CECAA850 Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 today it started to miss bad again generated a code that cylinder 1 was mis firing, seems like I am getting an intermittent miss fire, Joe, it didn't start after a fill up did it? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sancho Panza Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 ^^^ Good question! Topping off, or filling to the tip top may cause the Engine Light to go on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 ^^^ Good question! Topping off, or filling to the tip top may cause the Engine Light to go on. I was thinking more along the lines of trash or water in the fuel. It will affect random cylinders. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sancho Panza Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 True, dat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest thesloth Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 If there were debris in the fuel the fuel filter should catch it before getting to the injectors, this would inhibit the fuel flow and pressure. If you have a pressure gauge I believe the fuel rail has a shrader valve you can tap into, look for somewhere around 30psi, see if pressure drops while loading the engine. That many miles and on original wires and plugs, my money is with the ignition or possible AC compressor issue. Pull cylinder 1 spark plug and measure the gap and inspect the electrode. But at that mileage I would just replace them and the wires, and the fuel and air filters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sancho Panza Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 ^^^ think he said the plugs have been replaced; how easily are the wires damaged when replacing the plugs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JL Sargent Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 One trick is to crank it in the dark with the hood up and look for any arching. Maybe a damaged wire or routing got changed creating an intermittent problem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WMcD Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 I was going to say that a garage is not needed, just the dark of night. Many years ago a buddy called me to help his malfunctioning Saab, stranded in a parking lot at work, and by the time I arrived it was dark. He cranked it and arcing around a resistor in the ignition system was obvious when he cranked. But he couldn't crank with the key and look. I'm also wondering about the AC compressor. Maybe it has a common ground with the ignition system and a weak ground connection is allowing the load of the compressor to pull up voltage on the ground, thus reducing voltage to the coil and related circuits. The other thought is that the mechanical action of the compressor running is warping some connection. Best, WMcD 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest thesloth Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 The AC compressor load is mechanical. The compressor pump is powered directly from the crankshaft via the accessory belt. The only thing electrical is the coil, which when energized by the battery voltage will engage the clutch. The common ground is pretty much the whole car's chassis. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MORE KLIPSCH PLEASE Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Hey Joe let me see if i can throw some light on this for ya...1st the car is not in my shop so this will just be some common things to check. I just checked my info system and it looks like the 01 Taurus has only the 3.0 in it. I'm guessing it's the SOHC and not flex fuel.. So the car only has one coil pack that gets it's signal from the ECM to fire each cylinder.. The most common cause for missfire is ignition. Given you car is 14 years old and 118 miles on it...yea I would go there 1st..So my 1st recommendation is plugs and wires. Now I hate telling people "what" they should buy but in my shop this is the way I do most things. I will use mostly OEM factory parts esp. for ignition parts. I have seen so so many times the cheap aftermarket parts fail quickly, and sometimes there not cheap.. Now Ford's OEM parts are Motorcraft (as you may already know this??)...now you don't have to go to the dealer to get OEM Motorcraft parts. I know Advance Auto Parts will carry them or can get them. Let me also lay this on ya...."Rockauto.com" killer killer prices on alot and I mean alot of parts. I got some part #'s for ya...now I'm not at the shop so I can't call my Ford guy to check...so here goes.. Wire set Ford# 4F1Z12259AA.....list price @ Ford about $105.....Rockauto...$40.79 Spark plug Ford # AGSF-32PP.....don't have access to Ford price tonight.....Rockauto...$2.96 ea...that's a double platinum plug. There will be some shipping but it should not be all that. If you car still has the original Ford plugs and wires then they have lasted you a good long time. There are some other things that will cause a missfire but again given the age and mileage this is a really good place to start. Just to kind of throw this out there....this is something you want to take care of soon....cuz every time you have a cylinder missfire (if it's a ignition component) there is raw fuel being dumped into the exhaust system. The cat converters will quickly break down and fail....too much raw fuel and they will melt down (worse case) or you'll get the P0420 & p0430 codes...it'll be just more crap to deal with... Hope this helps... If you need any Diagnostic info, specs, or anything, go to my profile and I have a link to my shop...there you will find a link to my email....shoot me a email and I can fax it to ya or email to ya (wife might have to help do that) lol lol Good luck my man.. Mark.. MKP :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Mark, your recommendation about OEM parts is spot on. For ignition parts or any PCM/ECM sensor ONLY use OEM. You can end up chasing your tail if you don't. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Just to kind of throw this out there....this is something you want to take care of soon....cuz every time you have a cylinder missfire (if it's a ignition component) there is raw fuel being dumped into the exhaust system. The cat converters will quickly break down and fail....too much raw fuel and they will melt down (worse case) or you'll get the P0420 & p0430 codes...it'll be just more crap to deal with... He's due for O2's now as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacksonbart Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 (edited) I like the 1970 Torino Edited June 25, 2015 by jacksonbart 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Richard Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 I think on those coil packs there are actually only three coils, two cylinders share a coil, so one fires while the other is on it's exhaust stroke. So a bad coil would have two cylinders misfire. Not so if one of the secondary windings has an issue. These symptoms are classic for an intermittent secondary. It may not be ignition related at all. I got a bad tank of gas a few months ago that caused a misfire that set some trouble codes. A fuel system flush was the cure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MORE KLIPSCH PLEASE Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 I think on those coil packs there are actually only three coils, two cylinders share a coil, so one fires while the other is on it's exhaust stroke. So a bad coil would have two cylinders misfire. Not so if one of the secondary windings has an issue. These symptoms are classic for an intermittent secondary. It may not be ignition related at all. I got a bad tank of gas a few months ago that caused a misfire that set some trouble codes. A fuel system flush was the cure. Yes...but bad gas will cause a miss through out all cylinders...and you'll get a P0300 random missfire....I think joe said he had a miss in #1 "fixed the wire.... now it's on to another cylinder... Fact remains for the money and what Joe has said my money is on ignition 1s..... MKP :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gilbert Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 (edited) I was going to say that a garage is not needed, just the dark of night. Many years ago a buddy called me to help his malfunctioning Saab, stranded in a parking lot at work, and by the time I arrived it was dark. He cranked it and arcing around a resistor in the ignition system was obvious when he cranked. But he couldn't crank with the key and look. I'm also wondering about the AC compressor. Maybe it has a common ground with the ignition system and a weak ground connection is allowing the load of the compressor to pull up voltage on the ground, thus reducing voltage to the coil and related circuits. The other thought is that the mechanical action of the compressor running is warping some connection. Best, WMcD Heck, you don't have to wait for night fall, not if you have kids or one of those annoying neighbors. Just make sure they're good and grounded before getting them to help you check the plug wires. Edited June 25, 2015 by Gilbert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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