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Searched though this site and did not see my exact "problem". I have a 97 Villager I bought a year ago and it's run fantastic ever since. Except now. I have discovered that if it is parked with the nose lower than the rear it will not start and I can smell gas outside the car. Pump runs like a champ, fuel pressure is spot on. How on earth can a fuel injected engine flood out tike this? The only way we found to get it started was pushing it into the street and waiting an hour or so and she started up but of course belched out a cloud of smoke due to being flooded. Otherwise runs and drives just fine. I'm thinking it has to be the pressure regulator leaking. Anyone found this issue before? Thanks in advance for your time.
when parked nose down on quite a steep hill.
I found that less than a quarter of a tank caused this problem especially when it was cold.
The pump is situated near the back of the tank so thats easy to figure.
my 2 cents.
Anyone else have an idea on this issue? As stated in my orginal question, the pump and pressure check out fine. It just floods if left sitting nose down at even the slightest angle, with any amount of gas in the tank. I also noticed this week that milage has gone down the tubes on this van but the engine seems to run fine and no blue or black smoke either. Throttle response is fine as well??????
since you are smelling gas and losing gas mileage, you should have your mechanic look at your van.
thanks
But who knows - these kinds of problems can be hard to figure out. If it's been unseasonably cold there, maybe you have a bit of water freezing in a fuel component somewhere. A bottle of gas-line antifreeze would be a cheap thing to test.
And I've also read reports of the torque converter locking up and stalling the engine. Maybe put a transmission fluid change and pan cleaning on the todo list?
Steve, visiting host (and lousy mechanic )
I changed the PCV valve, fuel filter (fuel pump is less than 2 weeks old). Took a test drive and after about 20 minutes it started to chug again. RPM down up down up. Made it home without stall by keeping the gas down a bit more than usual. Changed the (much needed) distributor cap and rotor. Ran fine over a week. On my way to work, fine. After work it made it 20 feet across the parking lot and... RPM down up down up stalled. VERY hard to restart. Let it idle for about 15 minutes, the drove home with little noticable issue. Only a slight dip in RPM then back up when decelerating around corners or at lights. I'm going to check the distributor photo eye tomorrow, and maybe the Idle Control valve/relays. If neither, off to the shop. I'll post what I find when I find it.
As for my issue, the van went to the shop for repairs Friday. After three seperate shops suggested the same issue, I decided to try it. All said it was a bad Crank Position Sensor (CPS) though my issues don't seem totally consistent with it's function. I've not had trouble starting which is a typical symptom of a bad CPS. The repair was made late Friday, and it seems to be driving OK over the weekend. I'll have to see how it does with my hour drive to work Monday. I'll update when I have a conclusion.
Took it to a Nissan dealer who found play in the rebuilt distributor. Will exchange for another next week.
He also said that the spark plugs weren't NGK, the preferred brand. (they are Bosch)
Tried to sell me a new set of these, but I said that at $240. for the package, I wasn't interested.
thanks
Thanks, RLD
Sprayed cleaner in throttle body and sea foam in intake but nothing so far seems to help it. I don't want to buy it if it is something major that I don't know about. Seems to idle fine and has plenty of pick up in acceleration, the surging is just annoying at this point but don't know if it would get worse or cost a lot to fix.
The van has 128,000 on it. I put a new fuel filter on it last night though the old one was only on for about 10,000.
Seemed to help some, but when you step on it for freeway entrance ramp the up and down is still there. There is a slight rpm change, but not drastic. Auto parts fellow thinks it is possibly throttle position switch but at 98.00 hate to put it on just to see, especially when it's not mine yet. Wonder, could you get one at the junk yard to see if it changes things? Pulled one plug - only 10,000 on them too - seemed a bit black like it's running rich. I'm going to try and get the codes read today if I can find a place to do it. Pulled vac hose off of fuel regulator and not gas coming out - so hopefully that is ok. Have no idea of what they get to check codes on trans.
Replaced the fuel filter the other night - seems to help a little bit on the surge
Had a mechanic drive it, thought it was the throttle position sensor, so got that and put it on. Still surges somewhat - would like to get if fixed so I know I don't have some other big issue waiting to go bad after I buy it. I'll try and check the optical sensor for dust tomorrow. Any other ideas - would be appreciated.
Well i have the same problem but only thing is, i changed the fuel pump thinking that was the problem and the fuel filter and took it to my Neighborhood Mechanic to check the fuel pressure and the regulator, well the mechanic said everything checked out good , But he also said that he ran a diagnostic and electrical check it came back saying the it was an electrical Problem, and he told me to "Replace the PCM or Powertrian Control Modual or the computer.
But when i came to this forum to read up i found a gay/gal saying that when they replaced the distributor everything was fine? i think my self it also is the distributor , cuz the PCM is hard to break down am i right? and the PCM controls alot of sensors which would also show symptoms if the PCM went bad? Please guys/gals help me figure this one out i would really appreciate it Thank You
Since you mentioned that it was pointing uphill when it quit, are you thinking it may be a fuel problem?
Steve, visiting host
put some more gas in it from a can and it started right up.
The pick-up in the gas tank is near the front (parked face up a hill, all the gas will be at the back) and with a little moisture in the tank the screen on the pump froze up just enough to drop the pressure.
I've searched the net for weeks and asked everyone i know and have come to the conclusion there is no easy fix for this. My '96 was fine until last month when it started crapping out when it warmed up. Cool off and it runs good, fifteen minutes later it's a bucking bronco. Won't restart til it cools off. I've replaced a ton of parts on it and still no luck. I'm amazed that so many have the same problem and no one can come up with a solution. When I'm looking at 400 dollar maf sensors and 600 distributors I'm thinking that those two items alone equall the current value of the vehicle. I won't do it. It's been a great van and I've owned it for nine years, but all good things come to an end. Good luck.
Red
The solution was to replace the coil, not the distributor. I think that might still be valid for any car that has a separate coil, and I said might because with today's cars I am not completely sure but this could be used as a lead.
That test is supposed to work on the newer style distributors too.
The bearing in the distributor had gone out. Opened the distributor, there were many small metal flakes inside. Replaced the distributor, runs fine. Note; the timing marks are hard to find. The pointer is right under a hose fitting that is steel colored among the black. Stand by the right front wheel facing left. May have to push a hose to the side. Aim your timing light down through a small space and you'll see the pointer right above the pulley with the marks. Took me a lot of searching with a flashlight to find it.--Good luck, Fred
Do you think that a person could get away with just cleaning the metal shavings out and still using the same distributor, or do you have to replace the entire distributor? I just hate to spend all this money! Thanks, Cheri
That sounds easy! I' ll keep you posted on the outcome. Have a nice day! Cheri
Thanks a lot.
Try to get to an auto parts store and ask them if they can pull the codes. If any show up, they can read them for you or you can come back here and someone should be able to tell you what they could indicate.
Steve, visiting host
As far as cleaning the sensor/lens, I just hit everything with air and put it back together.