tclhenstra Posted June 6, 2008 Share Posted June 6, 2008 so my s130 has this problem it burns SUPER rich and my temp gauge doesnt come on. like it doesnt have the lit outline like it used to. just black in that one spot. i'm not so much worried about it not lighting up as i am that that sensor on the water outlet with the one wire isnt sending a signal. and it may be acting like a cold start ALL THE TIME! i.e. dumping gas? i may be crazy but i have no low end torque and i have to keep the rpms up to get it to spool after 25+ its fine. except for the fire balls it continually spews. thanks for the info guys. tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naviathan Posted June 6, 2008 Share Posted June 6, 2008 Ummm, sounds like multiple problems. Have you checked the connections to make sure they're good and clean? The digi dashes have always had lighting issues. I tried one and it gave me a headache, but that's besides the point. The single wire on the thermostat housing gives a signal to the gauge only. There's a cylinder head temp sensor that feeds the ecu which is probably where your problem is coming from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tclhenstra Posted June 6, 2008 Author Share Posted June 6, 2008 that's the one on the spark plug side, right? im pretty sure i changed that one when i first got it but i will double check the connections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naviathan Posted June 6, 2008 Share Posted June 6, 2008 Yes that's it. It could very easily be a bad connection or a short in the wires. Jiggle the connector and wire around and see if the idle changes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tclhenstra Posted June 6, 2008 Author Share Posted June 6, 2008 well i cleaned the terms with battery cleaner and a thumb tack. still does the same thing. i took it off completely and it dies even more rich. any other ideas. tonight i'm taking off the spark plugs and doing a compression test as well as double checking ignition timing. whats the mark supposed to be at? how many degrees btdc? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naviathan Posted June 7, 2008 Share Posted June 7, 2008 Could be poor spark. That can be from either bad plugs, wires, failing igniter, bad coil, etc... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver280zx Posted June 7, 2008 Share Posted June 7, 2008 Did you try the water temp sensor, mine made my cold start valve run all the time, its like a 10 dollar fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naviathan Posted June 7, 2008 Share Posted June 7, 2008 That wouldn't be the temp sensor if it made your cold start valve run all the time. That would be the thermotime switch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver280zx Posted June 7, 2008 Share Posted June 7, 2008 hmm, idk man, its been i while, but i could ave sworn it was the temp sensor. It whatever sensor tells the motor if its below a certain temp, so my motor always thought it was cold outside, so it ran the cold start valve all the time. Well anyway, i replaced it and it didint do that anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tclhenstra Posted June 8, 2008 Author Share Posted June 8, 2008 i'll need to take pics anyways. i had my valve cover gasket changed and powder coated the cover. but theres a one wire temp switch that was a bullet connector. the car sputtered really rich and wouldnt go past a certain low rpm. i cleaned that and it was fine. might have been coincidence but seemed like that was doing SOMETHING other than just a the temp gauge. i'll know more tomorrow. thanks for the input guys. p.s now when i cruise its getting a raspy gurgling almost sound out of the down pipe before it shoots a flame. really need to fix this. want to slide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver280zx Posted June 8, 2008 Share Posted June 8, 2008 i'll need to take pics anyways. i had my valve cover gasket changed and powder coated the cover. but theres a one wire temp switch that was a bullet connector. the car sputtered really rich and wouldnt go past a certain low rpm. i cleaned that and it was fine. might have been coincidence but seemed like that was doing SOMETHING other than just a the temp gauge. i'll know more tomorrow. thanks for the input guys. p.s now when i cruise its getting a raspy gurgling almost sound out of the down pipe before it shoots a flame. really need to fix this. want to slide. Ya, thats the temp sensor, if its broken, your ecu will think its cold outside all the time, therefore opening your coldstart valve all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tclhenstra Posted June 10, 2008 Author Share Posted June 10, 2008 yeah well i pulled all the plugs and yup. all fouled out. so i got a new set. gapped and in. i also went ahead and ordered a new coil. putting that in today. had to make an emergency run to work after i put the plugs in though. didnt want to, to be honest. she did that weird predet thing out the intake a few times. low end and accel still seem VERY low. so i'm really not sure. thinking some of this is possible vacuum. i'm scouring the intake for anything and everything. think i might be having a problem with thie intake gasket to. i've gat an N42 intake i've been wanting to put on and i might just do that, when i decide to put on the new gasket. any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naviathan Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Why do you doubt me? Tell you what, I'll put my 10 years of ZX experience that the temp and the thermotime switch are two different sensors, one operating the temp gauge and the other the cold start valve. The ECU receives it's temp signal from the cylinder head temp sensor on the passengers side of the engine. The only way this is not true is if you aren't driving a ZX. The Z (S30) uses a two wire temp sender in the thermostat housing for the ECU temp and a single wire for the gauge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tclhenstra Posted June 10, 2008 Author Share Posted June 10, 2008 naviathan are you talking to me or silver? lol cause i said i checked the sender. i cleaned the conectors and they were, in my opinion, in good shape. i've changed the sender i mean the only other thing i can think is possible the sender got too hot and shorted out. i can get another one in a day. i may just do that and see what happens. but i still want to change the coil. and 10 years is a long time, and i do appreciate you helping out nav. but if it's one thing ive learned in my brief lifetime of auto's is anything could be problematic even if technically it "shouldnt" be. so i can see where silver is coming from. tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naviathan Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Anything can be, you are right. Have you tried unplugging the thermotime and the cold start valve? Have you pull the cold start valve and pressurized the system to see if it's leaking? There's a lot of tests that are still left to be done so you don't waste money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDusel Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Is this a ZX or ZXT? I noticed you mentioned the word "spool" and I'm not sure which you have based on that. Turbos have the Cylinder Head Temp sensor on the spark plug side and it is the sensor for the ECU. No thermotime switch or cold start injector on a Turbo, the ECU compensates for engine temperature. The connections on the water housing are for the temp gauge (just like Naviathan said) and injector cooler fan if it is a Turbo. If it is an N/A then definitely check the thermotime switch and temp sensor for the ECU, they are both in the thermostat housing (along with the gauge sender). The ECU temp sensor has two wires, the injector fan and gauge sender have 1 wire. Don't forget that a bad oxygen sensor will make the car run rich as will a failed thermostat (less likely in the summertime). Hope this helps.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tclhenstra Posted June 11, 2008 Author Share Posted June 11, 2008 yeah dusel its a zxt. i have yet to pressurize ANYTHING. so i'm a little behind. i havent checked fuel pressure. so it could just be too much pressure. but i havent ever taken a look at the o2 sensor either. theres plenty of things to do but i'm def keeping an eye at the cylinder sensor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hyuri Posted June 11, 2008 Share Posted June 11, 2008 I went through most of the electrical connections under the hood with these (you could use an emory board or nail file) and it cleared up a bunch of stuff. Used to idle all over the place, had a hiccup at around 3k RPM, power used to drop off substantially above about 3600, temp gauge went in and out; all gone now. The injector contacts were especially nasty, but the temp sensor contacts were pretty dirty too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tclhenstra Posted June 11, 2008 Author Share Posted June 11, 2008 I went through most of the electrical connections under the hood with these (you could use an emory board or nail file) and it cleared up a bunch of stuff. Used to idle all over the place, had a hiccup at around 3k RPM, power used to drop off substantially above about 3600, temp gauge went in and out; all gone now. The injector contacts were especially nasty, but the temp sensor contacts were pretty dirty too. yeah my injector connectors were pretty raged so i cleaned those up pretty quick. i had an old timer who was a factory mech at nissan when these were big. he told me to use battery cleaner and "fabricate" some tools out of a paper clip. he said he made a set in the 80's but time took hold and he lost em' lol. not so much about top end. but it's the torque i'm worried about. i dont seem to have the "power over" like i used to. i put her in a few events when i first got her. and what a beast. it was EXTREMELY fun. that's what i've been working to get back. but def a good add there hyuri. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naviathan Posted June 11, 2008 Share Posted June 11, 2008 OH, it's a ZXT! Well, that changes everything. Temp sensor is still the cylinder head temp sensor between the #5 and 6 cylinders on the spark plug side of the engine. There is no cold start valve or thermotime sensor. A rich problem on a ZXT is more than likely leaky injectors, bad head temp sensor, stuck fuel pressure regulator or maladjusted AFM. The ECCS ECUs used in the turbos are much smarter than the non ECCS ones in the NA models. Your O2 is probably bad, but that shouldn't cause your car to run as rich as it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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