# 91 SE-R - Idle Issues - Help?



## 4Door408 (Jan 20, 2014)

Hey guys, new to the forum and new to SE-R's! I just bought a '91 (5-spd) a couple weeks back and have been sorting my way through a variety of problems with relative ease...but now one has come up that has left me stumped.

I was driving the car the other day when I put the car in nuetral, and the rpm's dropped off and the car stalled. It did it again about 10 minutes later and I held my foot down on the clutch the next few times I stopped which seemed to aid in the car not stalling. Well the next day I took it out again and more of the same, but this time it was stalling out with or without the clutch engaged.

It doesn't do it all the time, sometimes it bounces down close to zero but spikes its way back up and holds on, but it seems like it's becoming more frequent and I'd like to get it fixed straight away and the right way!

I've just been overwhelmed by the things to check and the "solutions" I've read online so far, so I turn to the experts for advice! Is there a list of what I should check first? And next and so on? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Also, not sure if this is entirely related but the clutch cable did disengage from the pedal and was re-installed by my mechanic, just figured I would mention that just in case of any ill side-effects that may have been caused from any clutch cable adjustments?

Thanks in advance guys, I'll try to get some pictures up ASAP!

Edit: Forgot to mention, no CEL has come on at all as of yet.


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## worthirt (May 21, 2013)

have you checked your IAC? also take a good look at your clutch cable, mine ended up snapping. They like to stretch out at the ends of the cable where it connects to the tranny and the petal.


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## b13er (Apr 7, 2010)

My car used to almost stall when I came to a stop, and it would take forever for the idle to smooth out, after some research I found out I should get a new pvc valve (costs a few bucks) problem solved.

Also make sure to put NGK plugs in the engine, there is a good reason Nissan, Hyundai, and Honda use them, they are the best. The stock NGK plug for your car is BKR6E ($2 each) with a gap of .031 - .035 inches. If you want added fuel economy get the NGK Iridiums. The Laser Iridiums cost a lot more, but have a Platinum disc welded to backside of ground electrode, so they last a lot longer. Or you can always pull out the standard Iridiums every 3000 miles and clean the carbon off of the ground electrode like I do.

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Cleaning the IACV is always a great idea, there is a picture of me doing mine on my ga16de here, look at work day 6: Hotshots Drift B13

If you suspect it contains any rubber O-rings or plastic, mass air flow sensor cleaner is safer to use than carb cleaner.

Also check all of your air hoses (especially ones that go to the IACV and any attached to the intake) for cracks. A fast way to do this is to shoot carb cleaner at the hoses while the engine is running, if you here the idle change while spraying them, there is a leak.

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If all that doesn't work, check your 02 sensor, and also check your egr. If you need help with these two let me know and I will give you more info.

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If you end up fixing it, please reply and let us know what all you did to fix it.

Just so you know, there is an SR20 section (which includes the Sentra SE-R) here: http://www.nissanforums.com/sr-series-engines-de-ve/


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## b13er (Apr 7, 2010)

I forgot to ask, is it freezing cold where you are at? It's been so cold here in KY when I first start my car I can barely move the shifter. Also when I put it in neutral my car stalls. I have to hold down the clutch, rev it to around 2000 RPMs, hold it there, shift it in neutral, and keep holding it around 2000 RPMs until the engine warms up, then all is fine. I'm going to put synthetic royal purple, which is safe with the yellow metals (like the ones found in our transmissions) unlike almost every other brand.

ALSO:

Silly me, I forgot the two most important things. Make sure your idle is at 800 +/- 50 RPMs. Also with the throttle position sensor (TPS) unplugged, make sure your timing is set to 15 degrees. You might have to adjust back and forth until they are both right. See the timing requires your idle be adjusted right, and the idle sort of requires your timing be adjusted right, that's if you want everything perfect.

NOTE: adjusting your idle and timing requires unplugging your TPS.

With the TPS unplugged, adjust your idle to 750 +/- 50 RPMs. When you are done with that, with the TPS plugged back in, your idle should now be at 800 +/- 50 RPMs. 

My car is rare and goes against the field service manual (FSM), I absolutely had to unplug the IACV-AAC valve (which is the larger solenoid attached to the idle air control valve/IACV), in order to adjust my idle. With it plugged in, when I disconnected my TPS, the idle would sky rocket no matter what, and I couldn't adjust my idle or timing. I found the solution by researching online. The FSM said my idle would decrease when I unplugged my TPS, but in some cars the IACV-AAC works just the opposite as to what the FSM stated.


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