My 2000 Nissan Altima started showing a troubling symptom – it would stall, especially when accelerating. Despite this, it would still start again after stalling, but the issue persisted whenever I tried to accelerate or put the engine under load. The “Service Engine Soon” light was illuminated, signaling a problem. Hoping for a quick diagnosis, I reached out to a friend who had an OTC scanner. However, after connecting his scanner, the situation took a turn for the worse: the car wouldn’t start at all. It would crank, but wouldn’t fire up, and we couldn’t even retrieve any error codes.
Frustrated, I left the car overnight and returned the next day to continue troubleshooting. To my surprise, it started! I managed to drive it home and performed some basic maintenance, changing the fuel filter and oil. For a day, it seemed like the problem was resolved. Unfortunately, the stalling returned the next day while my daughter was driving. Determined to get to the bottom of this issue, I decided it was time to invest in my own OBD2 scanner. After some research, I purchased an Ancel 410 OBDII scanner from Amazon for $73.00.
While waiting for my new obdii scanner to arrive, I delved into online resources, particularly YouTube, to explore potential causes for the stalling. My search led me to discover a vacuum hose that appeared to be damaged – chewed through, likely by a rodent that had taken up residence in my engine compartment over the winter. I had removed a nest earlier, which now seemed to be related to this hose issue. Remarkably, replacing this vacuum hose seemed to resolve the stalling problem. The car ran smoothly in several road tests, although the “Service Engine Soon” light remained on. It appeared the vacuum leak was the culprit behind the stalling and the warning light.
With the car running again, my friend returned with his OTC OBD scanner to attempt to read the error codes and finally turn off the persistent “SES” light. This time, we successfully retrieved a series of codes: P0100, P0505, P0325, P1490, P0446, and P0464. However, connecting the OBD scanner again had an unintended consequence – it caused the car to stop running, and once again, it refused to start, despite having been running perfectly fine just moments before!
Back to YouTube I went, searching for answers. It turns out that in some cases, connecting a scanner can interfere with the Engine Control Module (ECM), requiring a hard reset. The solution, I learned, was to perform an ECM hard reset by disconnecting both battery terminals and then briefly connecting them together for about 10 seconds (ensuring they are fully disconnected from the battery itself). This process discharges the capacitors in the ECM. Following these instructions, I performed the ECM reset. After reconnecting the battery, I tried starting the car, and thankfully, it started right up again.
This experience highlighted the usefulness of having an obdii scanner for diagnosing car problems. While my friend’s scanner initially complicated things, ultimately, the ability to read error codes (once my own scanner arrived and after the ECM reset) was crucial in understanding the underlying issues. It also underscored the importance of thorough troubleshooting and exploring various potential causes, from simple vacuum leaks to potential ECM glitches related to diagnostic tools. For any car owner, investing in an affordable OBDII scanner can be a valuable step towards taking control of vehicle maintenance and saving money on potentially unnecessary mechanic visits.
