ezekielj007

I started the "hiccup" thread yesterday after changing my spark plugs and having my engine misfire. This started about 10 minutes after the spark plug change. Well I also started a tread a couple of day ago conserning my temp gadge going up while stopped at a red light. This happened prior to the spark plug change. This morning I swapped out the plugs and my car is still sputtering. Could I have possibly blown a gasket? When the car ran hot it never got to the "H" and it would always go down once I started driving. I lookied at my dipstick this morning and the oil seems to be ok. I guess I'm just getting pretty paranoid after reading posts since I've been at work today and finding out that a blown gasket could cause misfires. Also, I never got a misfire code for a particular plug. Just a P1399 and a insufficient EGR code which has been there for a month now. sorry for posting another thread

mdavisii

To be honest, I've never heard of a second gen TL with a blown headgasket. Not to say it isn't possible, but I highly doubt it's the case. Maybe try investigating some of the simple items, like the thermostat or coolant level in your system (in reference to your needle rising a bit while sitting idle).

ezekielj007

mdavisii, I see you're from Qwinnett. I was stuck in the trafic this morning on 285 trying to get to the Marta station. Where do you get you're work done on your car? I bought mine from Acura Carland but I'm trying my best to take care of this on my on.

fsttyms1

Ok for starters, have you checked your coolant levels? Something has to be causing the tem to rise, because on our cars the needle should never move from the normal operating temp.

As for your "hiccup" thats most likely caused by your egr. If the EGR is stuck in the open position at all or clogged it would cause a stumble. There are DIY's for cleaning out the intake's clogged egr ports. Its possible you need a new egr also. What year is your TL?

ezekielj007

fsttyms1, I have a 99 with about 103,000 miles on it. You've helped me out plenty in the past and I've cleaned the EGR once before about a year and a half ago with your help so thanks for checking out this thread.

Question: My engine light has been on for a a few weeks now with the EGR code but I haven't had the hiccups. Could it be possible that installing the new NGK's promote this type of misfire since the EGR was already bad?

Yes, I've checked my coolant level. Come to think about it I think the coolant is a above the max level. I just had the oil changed last week and the place where I got my oil changed topped off all of the fluids.

fsttyms1

well cleaning it out may have only been half the problem. The EGR itself may be bad (especially since your getting the code) Plugs wouldnt throw that code unless there was a bad plug or the coil isnt seated properly.

its possible you have a thermostat thats going if your fluid levels arent droping.

ezekielj007

So should I not worry so much that my gasket is blown? Do you think the coil packs could have suddenly gone bad and causing the misfire or should I concentrate my efforts on the P0401 ( I think that was it) Insufficient EGR flow.

mdavisii

Yes u r absolutely correct in that I am from Gwinnett County. That traffic on I285 was due to an overturned truck that was transporting automobile batteries. What a mess, glad I was not a part of that! But to answer your question, a lot of the work with this car I do on my own with help from other members on this forum. For the work I do not do, I take my car to a mechanic shop in Suwanee (Blake Automotive) who lives and dies by Honda/Acura products. I do occassionally go to Carland just to keep a good relationship (but that may be just to do a $19 oil change). Can't burn bridges with them, afterall they did give me a free tranny!! Right now I have about 140,000 miles and I enjoy driving it just like the day I bought it. It's paid for so I too do my best to keep it up in like new condition.

I checked on that code for P1399. Have no clue what that translates to for a Honda/Acura. This code is most common for a Chrysler/Jeep, where that translates to a Wait To Start Lamp Circuit. But in general codes in the P13xx have something to do with misfiring.

acurabum

When it going up too hot : turn the climate control to heat and see if any
hot ventilation come out , if not not then you have a defect thermostat .

ezekielj007

So let me get this straight: when the temp start to creep up all I have to do is put the temp on heat? Should I have it on auto with the ac on or off?

mdavisii

My recommendation would be to concentrate with the obvious right now, being the EGR. This could eliminate the stumble ("misfire" effect) you are experiencing.

ezekielj007

'preciate it! Hey, is Blake Automotive pretty reasonable with their service costs?

mdavisii

Guaranteed 20% off of dealer costs to be exact. And his work is excellent. If you are ever interested in taking your car there just PM me. I can provide you with his information, and I can let him know to expect you.

ezekielj007

That's what I'll do. Do you know what he would charge for the timing belt/waterpump replacement. You can let them know you just got them a new customer. Now that i'm out of warrantee I need a reliable mechanic.

acurabum

The idea is to check if you have any heating come out from the ventilation .
If not when the temp gauge start to creep up then your thermostat stay stuck
and close so the coolant could not circulate that why your temp rise .
- when the temp start to creep up turn the climate control to max heating
(auto or a/c on or off does not matter ) and see if you have any heat come
out .

Comet2404

Kinda ironic that we all live in Atlanta. YES YES YES, it is possible for a TL to blow a headgasket. Yours truly here did it. About 2 years ago, I was involved in an accident coming back from Auburn University, well apparently, there must have been a problem with the radiator becasue fluid was leaking all over the engine bay, but it seemed as if it were overflowing and not leaking... very strange. Anyways, they deemed it was the thermostat, and replaced that. Then it continued to do it, and they inspected it more thoroughly. I had overheated the car enough to blow the gasket, and thus Acura Carland ripped the entire top part of my engine off and replaced it. Just because your car is overheating doens't mean you've blown a gasket, its if the care heats up enough and frequently will it occur.

mdavisii

If I remember correctly, he charged me somewhere in the mid-upper $500 range for both. And of course he only uses Honda/Acura parts unless you give him a part to put on (like aftermarket struts or something). I can assure you that his work will not disappoint you. One of the most honest people you will ever meet. Just PM me when you are ready and I can get you in contact with him.

mdavisii

Wow! In that case, I stand corrected about not hearing of a TL with a blown headgasket!!

ezekielj007

I'm going to have to flag all these members from Atlanta so I will know where to go to get certain things done. Well, I'm hoping I was just jumping the gun when I mentioned the head. I'm not losing any fluids right now so hopefully I'm all good. I guess I have my work cut out for me this weekend. I'll change the stat and clean my EGR and hopefully I'll be back in business. I'm just hoping this doesn't cost me too much because I'm looking to buy a 90-93 Lexus for no more than 4+ grand within a week as a second car and I don't want to have to spend that money.

fsttyms1

Like i said keep a eye on the fluid levels, If your noticing that the coolant levels keep droping, then id worry about that possibility, Id also keep a eye on the temp gauge, if it continues to cimb alot id check into having the thermostat replaced.
As fo r the misfire, Like i said its most likely not a coil. It may be a bad plug, or that the coil pack ISNT seated properly. Id go out and remove and reseat each one. Also the stumble may very well be caused by the egr valve. Get that replaced.
If it continues go buy 1 plug and start 1 at a time to see if it clears up the misfire/stumble

I agree, work on 1 thing first.
Well being in a accident is completly different that a normal engine blowing a gasket

03CoupeV6

Well now I know if my car suddenly needs work that I'll be PM'ing you for more information!

ezekielj007

Ok, this weekend I cleaned out my EGR. I was clugged up pretty bad. I put everything back together and kept my fingers crossed that when I start her up my sparkplugs would not misfire anymore. Well, It started it again immediately. And it seemed a little worse. After driving around for a moment or so the check engine/ TCS light came back. When I try to give it too much gas the engine light will start to flash. I quickly took it to Autozone to get it scanned and now all of the cylinders are misfiring. I got codes P0300-306 and P1399. The EGR didn't trip a code though so hopefully that's fixed but what else could be causing all the cylinders to misfire?

mdavisii

Now this is the point where I would do like fsttyms1 suggested. Purchase a spark plug and swap out one at a time to see that you do not have one that is causing all sorts of problems. This is assuming that you have all 6 plugs/coil packs seated properly to begin with. If these misfires were not present prior to the spark plug change, then something has to be going on.

ezekielj007

Do you know how I can check my coil packs? I just read a thread where a guy had this same problem and he was throwing all the same codes and one of his coils were bad. He didn't mention how he found out though.

NSXNEXT

iTrader: (2)

That might have been me. The only way I was able to find the culprit was to buy one new one and go through, swapping out one pack at a time with the new one till the problem went away.

I will add, that if you haven't tried replacing spark plugs first, give that a try. It's a cheap way to find out what the problem is.

ezekielj007

So did you throw the P0301-6 codes and had a really bad hiccupping coming from your engine? I tried everything with my plugs this weekend and I'm pretty sure that's not it now. and like I said, I cleaned the EGR also. My next step was going to be to just go buy some $4 Bosch plugs and start all over even though the Bosch plugs aren't as good but something is telling me that the plugs are cool.

ezekielj007

Sorry to bring this up again but I still haven't fixed my baby and it's killing me. I've checked the gaps, coil connections and cleaned the EGR port. Is the only other reasonable explanation for my car misfiring on all cylinders is that I need to replace one of the coil packs? I'm lost here.

mdavisii

Did you try purchasing a new spark plug and replacing one by one to eliminate the possibility of a foul plug?

mdavisii

It may even be time for me to give you the number to Blake Automotive as well. PM me if you are interested.

ezekielj007

Ok, this weekend I went to the Acura dealer and picked up a coil igniter for $61 I proceeded to start swapping each out one by one with the new coil to find the culprit. Each time I would start up the car after swapping out the coils. The first four didn't do any good and the shuddering was really apparent even causing the opened door to shake. The I got to the middle coil in the rear of the engine and after replacing it there was still the shuddering yet it was not as bad nor as often. The misfire wasn't gone yet it was noticeably better. I then took out the new coil and swapped out the old coil in the "tough" spot on the rear passenger side. No luck. The shuddering was back in full force. So I repeated the last step and swapped it back out to the middle one and took that as a step in the right direction. after driving it on the hwy and through town it was very obvious that that coil was bad. My check engine light didn't blink as much and I had regain a lot of power. My check engine light was cleared yet it came back on and when I took the car to Advance auto the car was still throwing the misfire codes on all cylinders. Do you think it's possible that I have another coil out? Is that the obvious answer now to the road to a non vibrating ride?

ezekielj007

Well I went back to the Acura dealership yesterday to get another coil pack to follow up on the replacement of the first one. The parts guy tried to sell me 5 of them telling me that if one goes all will be bad. Well I just bought the one and went right outside in their parking lot to do the swap. As you may remember I replaced the middle coil in the rear of the engine and had significant improvements to the sputtering. This Time I changed the coil in that hard to reach location on the rear passenger side of the engine. Once I did the swap I disconnected the battery to reset the comp and wipe out the check engine light. I fired my baby up and she purred like a kitten. The sputtering was gone and all power was restored. So far the check engine light has not come back on and after a day of driving she feels really good. Thanks for all of your help and hopefully this thread is detailed enough with my issues and fixes that It will help the next person with the problem.