2003 350Z just stopped running

[spxntaneous_Z]

Hi. Posting this for a friend.

My friend just bought a 350Z from a guy who said it just randomly stopped running. He has replaced the crankshaft position sensor and both cam position sensors but the issue persists. It ran fine with a slight misfire two days before it stopped, according to the guy who sold it. It cranks over but just will not start up. The fuel pump has been replaced by the previous guy and all the fuses are good. He’s at a loss as to what to check next or where to look.

 

I have a new 370Z and can’t really help much as I do body stuff and am not an expert mechanic. Any suggestions will be helpful. 

[ZMANALEX]

Not enough detail/information in your post.

 

However as a DIY process of elimination you should start by fitting a new battery.

[polaris]

Remember: air, fuel and spark. Ensure you have those three key ingredients first before you do anything.

[Azurez33]

A bit vague, also will be worth getting a diag san on it as it will have most likely logged a code, start there a come up with a diag plan 

[Stewal]

Next time it fails to start, lock and unlock with the fob. It could be the immobliser, there is a US video of this on you Tube.

[KUGT4]

As per ZMANALEX, new battery first

 

Any results from ODBC diagnostic?

[Stewal]

This is the link. It seems the red led on the dash top is the key.

https://youtu.be/YHJ8JQKtdtE

 

I would also check the fuel pump and ignition relays and the microswitch on the clutch pedal.

[Stewal]

Just realised it is cranking so forget the the clutch switch.

 

If I remember correctly the fuel and ignition relays can be swapped with the main beam relay to test if they have the same terminal layout.

 

Best to try the no cost testing first before buying stuff.

[spxntaneous_Z]

20 hours ago, ZMANALEX said:

Not enough detail/information in your post.

 

However as a DIY process of elimination you should start by fitting a new battery.

Yep, battery was replaced even though the old one tested fine. 

[spxntaneous_Z]

17 hours ago, polaris said:

Remember: air, fuel and spark. Ensure you have those three key ingredients first before you do anything.

The fuel lines are getting fuel. He hasn’t pulled injectors out to my knowledge.  Spark plugs are good. 3 coils were replaced and work fine. In terms of air, the aftermarket filter is fine and the throttle isn’t stuck. He said he wants to check timing next but is really procrastinating it obviously as it’s a bigger job. 
 

Assuming all 3 are indeed fine, what would be your next step?

Thanks

[spxntaneous_Z]

7 hours ago, Azurez33 said:

A bit vague, also will be worth getting a diag san on it as it will have most likely logged a code, start there a come up with a diag plan 

This is all the information he gave me. He’s my neighbor and just moved recently. No codes were pulled though. Should I suggest he look again?

[spxntaneous_Z]

2 hours ago, Stewal said:

Next time it fails to start, lock and unlock with the fob. It could be the immobliser, there is a US video of this on you Tube.

I’ll tell him this. How would you go about fixing the immobiliser if that is the case?

 

1 hour ago, Stewal said:

This is the link. It seems the red led on the dash top is the key.

https://youtu.be/YHJ8JQKtdtE

 

I would also check the fuel pump and ignition relays and the microswitch on the clutch pedal.

I’ll check the video out and relay information to him.
It’s an automatic though so no clutch pedal. 

[spxntaneous_Z]

2 hours ago, KUGT4 said:

As per ZMANALEX, new battery first

 

Any results from ODBC diagnostic?

No, no codes stored or current. 

[polaris]

Regarding three of your replies @spxntaneous_Z.

 

Quote

This is all the information he gave me. He’s my neighbor and just moved recently. No codes were pulled though. Should I suggest he look again?

 

I'd look again. I believe that Nissan specialists can run further diagnostics if he wants to pop down to a garage.

 

Quote

I’ll tell him this. How would you go about fixing the immobiliser if that is the case?

 

If it's NATS immobiliser failure (it can happen) then you can bypass it with an UpRev map (£449). Horsham Developments are the people for that job. Read more here.

 

Quoting that website: 

Quote

UpRev also allows us to bypass the immobiliser on supported cars. The 350Z, 350GT and G35 Skyline can all suffer from NATS immobiliser failure. Often Nissan cannot help, especially on Japanese imports. The error codes are often P1610 and/or P1614.

 

EDIT: Regarding...

Quote

It ran fine with a slight misfire two days before it stopped

 

I'd pull the injectors and check them. No harm in it.

Edited September 25, 2022 by polaris

[ShortPaul]

Call the RAC

[spxntaneous_Z]

4 hours ago, polaris said:

Regarding three of your replies @spxntaneous_Z.

 

 

I'd look again. I believe that Nissan specialists can run further diagnostics if he wants to pop down to a garage.

 

 

If it's NATS immobiliser failure (it can happen) then you can bypass it with an UpRev map (£449). Horsham Developments are the people for that job. Read more here.

 

Quoting that website: 

 

EDIT: Regarding...

 

I'd pull the injectors and check them. No harm in it.

We are in the US. I’m British overseas, returning next year. Is the UpRev map still something doable over here?

 

Also, there’s absolutely no immobilizer light on at all, not when the car is locked with doors closed or with the key in and ignition on. I’m assuming this is not what should be happening. 

 

Definitely going to try pulling injectors next time I’m there. 

[spxntaneous_Z]

4 hours ago, spxntaneous_Z said:

No, no codes stored or current. 

Current battery still holding 12.3V today after cranking the car a few times and sitting overnight. 

[spxntaneous_Z]

On 24/09/2022 at 16:34, spxntaneous_Z said:

Hi. Posting this for a friend.

My friend just bought a 350Z from a guy who said it just randomly stopped running. He has replaced the crankshaft position sensor and both cam position sensors but the issue persists. It ran fine with a slight misfire two days before it stopped, according to the guy who sold it. It cranks over but just will not start up. The fuel pump has been replaced by the previous guy and all the fuses are good. He’s at a loss as to what to check next or where to look.

 

I have a new 370Z and can’t really help much as I do body stuff and am not an expert mechanic. Any suggestions will be helpful. 

UPDATE: we switched the ignition relay with the headlamp low relay from the engine fuse box, and nothing changed. We also checked the “ENG CONT INJ” 10A fuse and other fuses under the dash and they were good. 
 

You can hear the fuel pump priming every time the ignition is on, and the fuel rails are definitely getting fuel. Like I responded earlier this evening, we’re going to pull injectors next time.
 

So, so far we have checked the intake/plenum, the spark plugs, coils, fuel rails/lines, the fuel pump (and replaced the old one to no avail), ignition relay, fuel pump relay, immobilizer (like someone here suggested, and watched the YT video linked with no success), and the “ENG CONT INJ” fuse. 
 

If it was your car, what would your next steps be? 

[Willsy1980]

Compression test and injectors. 

[ZMANALEX]

You say it randomly stops running.

Does that mean that the car stops running whilst you are driving along the road?

Or does it mean that it intermittently does not start?

If the latter, when hot or cold or both?

 

[Azurez33]

When you say plugs and coils are fine how were they checked? if the cars not running at all, your either getting no fuel or no spark and maybe no air- I doubt it’s air unless you’ve got a rag and n the intake, doubt it’s timing otherwise it would log a code with cam or crank sensors - so realistically something mechanical or something else is doing it’s job properly, like mentioned NATS can be an absolute paint and cause this issue, you need to be certain you’re getting spark and fuel to eliminate this 

[polaris]

Like @Azurez33 said, double check where you can. Check all the injectors, plugs and coils. Don't just glance and say 'ok', crank it and look for a spark on all 6.

 

If still no luck, then do a bit of research around NATS failure. See if the symptoms match yours.

 

Maybe a hard ECU reset?

 

It would really be helpful if we had a video of the car cranking! Also, is it an import? How many miles?

Edited September 26, 2022 by polaris

[KUGT4]

If the battery is new could be the computer is faulty if nothing is logging....

[spxntaneous_Z]

On 26/09/2022 at 02:39, ZMANALEX said:

You say it randomly stops running.

Does that mean that the car stops running whilst you are driving along the road?

Or does it mean that it intermittently does not start?

If the latter, when hot or cold or both?

 

It has not driven since my neighbor bought it, but the guy before him said he had driven it over to his girl’s house and it wouldn’t start back up when he tried to leave. The information my friend was given was a bit vague so he’s been retracing the previous owners steps with it. The car simply stopped running, and didn’t ever start back up again. 

[spxntaneous_Z]

15 hours ago, polaris said:

Like @Azurez33 said, double check where you can. Check all the injectors, plugs and coils. Don't just glance and say 'ok', crank it and look for a spark on all 6.

 

If still no luck, then do a bit of research around NATS failure. See if the symptoms match yours.

 

Maybe a hard ECU reset?

 

It would really be helpful if we had a video of the car cranking! Also, is it an import? How many miles?

No, it’s a US model but we are currently in the US. I’m not sure on mileage but I’d guess 130-150k miles, which over here is quite good for a 2003.

 

I’ll look at trying to do a hard reset for the ECU. 
 

I think he pulled the injectors last night, and all of the connectors had power when the ignition was on, but I told him to check the actual injectors themselves also. I have also told him it might just worth replacing all 6, as well as the coils and spark plugs. 
 

I will definitely research NATS failure also. 
 

And I’ll work on getting a video of it cranking! Stay posted for that