Does anyone have any tricks or suggestions on how to adjust the ignition distributor? We've been doing it by hand and ear, but our car is still sputtering slightly at an idle. Any ideas would be appreciated!
timing is not going to affect that...
My 94 Altima had a notch on the distributor and a mark on the collar that the distributor slides into, that when aligned set the timing correctly to
20 deg. btdc at idle (with the TPS disconnected). Your miss at idle isn't likely to be caused by the timing being off, maybe you have a dirty egr valve or a vacuum leak somewhere.
Useing a timing light, follow Nissan's timing instructions as JM has perfectly described for you. Tighten your distributor down, recheck and don't move it again.
If moisture collects in the sparkplug tubes you will get a miss-fire rough idle and under load. You may need new sparkplugs. Inspect the plug wires for corrosion and moisture. Inspect the hose between the MAFS and the throttle body for proper installation and secure clamps.
Very likely you will find the problem is a vacuum leak between the intake manifold and cylinder head around the #4 intake runner which is very common.
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