Starts, runs, drives... then dies within moments. Alive for 2 minutes, then dead.

bassettsnose

Test Drive
Location
Texas
Folks I need some help here.

I'm no good with electrical work. I just suck at it. My brain just doesn't get it...but I try.

I have a 2002 Xterra 3.3L non-supercharged with right at 200k miles on the clock.

It will start, run, and drive GREAT for about two minutes...then as it's getting fully warmed up it begins choking and dies. It's as if it's only running on maybe three cylinders, then two, then dead.

It's at a friend's house who's trying to help me out (he's usually really good with this kind of thing) but he's stumped too. He says (though I have not verified) that the fuel pressure AND the ignition are BOTH failing after it warms up a bit. I bought the vehicle after a 5 minute test drive, where the owner told me it had an occasional stalling problem... but it's become a full-time stalling problem now Every Single Time it warms up a bit.

My buddy thinks it's the computer...but after all I've read, I'm worried it could be something to do with the distributor. Either way, I just plain suck at anything electrical. Yall have any words of wisdom? I'm up for trying anything yall can recommend...and happy to provide any additional info I may have left out. Thoughts?

Thanks in advance folks. :)
 

bassettsnose

Test Drive
Location
Texas
Whoa...you guys are super fast! I wasn't expecting to hear anything for a day or so. Color me impressed. :)

Codes were for the rear oxygen sensor, but the rear catalytic converter was rattling something fierce so we replaced the cat and the code for the rear oxygen sensor went away.

Only other code is for multiple random misfires.

Oh...and the knock sensor. Because apparently all Xterras have that code these days. :)

Is there an easier way to condemn the distributor aside from replacing it and seeing if conditions improve?
 

Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
Admin
Location
Denver Adjacent
Can you grab the distributor and see if it jiggles a bit? The problem is that the bearing goes out and can't rotate correctly.
 

CHUG

Lockers Installed
Supporting Member
Fuel filter in the Tank plugged up?. Not sure but early years under the passenger driver side.. they were smart added a hatch to get to the fuel filter in the tank.
another Crank shaft sensors. got three of them. Not sure on the 02 models.

Vapor lock on Fuel cap?
just tossing out a few options to check..
 

kirk

Butterfly King
Moderator
Supporting Member
Location
Allen, Texas
Multiple misfires makes me again wonder about the distributor. Like prime said, can you move it at all?
 

bassettsnose

Test Drive
Location
Texas
My goodness... you guys absolutely rock! Cannot thank each of you enough. Hope this response helps.

The only current code is for the knock sensor. My buddy asked me to bring a new battery as it was beginning to get weak, so I bought a new battery and drove the Xterra home (about 4 miles) and by the time I got home it was beginning to cough again. If I'd had to drive another 4 miles, I'm 99% certain it'd have once again gotten slowly worse and worse until it died. Not certain if removing the battery cables for the few moments it took to swap the bad battery out and the good battery in would be enough time for the codes to be erased. Come to think of it, I'm not certain removing the battery cables for any amount of time would have an effect on the codes...

The previous owner suspected a fuel problem and replaced the pump and in-tank fuel filter...so this problem has been going on both before and after the fuel pump & filter replacement.

The distributor doesn't appear to be moving. I tried grasping the cap and got no movement, then the lower metal portion and again got no motion...but I'm not 100% certain I'm moving things correctly for this test. I mean, if the problem were going to be obvious then I'd say it doesn't have the problem.

Vapor lock on fuel cap... would that create a fuel starvation issue? Would driving it with the cap loose solve that issue?

As far as crank shaft sensors go...in my (limited) experience they're more likely to cause a completely random no-run issue... whereas the problem I'm experiencing is a predictable and steady loss of power once the vehicle is fully warmed up. So I *think* that rules out crank sensors, but I'm certainly no expert.

I think that covers things. The vehicle is now here at home, so I can perform any/all tests myself. Any thoughts?
 

Susanb

Test Drive
Location
Riverside county
Whoa...you guys are super fast! I wasn't expecting to hear anything for a day or so. Color me impressed. :)

Codes were for the rear oxygen sensor, but the rear catalytic converter was rattling something fierce so we replaced the cat and the code for the rear oxygen sensor went away.

Only other code is for multiple random misfires.

Oh...and the knock sensor. Because apparently all Xterras have that code these days. :)

Is there an easier way to condemn the distributor aside from replacing it and seeing if conditions improve?
Timing belt?
 

Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
Admin
Location
Denver Adjacent
My goodness... you guys absolutely rock! Cannot thank each of you enough. Hope this response helps.

The only current code is for the knock sensor. My buddy asked me to bring a new battery as it was beginning to get weak, so I bought a new battery and drove the Xterra home (about 4 miles) and by the time I got home it was beginning to cough again. If I'd had to drive another 4 miles, I'm 99% certain it'd have once again gotten slowly worse and worse until it died. Not certain if removing the battery cables for the few moments it took to swap the bad battery out and the good battery in would be enough time for the codes to be erased. Come to think of it, I'm not certain removing the battery cables for any amount of time would have an effect on the codes...

The previous owner suspected a fuel problem and replaced the pump and in-tank fuel filter...so this problem has been going on both before and after the fuel pump & filter replacement.

The distributor doesn't appear to be moving. I tried grasping the cap and got no movement, then the lower metal portion and again got no motion...but I'm not 100% certain I'm moving things correctly for this test. I mean, if the problem were going to be obvious then I'd say it doesn't have the problem.

Vapor lock on fuel cap... would that create a fuel starvation issue? Would driving it with the cap loose solve that issue?

As far as crank shaft sensors go...in my (limited) experience they're more likely to cause a completely random no-run issue... whereas the problem I'm experiencing is a predictable and steady loss of power once the vehicle is fully warmed up. So I *think* that rules out crank sensors, but I'm certainly no expert.

I think that covers things. The vehicle is now here at home, so I can perform any/all tests myself. Any thoughts?
The distributor is very suspect in these situations. Like you said. The crank sensor is only relevant to the supercharged VG33 (VG33ER if you want to talk engine codes). It throws an error in the N/A engine, but does not affect the general function of the engine.

Traditionally, as long as the timing belt is done every 105k (the Nissan maintenance interval) the engine should run forever. The distributor is the wildcard in this. There have been many incidences of the distributor bearing failing in some way and causing the rotor to not make good contact on the points. This of course make the engine run like shiat. So, @kirk will agree with me. Just because you can't move the distributor, doesn't mean it's not a problem.
 

TerryD

Total Tease
Supporting Member
Location
Covington, Va
The distributor is very suspect in these situations. Like you said. The crank sensor is only relevant to the supercharged VG33 (VG33ER if you want to talk engine codes). It throws an error in the N/A engine, but does not affect the general function of the engine.

Traditionally, as long as the timing belt is done every 105k (the Nissan maintenance interval) the engine should run forever. The distributor is the wildcard in this. There have been many incidences of the distributor bearing failing in some way and causing the rotor to not make good contact on the points. This of course make the engine run like shiat. So, @kirk will agree with me. Just because you can't move the distributor, doesn't mean it's not a problem.
Well it shouldn't be the whole distributor you're trying to move. You'll have to take the cap off and check the shaft for play. Up and down as well as left and right. It should be pretty stable.
 

jgillaspy

Bought an X
Supporting Member
Location
San Antonio, TX
Occluded exhaust system? Many years ago we had a car that would do the same type thing. Turned out the exhaust pipes were double-walled and the inner wall had collapsed. It took time for the exhaust gas to build up enough to cause the engine to exhibit the issues and after sitting for a while it would clear.

JG
 

kirk

Butterfly King
Moderator
Supporting Member
Location
Allen, Texas
The distributor is very suspect in these situations. Like you said. The crank sensor is only relevant to the supercharged VG33 (VG33ER if you want to talk engine codes). It throws an error in the N/A engine, but does not affect the general function of the engine.

Traditionally, as long as the timing belt is done every 105k (the Nissan maintenance interval) the engine should run forever. The distributor is the wildcard in this. There have been many incidences of the distributor bearing failing in some way and causing the rotor to not make good contact on the points. This of course make the engine run like shiat. So, @kirk will agree with me. Just because you can't move the distributor, doesn't mean it's not a problem.
I 100% agree with this.
 

bassettsnose

Test Drive
Location
Texas
Wow... Sincere Thanks again for the multiple replies!

I'll check the exhaust output and report back. The big single catalytic converter (not one of the ones built into the exhaust manifold) was just replaced...obviously didn't solve the problem but it was rattling pretty badly so it was definitely trying to fall apart inside.

Obviously I fouled up the distributor test. I'll pull the cap and retest, and report back. Had a super long day (it's after midnight now) and just now getting the chance to read these replies. Will holler back tomorrow. Thank yall again!!!
 

bassettsnose

Test Drive
Location
Texas
Apologies for the delay.

Today we got the distributor pulled and found the main bearing to be in pieces. Working on either rebuilding or replacing the distributor, not sure which way we'll go just yet. One of the biggest concerns is this spacer / plate / thing, not sure what it's called, but it had a terrible crack and almost fell into pieces during distributor disassembly. Having a hard time naming it, and therefore a hard time finding another. Does anyone know: a) what this is, b) where to find a new one, c) can it be installed as-is (even though a portion of the plastic part is missing), and d) can it simply be deleted since it doesn't appear to hold anything into place or serve any other particular purpose (perhaps it's a shield of some sort?)

Also... as far as I can tell the exhaust output is normal. Assuming we can get it to crank and run after distributor install, I'll have a better time trying to tell what happens with the exhaust.
 

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kirk

Butterfly King
Moderator
Supporting Member
Location
Allen, Texas
I am almost sure thats just a cover that goes below the rotor as a shield. I dont think they are available anymore. You can use it as is or delete it. @Prime can correct me if I am wrong, but I am pretty certain you dont need that.
 

Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
Admin
Location
Denver Adjacent
Yeah. That's the rotor shield. Engine will run without it. And as far as I know the only way to get a new one is with an entire distributor.

2201-1W601RE

Thats the reman part for the complete distributor from Nissan.

$286 on nissanpartsdeal.com. Cheapest Google result is $258 from some of the online Nissan dealers.

If you Google that p/n there is a $70 one on Amazon.
 

Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
Admin
Location
Denver Adjacent
@ Prime, you ROCK. ( Just sayin )
shut-up-baby-i-know-it-bender.gif
 

noob1337

Test Drive
Sounds like you may have found the main issue in the distributor, another item to check is the fuel sending unit. the terminals can corrode, and eventually stop sending signal. the signal, and resulting fuel, loss may be intermittent or correlated with temperature or vibration before it completely fails.

And if you're at ~200k miles and ~20 years, this should be checked and probably replaced anyways. The job is pretty cheap/easy. Part costs ~$70, the worst part of the process is fighting several clips and cleaning up the area so you don't drop debris into your tank.

Recall ID # 37180

Inspection Image:

Replacement Write-Up:
 

bassettsnose

Test Drive
Location
Texas
SINCERE THANKS to all who helped with this... I pulled the dizzy and found the bearing in pieces...definitely the culprit. Will rebuild this one in time, but bought a new one from RockAuto for under $80 and now it's running like it should. Thanks again everyone!! :)
 
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