Hello,
I am the proud owner of a 1996 Mercury Sable GS wagon, which I purchased a few weeks ago with only 76,000 miles on it. The inside is in mint condition, and so I think overall it was a great deal.
I've had to deal with a few issues on the car so far to get it in perfect driving shape. Since the beginning, the service engine soon light will come on (flashes for awhile then is static). I rooted around under the (extremely clean) hood and noticed several things. First, vacuum hoses were missing from the EGR and the pressure intake part for the engine (sorry, I don't know all of the real names for car parts). I had these hoses replaced.
Next, I replaced the spark plugs, (especially plug #2). Still didn't fix the problem. Then, the gentleman at the auto parts store suggested the coil pack. Replaced this. Same problem. Finally, I looked closely at the spark plug cables (which were brand new looking) and realized cable number two was actually clamped down between the cylinder head cover and the engine block and oil was leaking out. Had this fixed and the problem stopped briefly.
It seems whomever worked on this car before was super lazy and left off vacuum hoses, clamped the spark plug cable, etc.
Everything seemed fine, but now, on cold days, the car will start to shake when it's turned on, and then the familiar light comes on, and when I read the code it says cylinder head 2 misfire - P0302.
A mechanic friend suggested I put in a combustion cleaning additive, so I did this. Still have the problem on occasion.
I noticed the other day that the car has smoke coming out of the exhaust, and after a while, oil.
What could be going on at this point? My mechanic put the cylinder head under compression or something for a number of hours, and said there weren't any problems there and he doesn't know what else to do.
Also, if it's of any consequence, if the AC is on vent instead of Max AC, a horrible exhaust smell fills the cabin.
Thanks!
Richard
I am the proud owner of a 1996 Mercury Sable GS wagon, which I purchased a few weeks ago with only 76,000 miles on it. The inside is in mint condition, and so I think overall it was a great deal.
I've had to deal with a few issues on the car so far to get it in perfect driving shape. Since the beginning, the service engine soon light will come on (flashes for awhile then is static). I rooted around under the (extremely clean) hood and noticed several things. First, vacuum hoses were missing from the EGR and the pressure intake part for the engine (sorry, I don't know all of the real names for car parts). I had these hoses replaced.
Next, I replaced the spark plugs, (especially plug #2). Still didn't fix the problem. Then, the gentleman at the auto parts store suggested the coil pack. Replaced this. Same problem. Finally, I looked closely at the spark plug cables (which were brand new looking) and realized cable number two was actually clamped down between the cylinder head cover and the engine block and oil was leaking out. Had this fixed and the problem stopped briefly.
It seems whomever worked on this car before was super lazy and left off vacuum hoses, clamped the spark plug cable, etc.
Everything seemed fine, but now, on cold days, the car will start to shake when it's turned on, and then the familiar light comes on, and when I read the code it says cylinder head 2 misfire - P0302.
A mechanic friend suggested I put in a combustion cleaning additive, so I did this. Still have the problem on occasion.
I noticed the other day that the car has smoke coming out of the exhaust, and after a while, oil.
What could be going on at this point? My mechanic put the cylinder head under compression or something for a number of hours, and said there weren't any problems there and he doesn't know what else to do.
Also, if it's of any consequence, if the AC is on vent instead of Max AC, a horrible exhaust smell fills the cabin.
Thanks!
Richard