Nissan Repair: 98 nissan sentra problem starting, vacuum leaks, nissan sentra

Question
QUESTION: hello, I have a 1998 Nissan sentra 1.6l. After rain starts to dry off the streets the car will not start. It just keeps turning over and over and nothing. If I turn it and pump the gas pedal it starts to sputter and after a while it will start for 5 sec and die. After a few more attempts of doing this it will start like nothing happen and work fine. It will work until it rains again. Not sure if the rain is a coincidence because this just started 2 weeks ago and it seems like some time after the rain. Once I do get it to start it works fine even the next day. I changed the plugs, wires, rotor and cap, air filter, I couldn't find the fuel filter so i did not change that. I don't get a check engine. Any ideas or what to do. the car has 84k miles and runs smoothly.

ANSWER: Lucas,

Your plug wires are getting damp causing them to ground out.  I would replace the plug wires and while you are at it replace the cap and rotor and the problem should be gone.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Yes, I did change all of this and it still did not help. It did smooth out the engine idle and increase performance once I do get it started. I was wondering because their is a small 1/8 inch rotting hole in what i believe is the intake manifold( the piping with the throttle body located on top towards back of engine) Maybe the water evaporating from the rain is getting in causing the engine not to start after it rains?

Answer
Lucas,

If there is a hole in the intake it needs to be corrected.  Any unmetered air will cause the engine to have difficulty starting.  I would recommend a replacement part or JB Weld over the hole.  You could use the five minute variety and that would do the trick.  The air meter will not read correctly if unmetered air gets in the engine.  So, this is why it is important not to have vacuum leaks.  That would cause the engine to run lean since the computer thinks it is getting the air that is metered and not excess air from an unmetered source.