1999 Altima shakes when not in motion?

[Mehlman2G]

I have a 1999 Altima GLE with 85,000 miles on it...over the 2-3 weeks when I come to a stoplight or stop sign I have noticed my car will have a slight shake to it...the check engine/service engine light will also come on about 1 or 2 times a week when i start up the car...and just last night I turned my car on and stepped outside and noticed the exhaust was making a putt putt like sound...could this just mean its an exhaust problem or something else...any help would be great...I'm dumb when it comes to these things...Thanks

Also I noticed the car seems to be reving rather low like around 400 or 500...isnt 800 where it should be around?

[AltimaDew]

u may have a idle control motor going bad or you too adjust for timing up some

[jserrano]

I am sure that the engine is misfiring. There is a way to determine which cylinder(s) are misfiring with a test called a power balance test. The test basically goes like this, disconnect one spark plug wire at a time until you uncover the one that DOES NOT make the condition worst. You have to put the spark plug wire back when you move to test the next spark plug. Don't leave the spark plug wires out for too long when doing this test. A quick three second test should be ample time.

[AltimaDew]

miss fire is not going to make the idle drop

[zadeluca]

^ but whatever is causing the misfire certainly can...

[eclypse]

Misfiring probably wouldnt rock the motor that much would it?.. maybe misfiring and a bad mount? Seems 85% or more of the "my car idles rough" threads really mean "my car is shaking all over the damn place while idling but otherwise running fine" and it's usually a mount. Just throwin the idea out.

[jserrano]

A bad motor mount by itself obviously won't throw a CEL. So a CEL is certainly an indicator that something is wrong within the engine. Couple that with the putt-putt sound from the exhaust, and a shaking engine, and you know it has to be a pretty bad misfire...possibly affecting two cylinders. And yes, if the motor mounts are shot then it'll shake the engine pretty bad but it'll never give any change in exhaust sounds.

[Mehlman2G]

well thanks for all the input guys...looks like I will just have to take the car into the garage to get checked out...

this seriously could not have come at a worse time...I really hope this isn't going to cost me alot of money...b/c within the next 2 weeks I plan on trading my car in for a new altima...I really dont need to be dropping a bunch of money on my car right before the trade in

[whitie_bear]

i actually have this issue, i dont have it throwing a cel, however my cel is on (beleive its my EGR, it got all messed up)...i think its probably something to do with a mount but who knows

the shake goes away the second i let off the brake...oh and its a auto 95 gxe...with crappy brakes and tons of mileage

id let it be and not spend anything as the car is pretty much worthless other then a winter ride to me

[Mehlman2G]

alright so i took my car in to get looked at today...they called me at work and told me the problem was a broken slip ring at the pipe...so they fixed it for $20...

go in after work to pick it up and of course after the shop had closed...start my car up and what do you know the shake is still there (but not as bad)...so i stepped out of the car to listen for any sounds and there def has to be something wrong with my exhaust/muffler b/c the putt putt sound is still there...and i made it very clear to them about that noise when i took it in and it should be checked out...they sure didnt check it...so now im pissed...

[OfourVsix]

Could be the distributor.

[Lucino]

Originally Posted by Mehlman2G

I have a 1999 Altima GLE with 85,000 miles on it...over the 2-3 weeks when I come to a stoplight or stop sign I have noticed my car will have a slight shake to it...the check engine/service engine light will also come on about 1 or 2 times a week when i start up the car...and just last night I turned my car on and stepped outside and noticed the exhaust was making a putt putt like sound...could this just mean its an exhaust problem or something else...any help would be great...I'm dumb when it comes to these things...Thanks

Also I noticed the car seems to be reving rather low like around 400 or 500...isnt 800 where it should be around?

It's your intake manifold gasket. there is a leak so it needs to be replaced. it's a $1,000 job at the dealer or $500 cash at some local garage. It's a common problem with Altima's according to the dealer.

[Mehlman2G]

ok so now i have the final answer to my problem...something is wrong with my #4 cylinder according to the mechanic from what i can remember him telling me...but he claims it wont get any worse or cause any problems until the time i trade the car in...they wanted about $600 to fix it...only issue is the check engine light wont turn off...

[eclypse]

uh, that's one hell of a diagnosis. what is the exact problem?

[AltimaDew]

so what did he say was wrong with #4????? plug , plug wire , injector , or intake leak could all be the cause .......which one...