All:
RE: My friend's 97 Maxima GXE, 72k miles
While pulling into a driveway, or reversing slowly and then taking your foot of the accelerator to tap the brakes, the car will intermittently stall. Sometimes it is hard to get started again, i.e. will start, but stall immediately. It doesn't happen at speeds over
30mph - and seems to only happen when the accelerator is released i.e. either to coast or to brake.
Here are some data points.
1) I cleaned the throttle-body (it wasn't very dirty when I checked it
- I but I cleaned it anyway).
2) I Replaced PCV valve
3) I Checked air-filter (was clean)
4) I Checked basic operation of IACV - I had the car idling (at about
650-700 RPM - auto tranny) - set fan to high with A/C on - the idle dipped and then climbed back up to about 750 and held steady. Switched off A/C - idle dropped to 650 and stayed steady. (Repeated this several times - could not get the car to stall).
5) He had a 60k service done at a dealer - new plugs, new fuel filter... may have done radiator/tranny fluid changes - but I don't think that is relevant for what is going on here.
6) He ran a bottle of techron through the fuel system.
After I had checked/replaced the obvious, the car ran without stalling for two weeks - so I thought the PCV valve was the culprit - since the one I removed was really gunked up... but then last night he called me up and said the car had stalled twice this past weekend.
So what else could it be? He did say that his wife let the tank run really low right before this started happening (before I initially looked at it) - so potentially he sucked junk into his fuel lines/fuel filter - so I was going to put a new fuel filter in for him - but I really don't think it is the fuel filter - since don't fuel starving problems manifest themselves at higher speeds under load?
I am leaning towards a clogged/sticking valve/vacuum leak or something of that nature... but not sure where to start looking.
What do you all think?
Thanks in advance,
Nirav