The "Air Mas Meter" as Nissan calls it may be toast in my car. Is there any way to test it?
My car starts and immediately cuts off. I checked for vacuum leaks, and can't find any.
Anyone have any other ideas?
Also, it is a $400 part, so I hope everyone can lead me to a solution that isn't replacing it.

[Edited on August 7, 2005 at 9:41 PM. Reason : $$]

8/7/2005 9:40:38 PM

As long as I keep my foot on the gas, it stays running, as soon as the RPM drops below 1k, it dies.
More info for everyone.

8/7/2005 10:21:46 PM

sounds like your on top of it daryl

but you can get one for less than 400 im sure

8/7/2005 10:36:35 PM

on maxima.org there should be few sites advertised that sell OEM parts relatively cheap

8/8/2005 12:21:43 AM

The cheapest I can find one new is $375.
I don't know for sure that is the problem, but that is the worst case scenario.

8/8/2005 12:27:59 AM

won't the MAF show up in your engine codes? It might not kick a "Check Engine" light. There's also probably a way to test it with a multimeter, but oxygen sensor are very sensitive so I wouldn't go probing around unless I was positive about how to test it.

[Edited on August 8, 2005 at 12:36 AM. Reason : does your model maxima have the built-in diagnostic LED like 300z's?]

8/8/2005 12:35:46 AM

try ebay or cars that are parted out on org

here is one for $210

http://wrenchead.carparts.com/cgi-bin/sewse?/u/www/webepc.com/cmm/scripts/epc20.cmm+jcw-carparts

i put '94 maxima....dont know which year you got

[Edited on August 8, 2005 at 12:38 AM. Reason : gf]

8/8/2005 12:36:09 AM

just to get your car moving you may wanna set your idle as high as it goes. I also wouldn't rule out the throttle position sensor or ecu. A multimeter on the wires coming from the MAF while someone plays with the throttle would be a decent way to test it. if you do end up having to replace it, you could just buy something like an emanage or megasquirt and run off a map sensor (cheaper and universal). this isn't a good choice if you aren't looking for more performance or a good period of fine tuning.

8/8/2005 12:53:07 AM

^^ I have a '91 maxima, but thanks for the info.

8/8/2005 12:58:01 AM

i never figured you for a maxima driver.

8/8/2005 1:44:35 AM

there are a shitload of maximas around, surely you can find a parts car?

8/8/2005 8:52:38 AM

when the sensor was f'ed on my 3000gt it would run ok when it was unplugged but immediatly cut off when i plugged it in..or run like ass if i kept my foot on the gas. it was basically always telling the ecu no or almost no air was going thru there all the time...

to really test most of them you need a ossiliscope but you might be able to do enough with a multimeter to see if it's working or not, i'm not sure since i've never worked on a maxima

edit: on the 3000gt i never got a check engine light for it...as far as the computer knew it was still working, which it was...it was just wrong all the time. so yeah, best bet is to find somebody with the same car and swap them or somethin obviously

[Edited on August 8, 2005 at 9:07 AM. Reason : edit]

8/8/2005 9:06:21 AM

8/8/2005 9:08:07 AM

When faggots get lost in the wrong section.

8/8/2005 9:25:24 AM

8/8/2005 9:51:02 AM

simple place to start is clean the plug/check for good connection. sounds more like the tps to me, but that's basically a guess without a multi meter. generally when the air meter takes a crap you'll get a no start since it usually controls the fuel pump shut on.

8/8/2005 11:17:07 AM

the exact same thing happened to my car
i got it moving by keeping the RPMs high enough and putting it into drive and after like 2 min of moving slowly it ran normally
i dont know if it was a MAF sensor or if it was a vacuum leak but i tightened everything up when i got home and never had the problem again.

8/8/2005 11:45:34 AM

^^VERY good point. I didn't think of that.

TPS is easy to diagnose with a multimeter, as long as you have a pinout chart. Most manuals do.

8/8/2005 11:54:26 AM

i don't know if this helps, but i had a 2000 maxima that had that problem. it would turn on and run, but if i came to a stop sign or a light and had to stop, if i didn't keep my foot on the gas, the car would drop below 2000 RPM and then shut off. it was almost brand new at the time...so it was under warranty. greenville nissan said it had to be the ECU or TCU. they replaced both....after three weeks in the shop, they couldn't get the car to go over 28 mlies an hour. they then told me that i would need major repair such as a engine replacement or new transmission...to make the story short, they bought back the car.

8/8/2005 11:56:21 AM

careful with the pin diagrams in a haynes manual if that's what you're using. i've found them to be consistently wrong, especially on the colors.

8/8/2005 12:04:22 PM

mitchell has great diagrams and component tests, but usually what causes failure in a maf is a break in the wire grid, its fairly easy to spot if you pull it off

8/8/2005 12:38:33 PM

So.. the problem is my wiring harness. It looks as though the power wire, and possibly one other desided to separate themselves inside their sheathing. Now I need to trace the wires back, and see where the break is. It appears to be where the Air Meter harness joins the rest of the wiring harness.

8/8/2005 7:05:09 PM

we have one of those super cool tracers at work for that shit, works good on trucks and trailers with long ass wiring runs

8/8/2005 7:21:47 PM

There were two problems. A corroded ground line in the harness, and a hole in the piping to the throtle body. Both fixed, and the cars runs fine once again.

8/9/2005 11:14:08 PM