1985 Nissan 300ZX shuts off at idle on cold engine, what’s the issue?

Question

I’ve had my Nissan 300ZX for about 8 month now and the whole time I’ve had it, it does this weird thing where unless the engine is already warm, it will just randomly shut off when at idle. It will sometimes do this up to 3 times before the engine is warm enough. Maybe a problem with the TPS? I don’t know

Answer 1

Dirty throttle body bore... just past the closed throttle blade.. it reduces the amount of airflow expected to pass around the throttle blade.. this involves engine off.. accessing the throttle body carefully so you don't destroy the expensive to replace intake hose. holding the throttle blade open and wiping a cotton shop towel with some carb spray or brake cleaner on the towel to clean the throttle bore and the edges of the throttle blade.. do not scrape the bore or the blade with tools.. fingers.. a wooden stir stick from the paint store with the shop rag wrapped around it and soaked in carb spray or brake cleaner..

This is where to start..

These are complex cars.. do you have a factory service manual before messing with anything..

Comments

Thank you so much, and yes I found a pdf of a service manual for my specific engine.

Answer 2

Maybe service the throttle body.