I know there are a lot of car nuts here and since we talk about a lot of things I thought I would post this up and see what you think.

This morning I started the car and went to work like I usually do and it started and ran just fine. Did some things and then about an hour later left the office to go get gas. I started it up and it fired right up. I let it idle there while I ran back in to get some things. Back out and off I went but before I hit up the gas station I stopped at home and put some air in the tires. Got back in started it up and ran to the gas station (still working perfectly) turn the car off at the pump filled it up got back in and it started up then died after about 2 seconds. I thought it was just a fluke. Start it up again and died again. This happened for awhile but I needed to get home so I just started it in Neutral and kept it idling the shifted in Drive and off I went. I made it home coasting thru stop signs. I get home and then put it in Park and it dies after about 10 seconds. I let it sit there all day. Figured I would try to fire it up again about 6 hours later. It starts up and idles okay before it starts falling and tying to catch itself a couple of times before it dies.

What gives?
Did I get bad gas..
Was it just a coincidence?

I don't know if this has anything to do with anything but figured I would post it anyway. The night before I hosed it off because it was filthy and inside the flap of the gas cap area was filthy also so I made sure the cap was on tight and just sprayed around the cap to get the dirt out (I have done this before with NO problems)

I have also been to this gas station may times. (the tank only had 1/4 left and I filled it all the way up)

What do you think?

I am sure its just my luck and I found out the the filter and pump is all one assembly in the tank if that is even it.

simple things first, year make model.
hot cold mild weather etc.

check engine light?

knee jerk reaction: vacuum leak

So you're saying that it runs in neutral but not park? Or does it run while you're on the pedal, but not if you let it idle by itself?

As stated, year/make/model helps.

Doe sit have an air flow device, or does it use manifolde pressure? If it's manifold pressure then a vacuum leak is out, since that'll just have it run higher. If you have an air flow meter, or mas airflow sensor then un-metered air also doesn't get fuel, so the EFI computer isn't giving it enough gas to keep running. (Has to be a fairly sizeable leak for that to happen though, and you'll usually get a check engine light, too.)

Water in the gas will have it spluttering under load, generally speaking, though it's possible that bad gas would do something like that.

In tank fuel pumps will usually have a sort of filter on them, kind of like a sock, but that's not the main fuel filter. That will be in the fuel line further up. The in-tank one is basically just to stop large debris that will damage the fuel pump. Finer contaminants which will pass through the pump will also pass through that filter, to be trapped in the main filter further up. This way the in-tank filter doesn't need to be serviced often, if at all.

2000 Nissan Sentra SE 2.0

Arizona weather (90-100 plus dry heat weather)

No check Engine light ever comes up

Yeah it will only idle for a few seconds til it eventually dies (in park or nuetral), of course last night it idled for about 30 seconds before it died.. I have to keep on the pedal to keep it idling.

I changed out the MAF sensor out about 1.5 to 2 years ago.

This could be a number of things. Did you spray under the hood? When it idles (before it dies) does it run really rough until the RPMs drop enough to stall? Or does it run smooth then just cuts out? Does it run rough at higher RPMs? As you accel. does it sputter and jump? Like if it's struggling to accel?

Nope I have never sprayed under the hood. I am to chicken even though I asked the question here about cleaning the engine a long time ago and everybody gave me great instructions. It sure is filthy though.

When its idling it acts just fine and then it just dies. Yes, runs smooth and then dies! I can hold the RPM higher and it just acts normal. There is no jumping around like I am messing with the pedal. I can just hold it at 2000 RPM just fine and it will stay there til I let off the pedal.

Though I'm sure the TPS (throttle position sensor) would throw a code, it seems worth checking it. You have a meter?

Yeah, that sounds like TPS (throttle Position Sensor), or else ISC (Idle Speed Controller)

The TPS is on the side of the throttle body, the ISC is usually on the intake manifold somewhere and will have a tube that connects up to the air intake somewhere after the MAF and before the throttle body.

Yes I do have a meter (a couple of them) and oddly enough I know how to use it
But I have no idea exactly where it is or what it looks like the TPS that is.

Click to view attachment
Here is where your Idle Contorl Motor is located...

Click to view attachment
This is not your car, but this is what I throttle Position Sensor looks like...



P.S. - These are not my photos. These were found on Google and I do not claim these images as my own.

Okay here is where I stand as of now. The whole "not working right after I filled up" was driving me nuts. I dumped a bottle of "Heet" in it just to so that I had a better feeling about the whole gas thing and spraying water around it. It still didnt do anything but i didnt have much time to mess with it. I went to a meeting and a guy said he would look at it when we left the meeting. We got to my house and I fired it up and it was running fine then about 30 seconds it dies. He says hmmm I see what you mean. We take out the air filter and bang some dust out of it but its not really that bad. We fire it up and its running good. he just goes around wiggling some of the connection, like the one MyYz400 posted and it seems to be doing fine. Well it runs and runs and runs. We shut it off and I say thanks for stopping by and then I went to bed. I go to work this morning in my truck and come home for lunch fire it up and let it idle for 5 minutes. I am really lost.

So I figure its only 6 miles to work lets give this a go. I take the car back to work and it drives fine, stop signs it acts normal. I get back to the office and let it sit for a little bit in the parking space it never dies seems to be back to normal. I still have to go home

I give up, dam cars

I'm no eggspurt but I've had my fair share of bizarre automotive problems and I'll bet a dollar to donuts you've got a faulty sensor somewhere and it's gonna go tits up eventually. Find someone who can check the fault codes and see what pops up. Or just bang the air filter every now and then and shake a dead chicken over the engine. Problem is, in hot weather the chickens get real stinky real fast. Or it could be he just wiggled the right connection.

I still say that sounds like the ISC, and if that connection was loose, then it could be fine, now.

I say go with the dead chicken, but you have to dance nekked around your car whilst doing it.

I had a 89 240SX, ran poorly due bad exhaust gas sensor connection.
Symtoms: poor idling, lack of power, took awhile to track, intermittant.

Try running the car with the gas cap off. Sounds strange but just try it.