Rick's Free Auto Repair Advice

Nissan P0101 trouble code

Diagnose and fix a P0101 Nissan trouble code

A P0101 Nissan trouble code is very common and there are two fixes for it. A P0101 trouble code is defined as P0101 for Mass Air Flow sensor (MAF) stored in the ECM. That may lead you to automatically replace the MAF. DON’T DO IT! Nissan MAF sensor

I know you want to fix your own car and you think it’s worth the risk to replace the part that’s mentioned in the trouble code. But that’s NOT how computers work and many times the sensor is telling the truth and there’s an underlying problem that caused the code to set. This is one of those cases.

First, Nissan has issued a service bulletin to address the P0101 Nissan trouble code. It applies to the vehicles listed below with the engines listed and involves a software update. Any dealer can do the update. The update isn’t free because this isn’t a safety related recall. Many independent shops can also do the software update.

However, many shops are also reporting a high incidence of bad ground connections for the MAF sensor and that can cause this code to set. The high resistance in the ground circuit can be at the MAF connector, in the wiring to the ground point, or right at the ground. The MAF grounds are in different locations based on the engine, so it’s worth your while to invest in the Eautorepair.net manual link below so you can download the wiring diagrams.

I suggest you do the ground check first, then get it reprogrammed. Also know that Nissan has very specific relearn procedures if you disconnect the battery. That’s another reason why you want a pro shop manual.

This post applies to these vehicles:

2011-2012 Altima Sedan (L32)
2011-2012 Altima Coupe (CL32)
2011-2012 Sentra (B16) with MR20DE engine only
2011-2012 Maxima (A35)
2011-2012 cube® (Z12)
2011-2012 Pathfinder (R51) with VQ40DE engine only
2011-2012 Frontier (D40) with VQ40DE engine only
2011-2012 Xterra (N50)

©, 2016, Rick Muscoplat

Posted on by Rick Muscoplat



Custom Wordpress Website created by Wizzy Wig Web Design, Minneapolis MN