I have a 2004 Nissan Sentra and am having a problem with the car "jolting" or "pulsing" as it is accelerated either uphill

Asked by migration_jtownsend8... Feb 19, 2012 at 03:03 AM about the 2004 Nissan Sentra 1.8 S

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

I have a 2004 Nissan Sentra and I am having a problem with the car "jolting" or "pulsing" as it is accelerated either uphill or between 2500 and 3000 RPMs on the highway. It seems to lose power and fills like there are only spurts of gas getting to the engine. As I drove the car and it was jolting, I noticed that the temperature gauge was on “C” even after I had been driving on the highway for 10 minutes. I stopped and turned off the car and restarted it. The temperature gauge crept slowly up. I began driving and when it began jolting again, the temperature gauge went crazy. It would rise to half-way then to “C” then to ¼ of the way. It would move frequently in an odd pattern.
I have had the check engine light on for the past couple of weeks. I had it read and the code given was for a bad thermostat or thermostat sensor. I changed the sensor but the light did not go away.  Could the jolting be caused by the thermostat sticking and not allowing the circulation of coolant?
I read something earlier about the Mass Air Flow sensor not being properly grounded and therefore not sending proper signals to the ECU. Could this alter the thermostat sensor?

2 Answers

4,515

I would say that it is either that the MAF needs regrounding, or that you have an air leak somewhere after the MAF... unmetered air will give you approximately the same symptoms. Check the intake tubing for any cracks or looseness. If everything looks to be in good shape, definitely reground the MAF.

1 people found this helpful.

I had tge same exact thing happen to me with mine... My father took a looked at it changed all my spark pluggs and it hasnt happened since and my check engine light went out and hasnt been back on...

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