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michaelcureton99

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14 Posts
Discussion Starter · #1 ·
04 XE, giving me the most headaches of any ride I've ever encountered. It started stalling, power loss, (at times) fine one minute, leave you stranded the next. Changed fuel filter. No help. Cleaned MAF sensor... no help. Replaced plugs and wires... no help. Gutted converters... no help. Replaced fuel pump... no help. Cleaned throttle body... no help. Replaced ignition... no help. Replaced distributor... won't start. I've checked all fuses, wires, and connectors. What now???? Ecm?
 
zfischer1

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72 Posts
#2 ·
Another thing you can try is testing the pressure of the fuel system. You can also use a multimeter to make sure your injectors are operational and not clogged, the vacuum line going to the fuel pressure regulator has a tendency to go bad as well. Hope this helps.
 
MeToo

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2004 Xterra XE 4WD Auto 3.3L NA V6
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3,220 Posts
#3 ·
One thing to consider is getting a scanner that reads all 4 code groups, B, C, P, and U, not just the "free" P codes. The CEL may not be on and there can still be codes.

Some things we don't know that might be germane is the miles on the odometer, when the timing belt was last changed, if it's the 2.4L or 3.3L, and if it no longer starts at all. Does it have EGR? Has the FPR been tested?
 
XT2015

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2015 Xterra Pro-4X
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2,706 Posts
#4 ·
michaelcureton99 said:
04 XE, giving me the most headaches of any ride I've ever encountered. It started stalling, power loss, (at times) fine one minute, leave you stranded the next. Changed fuel filter. No help. Cleaned MAF sensor... no help. Replaced plugs and wires... no help. Gutted converters... no help. Replaced fuel pump... no help. Cleaned throttle body... no help. Replaced ignition... no help. Replaced distributor... won't start. I've checked all fuses, wires, and connectors. What now???? Ecm?
Click to expand...
Since the last thing you did before the No Start condition was changing the distributor, I would be revisiting that process and check to be sure the ignition timing is correct. Not much wiggle room when that is off.
 
michaelcureton99

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14 Posts
Discussion Starter · #5 ·
MeToo said:
One thing to consider is getting a scanner that reads all 4 code groups, B, C, P, and U, not just the "free" P codes. The CEL may not be on and there can still be codes.

Some things we don't know that might be germane is the miles on the odometer, when the timing belt was last changed, if it's the 2.4L or 3.3L, and if it no longer starts at all. Does it have EGR? Has the FPR been tested?
Click to expand...
Mechanic came by 2 days back. He checked pulse and pressure at injectors, checked timing. All good. He said distributor would fire 3 to 4 times and quit. So I bought and replaced distributor and here I am.
 
michaelcureton99

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Discussion Starter · #6 ·
XT2015 said:
Since the last thing you did before the No Start condition was changing the distributor, I would be revisiting that process and check to be sure the ignition timing is correct. Not much wiggle room when that is off.
Click to expand...
Tried it last night. It's on the mark. Piston up. Rotor button pointing to #1 on the cap. It has nice blue spark ?????
 
Satito

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#14 ·
Is the Service Engine Soon light on?
Have you read the codes to make sure that there are no "hidden" codes?
Is the new distributor a Nissan / Hitachi? Aftermarket units have a way of not working with these particular engines. It's seems that the cam sensors in them are not up to snuff.
If you still have your old distributor... take the cap off, pull the rotor, and look down in the well with a light to see if there are any metal shavings. Metal shavings will indicate that the bearings have gone bad and this was likely the cause of your original problem. These can be replaced for about $10-$20 if you're handy. There's a write up showing how to do it here on the forums.
 
michaelcureton99

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Discussion Starter · #15 ·
Satito said:
Is the Service Engine Soon light on?
Have you read the codes to make sure that there are no "hidden" codes?
Is the new distributor a Nissan / Hitachi? Aftermarket units have a way of not working with these particular engines. It's seems that the cam sensors in them are not up to snuff.
If you still have your old distributor... take the cap off, pull the rotor, and look down in the well with a light to see if there are any metal shavings. Metal shavings will indicate that the bearings have gone bad and this was likely the cause of your original problem. These can be replaced for about $10-$20 if you're handy. There's a write up showing how to do it here on the forums.
Click to expand...
Ok. I sent the new distributor back. Bought another one from a different company, installed it, timed the truck, put another set if new plugs in, and same issue. No start, wet plugs. Grabbed me a FPR, installed it, along with all new vacuum lines underneath the plenum, and completely under the hood. Started right up, but had extremely high idle. Shut it off, check for anything left off, everything looks good, fired him back up. Same, only this time it runs 30 seconds and shuts itself off. Fired right back up, will not take any throttle, just bogs and shuts off. I honestly don't know what else I can do.
 
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XT2015
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