[militant54]

Alright, tired of my car not running right for one reason or another for the last 6 months.

I have a 'miss' whevever I put a bit of a load on it, will only burp very occasionaly at idle or just cruising. If I mash the gas, the miss is noticeable and I can tell that I have also lost some power. The miss is REALLY bad when I'm cruising along at 20-40 mph at 1500rpms or so and I want to give it a little gas and it stays in a high gear, it really jumps around and feels like shit. If I hit the gas hard enough to make it downshift, it really isn't too bad.

So, I've changed the plugs, that helped it a bit but got worse. I changed the wires, that seemed to fix it completely...for a week. There was oil in the plug holes, but the plugs were not fouled, just some oil on the threads mostly. I've rechecked the plugs once a week for the last few months, and each time I clean them up the miss isn't quite as bad, until the past few times, the plug cleaning did not make a difference. No oil on the plugs the last 4 weeks by the way.

I ran seafoam through it 2 months ago, helped it a lot but still not right. Ran some through the oil and gas too, changed the fuel filter after this. Have since seafoamed it a few more times, still smokes a ton when I do it but doesn't make a difference.

I've tried pulling the wires off the coil packs, couldn't find a contributory pack. Got an ohmeter, checked the packs and then went to the store and tested their packs...same numbers, 1kohm on the primary and 18.5k or so on the secondary.

I've checked for vacuum leaks, cleaned my MAF and IAC both with MAF cleaner, and had a buddy of mine who is a mechanic drive the car for a bit and he swears it's a misfire and not a compression problem.

Sorry for the long thread, but what the hell else could it be?

[superbean]

how many miles on the pump? adequate fuel pressure? Sounds like a plug problem/rich fouling or lean issue/bum fuel pump.

Is the car running noticibly rich?

[97S281]

have ya checked the air filter? if your running a c.a.i. with a fender well air filter they get dirtier quicker and require more frequent cleaning/changing. i didn't see that you checked it in your post.

[militant54]

I don't think the car is running rich, I just sent in a datalog to my tuner who didn't see any real problems.

70,000 miles on the car and yes I have checked the air filter, it's fine.

[96blackgt54]

Check the stock coil packs(if thats what you have) for cracks under the packs on the bottoms. This has been known to cause an intertmittent misfire. Does it miss more on rainy days?

The condenser located next to the coil has been known to short out internally causing a miss. Be sure to check that with an ohm meter!

[militant54]

Thanks, I'll check those out in the next few days. I cranked the car in the dark last night to see if I could see any jumps/sparks/whatever and didn't see any.

[militant54]

Oh, and no, rainy days don't seem to make a difference. Not sure what the condenser is, I'll have to poke around and see if I can find it.

[militant54]

Didn't see any cracks on the bottom, but there was a crack in the plastic cover by one of the bolts....I don't think that would cause any problems, would it? Just looked like someone overtightened the bolt.

[ILUVSTANGS]

you mentioned that the spark plug holes...you might have a leaking piston ring...did you mention this to your tooner...also how is your exhaust...check and test the cats...also are you filling up at the same gas station with the same grade of gas since the problem started??? seen a lot of bad fuel at work since the fuel prices have gone up... another way to find out if it is a compression issue get a comprssion tester kit from Sears they are cheap around $40 ish....also almost every auto parts also sell them..also what color is the smoke....makes a world of diff. and makes the diag. a lot easier and quicker...plugs were properly gapped????
good luck let us know the out come....

[militant54]

Originally Posted by ILUVSTANGS you mentioned that the spark plug holes...you might have a leaking piston ring...did you mention this to your tooner...also how is your exhaust...check and test the cats...also are you filling up at the same gas station with the same grade of gas since the problem started??? seen a lot of bad fuel at work since the fuel prices have gone up... another way to find out if it is a compression issue get a comprssion tester kit from Sears they are cheap around $40 ish....also almost every auto parts also sell them..also what color is the smoke....makes a world of diff. and makes the diag. a lot easier and quicker...plugs were properly gapped???? good luck let us know the out come....

Piston ring - I don't think so, I think the compression is fine as I don't miss every cycle.

Exhaust - ain't got no cats!

Nope, filled up at 12 different stations since it's started in 4 different states

Car is not smoking at all, I just meant it still smokes every time I seafoam it...means I have some sort of ongoing carbon build up?

Plugs are gapped at .054"

Something new.....I just noticed that I can hear a clicking or almost like an arcing sound when I pop the hood. I can't pinpoint it but it seems like it is just lateral to the TB on the passenger side....any ideas?

[militant54]

Anybody?

[militant54]

?

[thatdavidkid]

i think it's oil on the plug and it's burning off... valve covers leaking? do a compression test anyway... can't hurt, there are probably 2-3 people in your neighborhood who have compression testers... theyr'e a dime a dozen...

[97mustanggt]

i sort of had this problem....when i would floor it the car would hesitate and misfire....i thought it cant be the coil packs there pretty new accels....but it was....u mite want to go buy some cheap ones and then install them in ur car...if the problem dont get fixed just return them back to the store and get a refund....hope this helps..

[Creason]

if you're friends can't help you find it and you're done throwing your wallet and $$ at the problem then take it to a reputable shop and pay a pro to diagnose this.


No offense, but I see this on a daily basis at work, but this is a peeve of mine.

How much money will you spend chasing your tail? A good reputable shop with a good drivability tech depending on labor rate should be able to diagnose the problem for between $50-$150, that's a whole lot better to me than driving around pissed off and scratching my head at what the problem is. Don't take it to Cooter's gas station, take it to someone who has the knowledge, equipment and experience to do the task and won't repair it without talking to you first (and it does not have to be a dealer). Tell them what you're experiencing, tell them what you replaced, don't be surprised if it turns out to be something you've replaced already in the repair business new means "new", it dosen't always mean "good"
Just my .02

[cyrax01]

I have a 98 gt and had a similar problem to yours. It ended up being a bad injector. The thing is it never gave me a trouble code for it till it completely stopped working 2 weeks ago. Can't guarantee that is your problem, but it's worth the mention." I Think"

[militant54]

Thanks for the info guys, now does anyone know a good mechanic in Baton Rouge

Both auto parts stores here won't take coil packs back for return, only for exchange. I don't think that's the problem though. I wouldn't mind buying a compression tester, but I'd need a real compressor for that, right? Something I don't have....

I think an injector would have been picked up by my datalog but I'm not sure?

[97S281]

no, a compression tester checks your individual cylinders compression. It does not require a "compressor" to operate.

[militant54]

Oh, maybe I am thinking of a leak down test? Either way, might go check my compression (after the hurricane!)

[97S281]

you could park it under a tree and get your homeowners insurance to pay for a new one after the hurricane drops a tree on it.