I shan't go into the various retarded reasons why I had to change my spark plugs in 20 degree weather instead of this past fall when it was nice. The facts are this:

- Got a trouble code, plugs 2 & 3 misfire.
- Changed out all the plugs. Started up, sounds just as bad, same exact trouble codes.

When I pulled the 3 rear plugs, the plug under the manifold and the plug closest to the driver's side had some black carbon on them. All the other plugs looked pretty good (as good as they can look). It has been my understanding that the plugs are numbered odd on one side, even on the other (so that the back plugs would be 2, 4, & 6, I think). My questions are: Which plugs are # 2&3? Given that I changed out the plugs, is the continuing problem on the coils or the wires? Does anyone know how to change out the wires if they are the problem? If this turns out to be a job too big for me, I live about 15 minutes (6 miles on curvy roads) from the nearest mechanic. Can I drive there or should I get a tow?

Thanks in advance for any help!

 

If I recall correctly, cylnder # 2 is the leftmost cylinder when standing in front of the car looking at the engine. Cylinder #3 is the middle cylinder at the back - a real b_tch to get to!

Sounds like a bad coil possibly? Many people are having issues with coils now, given the age of our cars. Can you switch the #2 and #3 coils and see if the fault moves with the coils?

 

^ correct. #1 is closest to the front passenger, and odd numbers run next to the fire wall, evens towards the front bumper. You can lay the plugs on the engine block and look for spark. By swapping plugs you can narrow down the problem to failing coil pack.

Salim

 

OK, it makes sense that I spent all that time getting #3 out and I should have just replaced the coil while I was at it (bangs head against the wall). I thought about switching out the coils after I first posted, so I gave that a go with #2 & #6. I definitely think its the coil as the sound is different. I didn't run it long, so the only code up now is for the #3 slot.

I thought there was supposed to be a code for a bad coil. Am I wrong? It's why I didn't bother buying the coils (other than they are a special order) just in case. If so, does anyone know why the code wouldn't come up?

Also, does anyone have a replacement number for the Denso coils? When I look online, the part # is different from what is on the coil in my car (same thing with the plugs, but the printed # on them was the same).

Thanks for all your help!

 

Yes, the code will tell you if its a bad coil and which one is bad - P030x where x is the bad coil (1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6).