Help! Turns but doesn't start...

I vaguely remember something about a recall or technical service bulletin for non-starting micra. Soemthing to do with the cold start or choke mechanism or modern day equivalent.

If it was running fine previously and suddenly wont start, I would put money on it being flooded from a previous short run from cold start. There is a TSB and a new wiring loom to part of of the air temp sensor on the throttle body, which helps- as do regularly changed plugs, but they'll all flood and refuse to re-start if not at least partially warmed up before switching off.

Pull the fuel pump fuse, crank the engine with a fully charged battery in a long burst with the throttle held wide open. This can be 20 seconds plus. If it splutters into life then dies, replace fuse and crank again with throttle wide open. It should start eventually.

You may need to remove and clean / dry the plugs first though. Replace them if they're over 12000 miles old anyhow.

Always warm up at least partially in the future!

Tim..

Last time I drove it was yesterday evening on the way home from work -

I already tried pulling the fuel pump fuse and turning it over. No difference.

Plugs were replaced around 2000 miles ago.

When they have this problem they do take bloody ages to fire though. Try a good blast of carb cleaner into the throttle body mesh. It will start, eventually!

ECU faults are extremely rare. Sensors - not.

It seems like it may be an immobiliser problem. I spoke to one of the techs at the local Nissan dealer and he said the factory immobiliser (NATS) just stops the injectors working, the starter will still turn the engine over as usual. This has been confirmed by another owner who has removed the NATS chip from one of his keys and recreated the problem I'm having. I've been turning the motor over all morning but when I pulled out a plug it was nowhere near as wet as it should be if there was fuel getting to the cylinders. Fuel pump is working fine and petrol is definitely getting to the fuel rail. The injectors just aren't injecting. The injector fuse is OK so I'm beginning to think it's got to be the immobiliser....

If it were the immobilizer still active the fault warning lamp would be flashing wildly on the dash when you are trying to start. If it comes on, and goes off as normal after 2-3 seconds (key position II) then it is NOT the immobilizer.

Tim..

Another owner removed the NATS chip from his key and tried to start his car. The same thing happened - engine turned over but didn't start. The engine light didn't flash when he did this.

The engine light does not normally go off after 2-3 seconds. It stays on until you twist the key to "start". With the NATS chip removed from the key, the engine light stays on with the key in the "start" position, the engine turns but does not fire.

Crankshaft position sensor, Engine Speed Sensor, MAF sensor, engine coolant sensor.

In my experience - I have a 99 micra, and one key with a dead chip - the non-chip-working key makes the light continue to flash if you attempt to start it. Interestingly, there is often enough fuel hanging around to - without the injectors working at all (confirmed with a probe on the injector wires) for it to come up to normal idle speed, for ~0.3 seconds.

I _think_ it may do this if there is no crank sensor output - but I'm not sure.