Siper2

No fun. Just............. no fun.

That's all I have to say.

wombatsauce

iTrader: (7)

Uhhh. Hi. You got it backwards there. You're right, plugs and wires were easy. When my coil gets here, it will probably be easy too.

It's not worth selling the car because of something stupid like this? What? 8 CEL's in a short period of time with no sure idea of what could be wrong? I guess I dunno what to say to your post, but then I wouldn't expect anyone to actually read this thread given how much crap is there.

psoper

I've been getting mis-fire codes ever since my timing belt and clutch were changed over a year ago. it pretty much will go off every couple hundred miles, sometimes much less, I got to the point of not even checking and resetting because it was always the same stupid error codes-
mis-fire on from one to all cylinders, no other symptoms.

Timing idler pully failed last week, so it went back to the dealer for another timing belt service, replacing all 4 idler pullies and the oil pump, and guess what- I got over 1000 miles without a CEL!, maybe its fixed I think?

Nope, two days later and 3 CEL's all P030X

And in CA you can't pass smog and therefore cannot sell the car with a CEL showing.

This is really getting boring......

wombatsauce

iTrader: (7)

Yup, couldn't sell it even if I wanted to. It really sucks. I think people should know this sort of crap happens, since the end result is a car that you can never legally sell. Luckily I am moving out of state, but - I mean damn, I still would like my CEL to stop popping up. This is really stupid. If it is a misfire, then, that's not good. The car never acts weird, runs strange, stutters or anything. If this continues beyond my Random Parts Replacement Program I plan to lose the light (it's very bright at night) and install a good set of gauges. Then, the CEL can go uff itself. But still, this is SO stupid.

After spending a few minutes evaluating my case, my car, the LACK of maintenance that had been performed on this car (sold to me as properly maintained, oh yeah forgot that folder with all the proof, I'll just mail it to ya... ) I think there is a chance the coil will fix my problem. When I got the car, I pulled a spark plug to see if they had been changed - #1. It was a fairly worn NGK, but it *could have been* only 30k miles old (car has 60k now). The dealer pulled #4 and told me I needed to change out my completely worn stock plugs. I argued with them, since I held in my hand an NGK I pulled from the motor - we were both right. There were completely worn Champions in #2 and #4 (ie, the end of the electrode is gone, at least 3x the proper gap) while there were fairly worn NGK's in #1 and #3. Since all of my misfires have been on #2 and #4 and I have already changed plugs/wires, maybe the imbalance or problem with the 60k old Champions caused a problem. The coil looks fine visually, and the plug looks great too. My new one is on the way from subaruparts.com, and I really hope this fixes it. If I replace the coil and the exact same problems persist, I will be pretty pissed off, and stop replacing parts for a while.

Deeper inspection found an OEM air filter, fuel filter and belts. I believe no maintenace was ever performed on this car. It sure looked purdy when I got it.. I have since performed a full 30k/60k maintenance myself, and we'll see how it works.

AWDimprezaL

i work at a subaru dealer, champions CAUSE misfire codes! get NGK platnums and go from there...champions are hella junk

wombatsauce

iTrader: (7)

I honestly don't mean this to be sarcastic, but - are you even reading these posts? Got rid of the Champions 6 CEL's ago, but don't want platinums. Using the regular NGK spec'd for my car - forgot the code. Thanks.

AWDimprezaL

actually...i skimmed through it, noticed you were hating your car because of CELs and decided to throw in my 2 cents

wombatsauce

iTrader: (7)

CEL #9 on Sat morning, same deal. Coil still not here.

wombatsauce

iTrader: (7)

Okay, just changed the coil. We'll see. No noticable difference in the car yet. Hope I don't see CELs anymore.

wombatsauce

iTrader: (7)

After driving the car for a day and a half now, I have to say I notice a difference with the new coil. The car is smoother, and the idle is less lumpy. I am keeping my fingers crossed, but hey - I feel like my car is cured. Just have to wait and see.

wombatsauce

iTrader: (7)

Okay so my car was CEL free for 3 days. It definitely runs better, but CEL is back with the typical P0304 and P0302.

Now, the dealer says I need a valve adjustment for $550. On a scale of 1 to 10 I say **** that.

I will look around a little and see if I can find the dash pod and get some gauges and watch my engine the old fashioned way. This is such TOTAL BS. I wish I would have never bought this car (like I said about my previous '03 WRX).

I have changed: plugs, wires, coil, fuel filter and I still get the same codes with the "ign system malfunction or misfire" and there's really not much left of the ignition system to replace. Car runs great. Gets good mileage. This CEL only happens on cold starts. I gotta say, I really enjoy driving this car, but this is such crap. My WRX had lots of stupid issues as well. I say, this is my last Suby. Gonna check the plugs when I get a chance. Maybe I will do a compression test or something. Going on a 1500+ mile drive this weekend.

scoobie555

if it is on cold starts (possibly) check ur coolant temp sens res and volt.

AWDimprezaL

sohc phaze 2 heads on RS s NEED to have valves adjusted or you will get misfire codes, apparently it has nothing to do with ignition, nobody is saying its your fault, it was the previous owner's lack of maintenance

scoobie555

thankyou so much! i adjusted my valves and on the #4 cyl the rocker on the exhaust side had zero valve lash. my idle is so smooth now ive been trying every thing i know to smooth out my idle and fix that 304 code. still not sure why zero lash on x-huast would misfire or rough'n the idle. i know it would cause the valve to open to early. mabe also close to early on exhuast stroke causing compression of the left over exhaust. then the new air/fuel mixture would be displace some air for exhaust causing the misfire. yeah. probably help with the NOx thou

psoper

I seem to have reduced the frequency of my misfire codes by using lots of fuel injector cleaner, but an extra $5 per tankful is going to get boring......