I am at my wit’s end with my 2008 Nissan Pathfinder. In the last four months we have had periodic problems starting it. It will act like it wants to crank but won’t fire up. However, a local mechanic and the Nissan dealer can’t determine the problem. They have: ~ recharged the battery ~ replaced the battery cables ~ replaced the spark plugs ~ tested the fuel pressure ~ replaced the ECM relay ~ replaced the adjusted steering angle sensor Of course, it starts right up at the shop so they can’t duplicate the problem. Any ideas?
I assume the starter is cranking the engine okay when the trouble happens. If so then it would seem you either have an iginition problem or a fuel delivery problem. An easy way to find out what is going on is to keep a can of starting fluid in the car so when the trouble happens again you can spray a small amount of fluid, no more than a 1 second shot, into the air intake and see if the engine will fire up with that. If you get no response with that then you need to look for an ignition problem. Always check for a power issue first if that is the case. More than likely the trouble is due to an ignition problem rather than a fuel problem. Fuel issues could be due to the pump, pump relay, or power to the injectors.
Good suggestion - thank you!
Is this affected by temperature? Is that why it starts at the shop, b/c you’d just driven it to the shop and the engine remains warm?