Dude2005 Posted March 17, 2022 Share Posted March 17, 2022 Hi everyone, This is a question about engine start up issue and check engine light. It's a 2005 DE, 6 speed manual, no mods, around 109k miles on the clock. I was driving back from work today in an unusually heavy traffic that was mostly 1st gear constant stop and go. Roughly halfway through (15 minutes of driving maybe 3 miles, so warm engine) I pulled up to enter a roundabout and as I tried to start from a complete stop the car died. I didn't stall it, it felt like it died the moment I touched the gas and before I event started releasing clutch. Then the engine had a bad start. It used to start literally in one second (just touch the key and it was running), this time it felt like 2-3 times longer. Shortly before that I've noticed in the corner of my eye that RPMs have been acting weird, once or twice I've seen them jump above 1200 for no reason, while idle and then go back to 750. Then I drove past home and straight to Tesco. Parked the car, quickly got what I needed, and went back to car. Took me maybe 3 minutes. Then I had the same hard start as before on roundabout, but this time the check engine, VDC and SLIP lights, all three, turned on. I was a bit concerned about the oil pressure. Few month ago I had a nasty situation with a mechanic who needlessly replaced a sump pan and I've been keeping an eye on the oil level and pressure ever since. In last few days I've started noticing the oil pressure on idle being lower than usual and dropping to 16-18 psi when totally idle and a bit above 35 psi at 2000 rpm. When I got the car it used to hover higher, I don't exactly remember it being below 20 psi ever. I'm gonna check the oil level tomorrow morning, once it cools down. I don't have an OBD2 reader yet (going to buy one online in a moment). Does anyone have any ideas what it might be? Should I be worried? I did around 7000 miles in this car since I got it, was all super smooth, never had any engine related problems with it. P.S. apologies for long post and bad English (it's not my native). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P15UL T Posted March 17, 2022 Share Posted March 17, 2022 It could be oil getting into he spark plug /coil pack via a worn rubber seal. Zmanalex has Replacment valve covers that lots of the guys have bought and fitted. Worth pulling the spark plugs to check them. Paul 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davey_83 Posted March 17, 2022 Share Posted March 17, 2022 Sounds like one of cam position sensors, that'll causes the warning lights also whereas oil getting pass the plugs wouldn't. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dude2005 Posted March 18, 2022 Author Share Posted March 18, 2022 UPDATE: So it seems that I'm a bit of an idiot myself. I've checked oil level today and it was below min. There was still oil on the dipstick, the backside was constantly getting oil all over it, but on the side with checker pattern it was dry and the oil mark was below the marked minimum. I've poured 700ml in (all I had at hand) and moved the car to a better parking spot and it started nicely as it used to - touch the key and it was on. I'm not sure if the light start was due to it being cold or because of it having more oil though. The check engine light remains on, but the VDC and SLIP is now off. I'm gonna check the error codes once the OBD2 arrives. For now the car will be parked. Thank you guys for your answers. I hope it's not gallery gasket, that one sounds expensive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roscoe Posted March 19, 2022 Share Posted March 19, 2022 Unlikely to be gallery gaskets on a DE. More likely the piston rings. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZMANALEX Posted March 19, 2022 Share Posted March 19, 2022 Firstly, I doubt very much that the low engine oil would cause your issues, however it is imperative that you keep the oil at the correct level. 99% of 350z engine failures are due to low or dirty engine oils. Although it may not be causing your issues, I would still pull the coils and check for oil ingress, as Paul has said. I carry in stock the cam cover kit for this problem. Once you pull your error codes than you may get a better understanding of what is going on. As has been said, I would not be surprised if it is a cam position sensor. Keep us posted of any progress that you make. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dude2005 Posted March 20, 2022 Author Share Posted March 20, 2022 Thank you guys so much for all the feedback. I got the OBD2 reader today. I checked the codes and it got me P0340 (full description that I got is: Camshaft position (CMP) sensor A, bank 1 circuit malfunction). I then cleared it, went for a longer ride and the problem returned. The engine died randomly when idling in a traffic, then had a bad start and the check engine light + esp + slip is now back on. Is the error code indicative of which sensor exactly it is? I know this engine has 2 and they are not identical and the OEM supplier from what I know is Hitachi. Would it be CPS0005 or CPS0008. Or should I replace both anyway? Also on the oil situation I poured another 1 litre (for a total of 1.7L) and now the oil level is exactly halfway between min and max. Hope that running this much low on oil isn't the reason I now have a problem and just accidentally happened when the cam sensor failed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZMANALEX Posted March 20, 2022 Share Posted March 20, 2022 Bank 1 is driver's side. So, CPS driver's side. Use only OEM from Nissan 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davey_83 Posted March 20, 2022 Share Posted March 20, 2022 https://h-dev.co.uk/product/hitachi-350z-de-cam-sensor/ http://www.clarkmotorsport.co.uk/parts/Camshaft-Position-Sensor-Bank-1/23731-6J90B 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZMANALEX Posted March 20, 2022 Share Posted March 20, 2022 1 hour ago, davey_83 said: https://h-dev.co.uk/product/hitachi-350z-de-cam-sensor/ http://www.clarkmotorsport.co.uk/parts/Camshaft-Position-Sensor-Bank-1/23731-6J90B Both these are the old style sensor and both have been superseded. You do not want to fit the old style plastic sensor, fit the metal cylindrical type. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davey_83 Posted March 20, 2022 Share Posted March 20, 2022 17 minutes ago, ZMANALEX said: Both these are the old style sensor and both have been superseded. You do not want to fit the old style plastic sensor, fit the metal cylindrical type. Pretty sure those details from Hdev and CMS are for illustration purpose only, well I know they are as when I bought mine some years back from CMS the picture was a such however the later style sensor arrived. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dude2005 Posted April 12, 2022 Author Share Posted April 12, 2022 So here goes a final update I think: It's been a while, I anticipated that it will take me around an hour to change the sensor, so I've been waiting for a good warm day ideally a Saturday, trying to avoid working on hot engine and risk burning my arms. Anyway, long story short, around 2 weeks after the initial problem started (the check engine and ESP + SLIP lights being on, car having troubles starting when it was warmed up) one day it all went back to normal. I've been driving since then (another 2 weeks) waiting for the problem to return, so if I change the sensor I could see the difference and confirm to myself that it was indeed what was causing problems. That day however didn't come. Car was starting nicely it just felt a bit handicapped and slow. Then, few days ago, I had a bad power loss for 2-3 seconds when accelerating on 4th gear, which convinced me that the problem was still there and I should change the sensor anyway. Today I finally changed the camshaft position sensor, took me 10 minutes, turns out it's a dead simple task, a 5 year old could do it. The problem I have now is the ECU being all not so happy. After changing the sensor, I connected OBD2 reader, started an app on the phone did a scan and nothing showed up. Not surprising given that the problem went away some time ago on its own and the check engine light wasn't on since then. However when I started the car (first start after sensor change), it didn't start right away. It had the same bad start it used to have, the only difference was this time it did it on cold engine. After that the check engine light came on. I had to run some errands so I took the car, previously read that the ECU may need to learn the new sensor. The ride was nice and smooth though car was a bit sluggish, must have been in limp mode. When I parked it once with already warmed up engine it had a bad start after and a few minutes after that I hit petrol station and it had bad start there as well. This time the ECU, SLIP and ESP lights all came up. I drove back home, again car giving me maybe 40% of its power. And then I tried to clear error codes for the last time. So the same app+OBD2 reader, this time showed the P0340 again, I followed the recommended steps of turning ignition, scanning codes, clearing, turning ignition off and then starting the car. It started nicely (warm engine), but the ECU light is now on. ESP and SLIP are off, and the OBD2 doesn't read any errors, but the check engine light is on. I let it run for 5 minutes, idling, reved it up to 2000RPM for a minute or so and then let is spin idle for a moment and turned it off. So my final question is, what is going on? Is it true that the ECU will learn/adjust to new sensor and it will take it some time? Why is check engine light on if there is no errors? Is that a problem with the reader/app? Should I do the pedal dance and read the code this way? Will there be any code? I hope that all I wrote here isn't too chaotic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZMANALEX Posted April 12, 2022 Share Posted April 12, 2022 Did you fit a genuine Nissan Sensor to Bank 1? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dude2005 Posted April 12, 2022 Author Share Posted April 12, 2022 3 hours ago, ZMANALEX said: Did you fit a genuine Nissan Sensor to Bank 1? Yes, I did Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZMANALEX Posted April 13, 2022 Share Posted April 13, 2022 In that case best to get your car hooked up to Consult for a proper informed diagnoses as guesswork can be expensive. Where are you based. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.