[97vulcan]

Hi all, My SES light came on yesterday night when I was driving like 65-70 down the freeway. First when it came on, it was blinking for a couple seconds then it was on steady. I got to my destination, and when I left a few hours later, it was still on, then it started blinking for awhile, then steady. So today I went to AutoZone. They scanned my ECU and pulled code "P0302 Cylender 2 misfire". The tech at AutoZone reset my computer, so currently the light is off. My question is what do you guys think caused this misfire.

Thanks
Adam

 

[spridget]

Hard to say without more information.

What is the maintenance history?
Any other known problems?

 

[97vulcan]

No other problems. I take car of this car!!! the day before, I took it in to the Stealership to get the oil changed. Come to find out they filled it past the full mark, and not just a little either. Any one else???


Adam

 

[jason8225]

How many miles are on the car? Have you ever had the plugs and wires changed? Are you still getting the code? Can you "feel" it misfiring? I assume, from your name, that you have a 97 Vulcan?

 

[spridget]

a misfire can be caused by many many things.... old plugs or wires, bad gas, dirty injectors, etc, etc, etc.

What's the mileage?
It's taken care of, does this mean it has been to the dealership for all scheduled service or just had the oil changed every 3k?

best case scenario, you have a loose plug wire; worst case scenario, your rings are worn out on cylinder #2, the plug is oil fouled and the compression is low......

 

[97vulcan]

Well, the car has 104,222 on her. I take it to the dealership to get the oil changed. Thats it. Otherwise, I have changed the plugs and wires about 7 months ago. I don't know which cylinder is # 2. And I havent had the SES come on since it was reset. Could it be from when the dealer filled my crankcase too full of oil? I don't think the rings are worn. I can't feel it stumbling around. it has a little miss, but so do all vulcans. Why would the SES blink for a couple of seconds then stop?

Thanks
Adam

 

[spridget]

Cylinder #2 is the middle cylinder on the rear bank (next to the firewall).

The SES blinks when it encounters the misfire. I know vulcans ping, but I don't think they misfire routinely (no engine should).

The overfill of oil should not cause a misfire, however, if it is really overfull you will have other problems. The crankshaft splashing the overfull oil in the oilpan causes it to become foamy. The oil pick up tube can not effectively suck up the frothy oil and the engine is poorly lubricated. At that point, the single cylinder misfire will be the least of your problems.... in fact, the problem will be solved as the engine can no longer fire at all!

 

[97vulcan]

Thanks Spridget. Anyone else have any info?

Adam

 

[97vulcan]

The SES came on again 2night. When I was driving at highway speeds (65-75) I am going to check out the plug tomorrow and wire. Does anyone else have any other hints or information?

Thanks in advance.

Adam

 

[Bob Gervais]

Originally posted by 97vulcan@Sep 24 2004, 11:53 PM
The SES came on again 2night. When I was driving at highway speeds (65-75) I am going to check out the plug tomorrow and wire. Does anyone else have any other hints or information?

Thanks in advance.

Adam

I had a problem with my #2 wire a while back. It came loose from the loom and was contacting the EGR tubes, anc burned through. I replaced the wire and all was fine. Check the plug as well for indications of a leaking head gasket.

Does your car have the heater hose bypass kit? There should be a hose running from the heater hose on the water pump, to the other side of the engine at the lower intake manifold.

 

[97vulcan]

Hey Bob, I pulled out the plug today and it looked fine. As far as the wire goes, it looked good too. I can feel the car missing, and it only seems to happen when I am cruising at highway speeds. After looking at the plug, and wire, I disconnected the batter for about 5 minutes, then reconnected it. No more SES. I know this is a temp. fix. I'll check the bypass thing later.

Thanks
Adam

PS: could it be the coil pack going bad?

 

[97vulcan]

Hey Bob, what would the plug look like if my head gasket was leaking?

Adam

 

[Bob Gervais]

Originally posted by 97vulcan@Sep 25 2004, 12:28 PM
Hey Bob, what would the plug look like if my head gasket was leaking?

Adam

It would have small brownish dots on the ceramic insulator, and could possibly be wet with coolant if you removed it after running the engine for a minute or so.

Have you checked the wires with a VOM?

Also, skipping or missing at higher RPM's/speeds usually indicates a problem in the primary ignition system, which in this case would be the plug wire, or the coil.

 

[97vulcan]

Oh damn, I do remember seeing some crap on the ceramic. But I looked at my oil, and it looks fine. I am scared now! Are there any other symptoms of a leaking head gasket?

Thanks
Adam

PS: the plug was dark, with little white specs on the tip.

 

[Bob Gervais]

Run a compression test on that cylinder. In all the cases I've worked on, the Vulcan head gasket has always blown from the water jacket to the combustion chamber. Antifreeze does not make it into the oil if this is the case.

 

[97vulcan]

Hey Bob, what would healthy compression numbers look like on that cylinder. And if you know, what would a head gasket failure numbers look like?

Thanks again for the help!

Adam

 

[spridget]

I'm not sure of numbers, but check all cylinders, if that cylinder reads significantly lower (like %20) than you know its wrong.

 

[Bob Gervais]

Originally posted by spridget@Sep 28 2004, 12:23 AM
I'm not sure of numbers, but check all cylinders, if that cylinder reads significantly lower (like %20) than you know its wrong.

Ditto. Working off memory, I think my old Vulcan was around 150 PSI. The difference between the cylinders is what matters the most though, as Spridget pointed out.

 

[FRAG24]

bob do ypu know the hose size coming from water pump to heater core, i'm planning to flush it. don't know where to get hose adaptor for it. help!
:notworthy:

 

[Bob Gervais]

Originally posted by FRAG24@Sep 30 2004, 12:41 AM
bob do ypu know the hose size coming from water pump to heater core, i'm planning to flush it. don't know where to get hose adaptor for it. help!
:notworthy:

3/4"