Can anyone help?

 

My zed has been running a bit rough lately so i did the ecu check and it came back with a code 34 detonation sensor fault.

Nissan have quoted me over £800 to have this sensor replaced, they reckon the engine needs to be pulled but acordind to the manual the sensor is near the top of the block.

 

Does anyone know of a zed specialist in the southwest coast? i live in weymouth dorset or a good mechanic ;)

It's not an "engine out", but it is a "plenum off" job.

It could just be faulty wiring ...

 

These might be worth considering :-

 

980325 How someone... : diagnosed and bypassed a defective detonation sensor

http://www.zhome.com/ZCMnL/PICS/detonationSensor/detonationSensor.html

 

Detonation Sensor Relocation How-To

http://www.angelfire.com/geek/vg30dett/DSR/DetSenRel01.html

 

 

Originally posted by andromeda500

Can anyone help?

 

My zed has been running a bit rough lately so i did the ecu check and it came back with a code 34 detonation sensor fault.

Nissan have quoted me over £800 to have this sensor replaced, they reckon the engine needs to be pulled but acordind to the manual the sensor is near the top of the block.

 

Does anyone know of a zed specialist in the southwest coast? i live in weymouth dorset or a good mechanic ;)

try cleaning up the connector and see if that helps - it worked for me.

 

Vijay

Actually, what I neglected to say is that "running rough" almost certainly has naff all to do with det sensors, faulty or otherwise !

That link was really good but my connector is'nt there i looked all round the back of the engine bay but i couldn't find anything like in the pic

 

Mines a 1990 jap spec tt i gues it must be different.

 

How did you clean your connection was it the same as in the pic?

yep, same as in the picture. Cleaned it up with contact cleaner.

 

Vijay

Hey! no help with your prob but i live in Dorchester! Have 89 import TT black body-kit & BBS alloys! Seen it?

Originally posted by andromeda500

Can anyone help?

 

My zed has been running a bit rough lately so i did the ecu check and it came back with a code 34 detonation sensor fault.

Nissan have quoted me over £800 to have this sensor replaced, they reckon the engine needs to be pulled but acordind to the manual the sensor is near the top of the block.

 

Does anyone know of a zed specialist in the southwest coast? i live in weymouth dorset or a good mechanic ;)

 

You could give Simon a try at park garage (nissan specialists), they have done engine outs on these and look after a few down here, that's if the engine needs to come out, but they are capable.

 

Park Garage

571, Wimborne Rd

Bournemouth Dorset

BH9 2AR

 

Tel: 01202 523000

Originally posted by Chris Larkham

Hey! no help with your prob but i live in Dorchester! Have 89 import TT black body-kit & BBS alloys! Seen it?

 

Chris have you heard anything about that Japanese garage in Dorchester, I was impressed when I had a look around but haven't actually used them. They had some decent jap muscle cars in there at the time. I think its called

 

Dorchester Motor Co. Ltd or something, there near a roundabout !

 

Would be interested to know if they are any good?

My car is also running rough and I had my det sensor bypassed because I was in safety boost.

Now I'm running at the standard 9.5PSI or whatever it is, the car has more poke but is still running rough, very rough and powerless when cold.

I have had the timing done, changed plugs/Air filters, oil change, cleaned the MAS and TPS and it's still rough.

Not as bad as it used to be but still pretty rough.

 

The det sensor won't make the car run any smoother just give you more power.

Im confued.

 

My zed has been misfiring intermitantly and lately it seems to be more permanent.

As a result of the problem becomming more frequent i did an ecu test which threw back a code of 34 - detonation or sensor fault.

My zed seems to be misfiring at low revs but fine at high revs.

Im no mechanic and i cant explain this, the only reference i have is the ecu code 34 reply.

 

I have spoken to a few good people including jeff and all seem to think that the problem is injectors or faulty wiring.

I have checked as best as i can and al wires and connectors seem good.

 

I am at a loss as to what is causing the misfire and if anyone out there as experienced a similar problem im all ears :)

double check the coilpacks, especially the ones under the balance bar.

 

Vijay

Originally posted by Eric Manktelow

My car is also running rough and I had my det sensor bypassed because I was in safety boost.

 

Asking for trouble!!! This is a DIAGNOSTIC test ONLY and should not be used for everyday driving. Although the sensor only works up to around 3000rpm, bad fuel will give detonation before that and the ecu can retard the timing and back off the boost to protect your engine. I seriously hope you know what detonation sounds like and back off when you get it. Not meaning to be funny but that sensor is pretty vital in this country where a bad batch of fuel seems fairly common these days...

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

No i dont drive the car with the ecu in test mode in fact i hardly drive it at all (use the company car )

I just did the test to see what came back then i put it back into normal mode.

As for detonation apprently it sounds like a load of pops but i dont any of this no banging, knocking, clanking, rattles nothing just a slight misfire wich has become more frequent lately.

Anyone had this problem before?

Vijay

 

I check all the coil packs made sure the was all secure and the connectors where on which they where but i did find something that cant be good.

2 out of the six coil connectors are smashed the clips are broken so without the connector being clipped down they are free to fly off.

And there are two injector connectors in the same condition. I dont remember seeing these before so they must have gone brittle and broke themselves.

So 4 bad connectors 1 virtually just resting in place this could be it.

Unfortunately i dont think they are salvageable as 50% is missing.

Does anyone know where i can get some new connectors and how to go about changing them over

Originally posted by andromeda500

Im confued.

 

My zed has been misfiring intermitantly and lately it seems to be more permanent.

As a result of the problem becomming more frequent i did an ecu test which threw back a code of 34 - detonation or sensor fault.

My zed seems to be misfiring at low revs but fine at high revs.

Im no mechanic and i cant explain this, the only reference i have is the ecu code 34 reply.

 

I have spoken to a few good people including jeff and all seem to think that the problem is injectors or faulty wiring.

I have checked as best as i can and al wires and connectors seem good.

 

I am at a loss as to what is causing the misfire and if anyone out there as experienced a similar problem im all ears :)

 

The ECU diag will only tell you when the signals are not present from a sensor. It will not inform you when the signals are incorrect. The fact that you can not find the det sensor harness connector is a bit of a worry. But all the det sensor doe sis listen to the engine, if it detects detonation it will limit you to safety boost until you turn the ignition off (this will reset it).

Apart from the det sensor picking up detonation this is probably the result of your main problem.

 

Lets start with the easy stuff.

 

A)If it is missing at low revs but not high revs I doubt that it a fuel related problem. so we can rule out coil packs & injectors.

 

1a)May still be worth giving these a clean, but be warned... 13 year old injector harnesses have a habit of just giving up at a slight touch, so be prepared to rewire them all if need be.

2a)Clean the temp sensor connector which will be the yellow connector between the radiator and the plenum.

3a)Clean the TPS connector which will be sitting on the passenger side of your engine. Bolted to the side of your plenum/Throttle bodies.

 

B)I would do the following. Find out if there is a member with a conZult near you. If so ask them very nicely and buy lots of beer ;) and they will run a diag on your car for you.

 

C)If the car is rougher when cold, it may be a mechanical problem rather than an electrical problem.

 

1c)Take off the balance bar and remove all the coil packs, attach a compression testers to cylinder 1, get someone to sit in the car and put their foot all the way down on the accelerator then crank the engine for 5 seconds. Note down the PSI reading. Do the same with the rest of the cylinders. You should be looking around the 140 mark per cylinder.

 

D)If you find low compression on any of the cylinders, you may need to do a cylinder leakage test. Doubt you'll have one of these yourself, so you'll need to take it to a garage that has one.

I got the problem fixed now

 

Turns out to be a few broken ijector connectors. I didnt see these last time i looked so they must of just broken probably been going bad for ages. I did a temporary fix and the car runs fine now

 

So the code 34 has nothing to with the running of the engine as some of you rightly said.

I now have to rewire or replace the injector connectors (top piece)

anyone know where i can some, might as well do the spark plugs or coil packs connectors whilst im at it ;)

I always use Optimax to try and lesson the chances of det.

And giving the choice of a 2-3k rebuild if I'm unlucky and a garanteed £800 for a new det sensor, I don't have £800 at the mo so I don't have the choice.

Originally posted by martinfa

Chris have you heard anything about that Japanese garage in Dorchester, I was impressed when I had a look around but haven't actually used them. They had some decent jap muscle cars in there at the time. I think its called

 

Dorchester Motor Co. Ltd or something, there near a roundabout !

 

Would be interested to know if they are any good?

 

Yes Dorchester Motor Co.

Been recomended to me but havnt used them myself (yet).

I live 100 yards away

so if you re coming down pop round! (i ll let you know where)

I Believe one of the guys has (hate to say it!) really nice SUPRA!

Originally posted by Eric Manktelow

I always use Optimax to try and lesson the chances of det.

And giving the choice of a 2-3k rebuild if I'm unlucky and a garanteed £800 for a new det sensor, I don't have £800 at the mo so I don't have the choice.

 

Eric, no way will it cost you £800. Upper and lower intake is all that is needed. Yeah that means the cambelt has to come off too because the upper idler is bolted to the lower intake. Labour would be around £250 and the sensor and harness probably around £150. Few gaskets as well but you won't be higher than £500. Optimax will help the situation but you can never guarantee you won't get a bad batch. All IMHO of course ;)

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

Hi Andy,

Just going on what I have heard twice, I think they're Nissan prices so no doubt inflated by a few 100%!

;)

Yeah just looked on courtesy - det sensor and harness $164.29, upper intae-lower intake gasket $6.65. Only other gaskets would be lower intake to head which are a bit expensive but still, I can't see the bill being more than £500 all in ;)

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

Originally posted by andyduff

Eric, no way will it cost you £800. Upper and lower intake is all that is needed. Yeah that means the cambelt has to come off too because the upper idler is bolted to the lower intake. Labour would be around £250 and the sensor and harness probably around £150. Few gaskets as well but you won't be higher than £500. Optimax will help the situation but you can never guarantee you won't get a bad batch. All IMHO of course ;)

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

 

Hi Andy,

 

i'm another one driving around with a bypassed det sensor and i'm running 14psi boost so i should probably get it fixed.

 

I phoned 3 of my closest nissan garages, one quoted £1400 labour and one £1200 labour and one probably £800 but didnt have the tools to work on a zed.

 

so i suppose what i would like to know is there a garage local to me (south buckinghamshire) who could replace my det sensor for less and am i going to shag my engine without it.

 

oh i heard you could put another one in a different place - is this viable?

 

Regards,

 

alex

 

p.s. sounds like we need a group buy on det sensor replacements.

Alex

 

I recentlly experienced a similar problem to you yourself

 

A faulty detonation or knock sensor, Westover nissan in Bournemouth , Dorset , quoted me £800.

 

This included a new replacement sensor and a engine pull out and replace????????

 

In my workshop manual this sensor is located in the mid to top of the engine and i couldn't understand why the whole engine needed to be pulled.

 

I have recently discovered that only the plenim (top half) needs to be removed and not the enitre engine

 

Hope this helps a bit

Det sensor relocation isn't a viable option IMO. The det sensor is where it is because this is where the sensor can 'hear' the engine best. Anywhere else usually means there is a gasket or two between the block and the sensor which will absorb the noise. If you're gonna do a job, do it properly! If anyone wants this doing, gimme a shout. You supply the parts, I'll fit for £250. Requires upper and lower intake removing - roughly a days work. I'd recommend also replacing the rubber hoses under the lower intake at the same time - they can be bought as a kit from http://www.courtesyparts.com - named 'turbo bypass hoses'.

 

HTH

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy