OT Mazda Question OT

[Chester Brzostowski]

My daughter’s 2001 V6 Mazda Tribute is running poorly and is getting a cyl 2 misfire code. The ignition coil for that cyl and the other two in the rear bank were replaced by her boyfriend. Problem went away for a day or two then came back. I will check out his work today and I am figuring on a bad or corroded connection someplace. If I don’t find anything electrical is there anything else that would cause a misfire like an injector ??? or would the injector throw a different code ???

Anyone know how the misfire is detected ??? I don’t have the service manual.

Chet…

[Plymouthy Adams]

I have seen some of these connects not lock in proper and come loose..do check behind his work first..also look to ensure the plug itself is properly tightened..they can act erratic is slightly off their seating ring..do this when engine is cold please..(aluminum head)

[Chester Brzostowski]

Tim,

I have been reading up on the Mazda forums and this problem can be a bear. My plan for today is to do exactly what you suggest. The two other culprits I have discovered could be the injector or a bad valve, head gasket, etc. I can’t get an injector today so if no electrical problem is discovered I plan on doing a compression test and then swap the injector with a different cyl. If the code doesn’t move she will probably need to remove the head. I guess I should say pop will have to remove the head for her.

I have read horror stories about mega dollar repairs then still a problem with no ending post solution. I think I hit the mother load.

Crap, Chet…

[greg g]

could also be the knock sensor, but I believe that throws a seperate code. Is this the same engine in the Exploder??? If so be very carefull pulling the plugs, I would start soaking them down with penetrant. If you break off plug and these are typically a extended reach two piece plug they will come apart before coming out. Then its sell the truck time. As most places want north of a grand to do the repair.

Your idea regarding swapping known good pieces to the the problem cylinder is probably the best place to start, could be as simple as a bad plug.

The recommended mileage for plug replacement is 100k, but by then they have become very comfortable within their locations and are loathe to be removed. They kind of weld themselves into the aluminum head. What you should do with the long service interval plugs is remove them every 30 to 40K just so you can when they need to be replaced.

Which reminds me I should pull my VW and Honda Plugs before the snow flies.

[oldodge41]

Good advice on the plugs Greg. "Which reminds me I should pull my VW and Honda Plugs before the snow flies". Too late for me as it snowed here over night.

[Chester Brzostowski]

Thanks all,

So here is the long and the short of it. I removed the intake manifold to get to the spark plugs and coils. God I hate new cars and the rain didn’t help much. I did a compression test across the back three cylinders and all were equal. I noticed that out of the three coils he replaced.., the one for the #2 cylinder was different. My daughter’s boyfriend told me that after he replaced the coils the car still acted up a bit and that they didn’t drive it very far or at highway speed. We replaced the coil with a known good coil from the cylinders that weren’t experiencing a problem. The wires to the plug connection were really twisted and I relived the strain thinking that it might be pulling the pins causing a bad connection.

Put everything back together and road tested the car. It ran well and with the pedal down, we push it up to 90mph on rt28 with no hiccups. Drove the car about another 25 miles with no problems so I am hopping it’s fixed.

Murphy’s Law, You can’t always rely on new parts working properly or anything else for that matter.!!!

Dad 1 boyfriend 0,

Chet…