electronic gremlins at it again. my story... please read/help... - Zilvia.net Forums | Nissan 240SX (Silvia) and Z (Fairlady) Car Forum

Nerfdude · 01-25-2003, 07:37 PM

i've replaced my coil, my ICM, i've cleaned my IAA (which did fix my idle, i might add...) but i still have a problem. it's manifested in a couple ways... grab a cold drink and get comfortable, because this is a long pain in the ass of a journey.

about a month after i bought the car, it started dying at inoportune times. at a stoplight, in my driveway, driving down the highway with the car in gear... pretty much whenever. it didn't give any warning. it just did it at random, about once every 2 or three days. it would just die, and if you waited half an hour to n hour, it would start back up, no problems. the starter always cranks. while not starting, i checked the wires for spark: there was none.
this led me to believe the ignition system, or some part of it, was the culprit. so i replaced the Ignition Control Module, and it stopped dying for a while.
then it all started again, same symptoms. so i replaced the coil. again, no more problems for a brief amount of time.
last week, the idle irregularity got so bad that it started stalling itself. when it stalled, sometimes it would start right back up, other times it wouldn't start for a good long time. so, i cleaned out the IAA valve with some carb cleaner. the idle is now perfect, sitting at 750 rpm's with the AC off, 1000 when on. and up until about an hour ago, the car ran fine.
i work at domino's, i'm a delivery guy. hence, my car is kind of important. i parked the car outside the building, turned it off. ran inside, got another order came out- and the car wouldn't start. the starter cranked, but the car wouldn't start- i checked the lines for spark again, and there is none.
i'm ready to say it's either the distributor, the ECU itself, or the ignition system itself- but i'm not ready to shotgun purchase any of those high ticket items. anyone care to speculate on what my problem here is? please, any help would be greatly apprecitated...

96SEChick · 01-25-2003, 09:02 PM

If you're not getting any spark, I'm thinking it may be the distributor. Did you replace your plugs & wires yet? I didn't see that in your post. Does it seem to do it worse when it's humid or rainy, than when the weather's dry? Or is it in any climate?

Nerfdude · 01-26-2003, 11:49 AM

haven't replaced the plugs and wires yet, b/c they don't seem to be the problem. 99.9% of the time, it runs great. it's completely at random, or so it seems, when this thing just stops working... no climate, no rain, no nothing. ugh... the distributor's what i'm leaning towards, now, too.

about the distributor. does anyone know what the harness plug on the side of the distributor is, and/or what it does? i've found that when it's unplugged, the car won't start, and acts like it does when it won't start. what does that thing do?

01-25-2003, 07:37 PM	#1
Nerfdude BANNED Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 495 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	electronic gremlins at it again. my story... please read/help... i've replaced my coil, my ICM, i've cleaned my IAA (which did fix my idle, i might add...) but i still have a problem. it's manifested in a couple ways... grab a cold drink and get comfortable, because this is a long pain in the ass of a journey. about a month after i bought the car, it started dying at inoportune times. at a stoplight, in my driveway, driving down the highway with the car in gear... pretty much whenever. it didn't give any warning. it just did it at random, about once every 2 or three days. it would just die, and if you waited half an hour to n hour, it would start back up, no problems. the starter always cranks. while not starting, i checked the wires for spark: there was none. this led me to believe the ignition system, or some part of it, was the culprit. so i replaced the Ignition Control Module, and it stopped dying for a while. then it all started again, same symptoms. so i replaced the coil. again, no more problems for a brief amount of time. last week, the idle irregularity got so bad that it started stalling itself. when it stalled, sometimes it would start right back up, other times it wouldn't start for a good long time. so, i cleaned out the IAA valve with some carb cleaner. the idle is now perfect, sitting at 750 rpm's with the AC off, 1000 when on. and up until about an hour ago, the car ran fine. i work at domino's, i'm a delivery guy. hence, my car is kind of important. i parked the car outside the building, turned it off. ran inside, got another order came out- and the car wouldn't start. the starter cranked, but the car wouldn't start- i checked the lines for spark again, and there is none. i'm ready to say it's either the distributor, the ECU itself, or the ignition system itself- but i'm not ready to shotgun purchase any of those high ticket items. anyone care to speculate on what my problem here is? please, any help would be greatly apprecitated...

01-25-2003, 09:02 PM	#2
96SEChick Nissanaholic! Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Broken Arrow, OK Age: 48 Posts: 1,814 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	If you're not getting any spark, I'm thinking it may be the distributor. Did you replace your plugs & wires yet? I didn't see that in your post. Does it seem to do it worse when it's humid or rainy, than when the weather's dry? Or is it in any climate? __________________ Lauren '91 300ZX TT Ultra Red 5-speed - JWT POPCharger, JUN flywheel, ACT clutch, Energy Suspension Bushings, Tokico Blues - dyno'ed 295hp/306tq '94 300ZX TT Black Emerald Pearl 5-speed - JWT POPCharger, JWT ECU w/ Stillen chip, Stillen exhaust, Tokico Blues, Eibach ProKits, 18" Enkei RP-01 wheels - dyno'ed 333hp/385tq '00 WS6 Trans Am Bright Red 6-speedFOR SALE - only 29k miles, stock, fully loaded, only $23,999 (NADA $26300) Green Country Motorsports Northeastern Oklahoma SCCA

01-26-2003, 11:49 AM	#3
Nerfdude BANNED Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 495 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	haven't replaced the plugs and wires yet, b/c they don't seem to be the problem. 99.9% of the time, it runs great. it's completely at random, or so it seems, when this thing just stops working... no climate, no rain, no nothing. ugh... the distributor's what i'm leaning towards, now, too. about the distributor. does anyone know what the harness plug on the side of the distributor is, and/or what it does? i've found that when it's unplugged, the car won't start, and acts like it does when it won't start. what does that thing do?