ok, so i got a blinking CEL... once, it went away within a few seconds. it came back on a few days ago while i was at idle. I called the dealer ( a very reputible one at that) and drove the car down ( about 85 miles) to have them look at it. it drives fine, with no abnormal noises loss of power etc.

the OBD2 detected a CYL missfire on CYL #4.. they called me back suggesting we take the heads off to inspect...and they will call the ext. warrenty dept and get an adjuster down to inspect and confirm coverage.....

once the heads were off they noticed ALL SIX pistons have nicks on the exhaust side. from what they see it would be over rev of an engine. where the pistons are moving so fast .. the valves can't get out of the way fast enough and hit the top of the pistons. IS THIS EVEN POSSIBLE!!!?? ??? theres no ECU data as the battery has been disconected for too long. the dealer says that the only clode in there at the time was CYL Missfire.

The warranty adjuster denied the coverage saying it is over rev of an engine and gave me a phone number to call and argue the outcome.

I'm just completly speechless as to how this has happened ... i could see it if i just beat the living bag out of it in a parking lot. This is a weekend driver and only has 54k for an 05.

So meanwhile i have towed the car back to my house with the heads in a box and the engine taken apart because its not covered under warrenty and i certainly don't have 6,000+ to repair an effed up motor with 54k miles on it.. kinda pissed!!!!

ANY ADVISE?? ANYONE HAVE THIS PROBLEM??????

 

When did the misfires happen? Was the engine cold? It seems like the dealer took a pretty drastic route to finding it. I would think they would have checked or moved the plugs first. I haven't done that to this car but I would think it's easier than taking the engine apart.

 

yes, they did say that they checked all wires, plugs and coil packs

according to the work order:
client states that the ck engine light has come on and off and at times has blinked when at idle only so far.

technician verified concern, found cyl#4 misfire. checked plugs and coils - OK. checked timing - OK. performed cyl compression test and found the following results. #1 &2 @210 psi . #3 & #4 @165PSI #5 @160 PSI and #6 @215 PSI. Performed cyl leak down test and found #4 @ 80% and #6 @ 12%. removed cyl heads.... blah blah blah i can continue... but it just depresses me

 

It sucks chasing a misfire. I had one on another car that turned out to be a leak in one of the intake gaskets. It would misfire when cold then the gasket would seal enough when it warmed up so the engine would run fine. It misfired quite a bit though. Another thing that was checked out were the injectors and fuel pressure. Why didn't you have them put it back together rather than tow it? Sorry to hear about the problem.

 

Do you have an AT or MT? I don't know if it's even possible to get an AT to overrev.

That being said, if you do end up paying out of pocket, your best bet would be to just get a new motor.

 

Your car 6mt? I'd have to guess that, since the rep blamed it on overreving. I can't know for sure, bcs I can't see the pistons or valves. Overreving will cause the valves to float, and pistons hitting the exhaust valves. You can get your heads tested as well at a machine shop.

If this is the case, bent valves, then all you have to do is rebuild the heads. No need to spend 6 grand, and no need to buy a new motor.

If this is what happened, the sudden misfires don't mean something happened right that moment....this could've happened a while back, but wasn't severe enough to cause misfires. It just got worse overtime.

 

It could have been a downshift in auto as well.

OP, since the heads are off, call some reputable independent shops and get a price quote for a valve job. Shouldn't be more than a few hundred. Make sure all new hardware, seals and gaskets are used. Before the heads go in, verify the gaps.

I would follow up with the dealer as well. Call your Att. Gen's Office and file a complaint and file a report with the BBB if you think you are in the right.

 

I thought the Autos had a safety feature that won't allow a downshift if speed of the car is greater than the selected gear would provide at redline. Until speed drops to a safer speed for that gear.

If i'm wrong, than this auto thing is complete garbage.

 

I think there's been confirmed reports from AT owners who have accidentally bumped it to L from D while out of range causing an overrev. There's definitely a logic upshift limiter.

 

Yeah, that's what I believe as well..I'm going to bet he's a 6MT. Guess we'll see....

Edit: Here's what's in the OM under SSS:

If you try to manually downshift at a
speed that would cause the engine to
exceed the redline in a lower gear,
the transmission will not downshift.
If the vehicle speed slows to below
the redline of the selected lower gear
position while the indicator is
flashing, the transmission will
downshift and the display will show
the selected lower gear.

 

LOL Majofo....I asked a dumb question on a previous post that I just deleted....
I asked what "L" was... I gotta get inside an auto car more often! lol
I couldn't recall the 3G shift gate having an L position...I only remember 1-2 from 2G lol...

Either way...thats a hell of an accidental downshift.....I still think it shouldn't allow it.
I'm not quiet a whiz on the auto either but just logically speaking

 

I think they replaced 1-2 with L (low gear?). Agreed, it definitely shouldn't happen with an Auto. Maybe the early years / pcm flash didn't include the protection

 

This is all assuming he's AT though. I'm guessing he's not

OP, did they say the valves were indeed bent? I only read that there were nicks on the exhaust side of the pistons.

What's the mileage?

 

im having the same promblem right now but its cyl #3 missfire. the cel is blinking when im at idle when i start giving it gas its stays on.

 

The OP has previous posts in a 3rd gear thread so I would assume he has a 6-speed. And wow...I would love to only put 6k miles on my car in 2.5 years.

 

Do what Opel says in post #6, get a valve job, replace bent valves (sounds like probably 3 ex. valves) get your gasket/seal sets, put it back together.

 

^ You make it sound so easy...