Jump to content
SAU Community

Recommended Posts

My girlfriend has a CA 180SX, and its acting very strangely :)

The car idles quite roughly, but then if you drive the car, it can become sort of ok. On acceleration there is quite a lot of blue/black smoke out the back, and if you rev the car and put your hand over the end there's lots of little specks of brown stuff that lands on your hand.

There's definitely not as much power as there was.

I suspected coils, but someone said it won't idle like it does if it was a coil. My brother suspects air flow meter? Could this affect it like this?

Cheers.

Link to comment
https://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/9790-anyone-know-anything-bout-cas/
Share on other sites

Blue -ish smoke sounds a bit scary. If there was a problem with ignition/spark or mixture (faulty AFM) I would expect black/rich smoke or even white/grey/rusty smoke. To me any blue smoke means somewhere along the way oil is being burnt. Don't know, I suggest seeing an expert you can trust.

I had a mate with a 180SX with the CA motor. His was showing similiar symptoms to yours and it turned out to be the turbo. Its hard to say without seeing/hearing it in person

I was under the impression that blue smoke meant oil, as would the brown speckles, but that was in the days before cats. How is the oil level? Have you checked the turbo for signs of any oil leak problems there?

With the AFM it is a pretty easy job to to pull it off and hit it with some carby cleaner - would be worth doing whether or not it is the problem as it is such an easy job.

i know this is gunna sound pretty stupid, but you bothered trying to change the plugs????

-erratic idle

-you drive it and it kinda clears up?(under load)

-acceleration it pumps black smoke(fuel not burning)

-specks of fuel on your hand if held over exhaust?

my previous ride was a 1974 KE20 toyota corolla with a CA18det.

same prob with mine, i was changing a set of plugs every 4 weeks. mainly due to the microtech, but hey, theres always a rule of thumb with mechanics, try the simple things first!

hope i helped, cheers

Cheers guys ... I took the AFM off and cleaned it with carby cleaner. Then I disconnected the battery and left it overnight. Today it seems to be running ok, so we'll see how it goes in the next couple of days!

Thanks very much for the help :)

Hey JiMiH,

Did I help by those wheels? Going to give your poor old federals a few laps of Symmons plains Sunday....

Car looks good... and as for your thread, take the KISS principal. And check the easy things first! Hey it may well be a turbo seal, but plugs, AFM, etc you probably need to be doing as maintenance anyhowe... and think of the points from the girl.

When racing Superbikes we pulled everything apart one day chasing a missfire. A plug faulty, even though new! Never assume and start at the beginning.

Regards

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Similar Content

  • Latest Posts

    • I wasn’t able to replicate the sound anymore. It was a one time sound so maybe it was just coincidence but it was like small pebbles being dropped in a coke can.   should I try cleaning the MAF? It could be it’s functioning but dirty? I don’t know.
    • Update 4: Hi all. The car drives again! Haven't driven for long, only to store it in the garage again, but the test drive was successful. The coolant and oil leaks seem to be fixed for now. Temps on the engine were also very good, while moving I never even saw 80C water during the approx. 30 minute drive. Ate up all the coolant in the reservoir though so will have to fill that even more when I go to the car next time. One thing that pisses me off is that the RPM gauge is still f**ked, I even resoldered the board twice and used copper paste on the silly screws that are used as connections. Next time I take it out I'll take apart the board and fit new components, I'll see if I can get a replacement IC for it.  I have an appointment set for 22nd of September for the engine tune to 370hp. Alignment also still needs to be done. My hope is that I can get all the legal stuff over with by the end of this season. Anyone of you have advice regarding intercoolers? Currently there is an APEXI core fitted, one of those weird hybrid ones, 600x270x76. I don't think it's bad but it's not new and now I still have the chance to change it now to legally include it in the paperwork. Only issue is that the only options that would arrive in time are a HKS Type R intercooler or generic Ebay spec intercoolers comparable to a JustJap one. Ideally I'd order a Plazmaman but it takes over a month to receive which would mean making the car legal has to wait until next season. Would love to hear some input on this. Same story for my injectors, the previous owner was a nunce and put ID 1050x on the engine. They work but are obviously not ideal at "normal" power levels. But I don't see a reason to change them unless the tuner says it's necessary. I read online before buying a different exhaust that the top secret style rear diffusers won't fit due to the size of the rear resonators. My buddy and I made it work by slightly "adjusting the shape" of the mounting bracket and making some spacers out of 3d print for the mounting bolts. Fits like a charm. Just putting this here in case someone has this problem. Even the hefty HKS Silent Hi Power rear can fits without hitting anything.
    • Well they got my money but they are not getting my gearbox ! 
    • It's needed for rolling idle up, and I think it is a decider on VCT also.
    • I mean, not really. Link ECU's can absolutely still have errors from the ECU thinking it's getting a sensor it's not expecting. I would imagine the speed at the ECU level in Nistune does absolutely nothing anyway? I assume the ECU does not do any fancy TC stuff with regards to front+rear wheel speed or anything of that like anyway. Someone who uses Nistune may be more fluent in it. 
×
×
  • Create New...