If it is a manual transmission, try replacing the big blue relay on the fender next to the battery. That is the starter relay and had a reputation for causing starting issues back when our trucks were young. That relay is only on manual transmission trucks. 

 

If neither of those work, it is possible that you simply have a bad starter. Seeing that you have replaced the starter already, you probably got a parts store remanufactured unit. I did that a year ago on mine. A couple days later, the starter solenoid stuck on for a while. I had to pull a battery cable to get it to shut off. Being up in the mountains by myself in a snow shower at the time, was kind of stressful. A couple wacks on the starter got it working again but was in the back of my mind that it's days were numbered since the motor was smoking by the time I got the power disconnected. Last month it simply died in the driveway. All that story is about, is just because the starter was replaced, it doesn't mean it is not the problem, it could simply be a bad one out of the box. 

[digimaus]

Thank you for the advice!  My Pathfinder has an automatic transmission.  I'd not thought about the ignition switch on the back of the ignition lock.  Is there a good place to get something like that you'd recommend?

 

As for the starter, I bought a new Bosch starter, not a reman.  I paid a bit more for it but that was worth it.  I bought it at Rock Auto and the starter itself is working fine from what testing I've done (albeit limited testing).  This was the -third- starter I put in it.  The other two were remans from local parts stores that turned out to be DOA.

 

Thanks again!  I really appreciate it.

[Mr_Reverse]

For the ignition switch, I suggest your favorite parts supply that has it. You can check it by accessing it and see if the back of the switch is loose from the body. That is what I found with mine last year when I installed a keyless ignition. I had done a work around about 16 years ago when the 3rd starter gave me problems after install. It was tested before install, so knew it was good. Found a substantial voltage drop at the solenoid wire at the starter, so I installed a relay by the battery. The starter wire ran the relay which took a lot less current to work. The relay then sent power to the starter solenoid. Simple fix that I have retained. Also makes it a lot easier to hotwire the starter in case of issues with the rest of the system and to see if the problem is the starter or somewhere else, like the gear selector switch or inhibitor relay.