Our car [Honda Fit] was wrecked recently and is in the body shop awaiting parts. My mother-in-law loaned us her car; it seems to be getting poor mileage and the exhaust often smells partially combusted, especially when first started and already warm.
Car: 2001 Nissan N16 Almera w/QG18DE and 5 spd. manual. An Almera is a shooting brake version of the B15 Sentra, made in England, and called a Pulsar in some countries.
Mileage: 17 usmpg city/30.5 usmpg highway; each tested using about half a tank of premium Pemex. Third test [city] is pending, it has about half a tank now. Our Fit gets 21-22 usmpg city and 28-36 usmpg highway when driven in the same areas and conditions.
The car has an OBD-ii scanner port, but has been dumbed down for export. My cheesy Craftsman scanner pulls up zero codes and gives a green light. It shows the car as only having two "monitors"; catalytic converter and O2 sensor. The O2 monitor flashes, which on my scanner means the car was unable to verify it. I doubt the codes have been cleared for years, I had never scanned it before, and it hasn't been to the dealer or another mechanic for at least two years.
I initially thought the O2 sensor's tip was fouled. After the highway trip the partial combustion smell was mostly gone at first. The highway trip included a 5 minute full throttle all the way in 5th gear up a long hill between 55 and 65 miles per hour. It also include several full throttle to redline 3rd gear overtakes.
Just guessing, I suspect a fouled O2 sensor or a faulty temp. sensor [i.e., during a warm start it injects too much gasoline before closed loop due to temp. sensor reporting lower than actual temperature].
Any insight or ideas?
Car: 2001 Nissan N16 Almera w/QG18DE and 5 spd. manual. An Almera is a shooting brake version of the B15 Sentra, made in England, and called a Pulsar in some countries.
Mileage: 17 usmpg city/30.5 usmpg highway; each tested using about half a tank of premium Pemex. Third test [city] is pending, it has about half a tank now. Our Fit gets 21-22 usmpg city and 28-36 usmpg highway when driven in the same areas and conditions.
The car has an OBD-ii scanner port, but has been dumbed down for export. My cheesy Craftsman scanner pulls up zero codes and gives a green light. It shows the car as only having two "monitors"; catalytic converter and O2 sensor. The O2 monitor flashes, which on my scanner means the car was unable to verify it. I doubt the codes have been cleared for years, I had never scanned it before, and it hasn't been to the dealer or another mechanic for at least two years.
I initially thought the O2 sensor's tip was fouled. After the highway trip the partial combustion smell was mostly gone at first. The highway trip included a 5 minute full throttle all the way in 5th gear up a long hill between 55 and 65 miles per hour. It also include several full throttle to redline 3rd gear overtakes.
Just guessing, I suspect a fouled O2 sensor or a faulty temp. sensor [i.e., during a warm start it injects too much gasoline before closed loop due to temp. sensor reporting lower than actual temperature].
Any insight or ideas?
