my car keeps DYING... at random. - Zilvia.net Forums | Nissan 240SX (Silvia) and Z (Fairlady) Car Forum

Nerfdude · 12-05-2002, 07:49 PM

here's the deal... every once in awhile, my car will die. it may die when i'm driving along, or it'll die at a light, or it'll just not start. it's done it four times in the last three days. i let it sit for a while, and it starts back up. oh, and sometimes the car will drop to zero RPM's while i'm driving, and then jump back up less than a second later. the starter cranks. i checked the spark during starting after it's died, and there is none. so the problem is definately electrical. it was doing this a couple months ago, and i replaced the ignition control module, and that seemed to end the problem... but... now i suspect the distributor. am i right? has anyone had to deal with this shit before?

dave240sx · 12-05-2002, 09:43 PM

From what I can understand you can be doing like 75 mph and it will just die right?

Well I had a 93 olds cutlas ciera and it did this same thing.  We would take it to the shop it wouldn't do it cause it was so random.  It did this for about 3 or 4 months when it finally died in the middle of a busy intersection (which I told my parents it was dangerous to drive because of this) and it would start back up.  We had to sell it because none of the Techs could fix it at the Old's dealership.

I don't think it would be the distributor if it's just dying going 45 mph.  If it were just dying at the red light then it might be the distributer.  

Good Luck on this one.  If you find out what it is let me know.  I've always wondered what was wrong with that damn Oldsmobile. <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/crazy.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':crazy:'>

Good Luck!
-Dave-

9524tee · 12-06-2002, 02:06 AM

get new plugs , and a new cap and rotor first , before you dump money into a distributer ... and if you do need a new distributer i have one that works great , i have it left over from my crash .. ill sell it for 80$ or you could buy one for 400 from nissan =) ... let me know if you need the distributer ... email is , [email protected] , the distributer is from a 95 240sx

adey · 12-06-2002, 02:54 AM

This sounds like my problem. It'd never happened to me until a few days ago; I have had a funky idle pretty much since I bought it, but it's been getting worse and worse.
As far as I understand it, there is a bad ground somewhere in one of the wire looms by the firewall, just by/behind the injectors/fuel rail.
Try tapping/tugging/shaking this fat group of wires near the firewall; if it affects your idle, it is probably this bad ground. See the following page for possible fix details:
http://www.alldata.com/service_provi.../20000713.html

hope that helps solve your problem!

Edit: it is probably not your distributor or cap; I replaced mine hoping it'd help (also replaced plugs wires fuel filter and air filter at the same time) but to no avail; I still had the fluctuating-and-intermittently-dying-idle issue. This did NOT happen to me when I was just driving/on throttle, only when you let off the throttle and the revs return to idle.

12-05-2002, 09:43 PM	#2
dave240sx Zilvia Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: nashville, TN Posts: 229 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	From what I can understand you can be doing like 75 mph and it will just die right? Well I had a 93 olds cutlas ciera and it did this same thing.  We would take it to the shop it wouldn't do it cause it was so random.  It did this for about 3 or 4 months when it finally died in the middle of a busy intersection (which I told my parents it was dangerous to drive because of this) and it would start back up.  We had to sell it because none of the Techs could fix it at the Old's dealership. I don't think it would be the distributor if it's just dying going 45 mph.  If it were just dying at the red light then it might be the distributer.   Good Luck on this one.  If you find out what it is let me know.  I've always wondered what was wrong with that damn Oldsmobile. <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/crazy.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':crazy:'> Good Luck! -Dave- __________________ 91 Fastback --Pilot Shortshifter--

12-06-2002, 02:06 AM	#3
9524tee Zilvia Junkie Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Lexington KY Posts: 545 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	get new plugs , and a new cap and rotor first , before you dump money into a distributer ... and if you do need a new distributer i have one that works great , i have it left over from my crash .. ill sell it for 80$ or you could buy one for 400 from nissan =) ... let me know if you need the distributer ... email is , [email protected] , the distributer is from a 95 240sx __________________ Nancy Kappa Monkey Squad

12-06-2002, 02:54 AM	#4
adey Post Whore! Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Hong Kong Posts: 3,072 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	This sounds like my problem. It'd never happened to me until a few days ago; I have had a funky idle pretty much since I bought it, but it's been getting worse and worse. As far as I understand it, there is a bad ground somewhere in one of the wire looms by the firewall, just by/behind the injectors/fuel rail. Try tapping/tugging/shaking this fat group of wires near the firewall; if it affects your idle, it is probably this bad ground. See the following page for possible fix details: http://www.alldata.com/service_provi.../20000713.html hope that helps solve your problem! Edit: it is probably not your distributor or cap; I replaced mine hoping it'd help (also replaced plugs wires fuel filter and air filter at the same time) but to no avail; I still had the fluctuating-and-intermittently-dying-idle issue. This did NOT happen to me when I was just driving/on throttle, only when you let off the throttle and the revs return to idle. __________________ Instagram: @SX180HKG

12-05-2002, 07:49 PM	#1
Nerfdude BANNED Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 495 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	here's the deal... every once in awhile, my car will die. it may die when i'm driving along, or it'll die at a light, or it'll just not start. it's done it four times in the last three days. i let it sit for a while, and it starts back up. oh, and sometimes the car will drop to zero RPM's while i'm driving, and then jump back up less than a second later. the starter cranks. i checked the spark during starting after it's died, and there is none. so the problem is definately electrical. it was doing this a couple months ago, and i replaced the ignition control module, and that seemed to end the problem... but... now i suspect the distributor. am i right? has anyone had to deal with this shit before?