Anyone have any insite as to what a shop might charge to rebuild a set of heads? The wayI see it is if I have the money to get the heads redone at tax time, I may as well do it with the mileage this thing has... if anything for the piece of mind.

 

I used to get codes like that every now and then. I would throw in a bottle of Lucas fuel injector cleaner with the next tank of gas and hopefully it will go away within a handful of miles (worked for me), maybe that and consider a new set of plugs and wires. I replaced my plugs and wires a few months back and haven't got any misfire codes since then.

 

they only make 2 that I know of, the stock black one and a replacement white one, both are opaque although you may be able to see through the white one slightly. The black ones commonly will crack at the seams so they now sell the white one as a stronger replacement.

 

That was my first thought was replace the wires... looked at em this am and it looks like someone beat me to it. If I get a code again I'll probably end up replacing them just so I know it HAS been done.

Thanks for the input... I appriciate it

 

...mine is the white one. cant see the level for beans. But if thats how they all are I'll just have to get used to it.

 

if you look inside there is a post that sticks up inside, I am pretty sure the top of that post is the full level. If not that's how I do it, if I see the post I add a bit more!

 

Do you normally let it warm up at idle for the amount of time you did when you got the code? or was that just a rare event?

The fill line on the light colored tank is between the seam and 1/2 inch above the seam where the top and botom are fused together. if you put a flashlight up against the tank you can see the level better...maybe shake the truck a little to see the movement.

yes the 8mm wires are "better" but any size wire can cause a misfire if the connection or plug is not good. You might want to check all the connections and replace the plugs first.

 

A general rule of thumb whenever you buy a used car is this...If YOU didn't do it/have it done then it NEVER got done.

You may not feel a mis fire, it can be very small, to small for you to feel/hear.
But if it keeps happening then it will set off the check engine light.
If it happens once or twice it wont set off the code, if it happens everyday for 2 weeks it will.
Because it has been raining it could be excess moisture got in between the spark plug and plug wire and shorted that one spark plug and set off the code.
Dont worry about it, but I would plan on doing a complete tuneup in the near future.
That means good spark plug wires and any spark plug you want.
No autoparts store plug wires, spend the money and get good ones, go cheap on the spark plugs.

 

Get some 8MM wires and new plugs. I run Magnacor, but anything with 8MM insulation will work. I went through 3 sets of 7MM Bosch wires before realizing I needed 8MM. No problems since. You will not hear a misfire all of the time. just a slight stumble will set the light. I would start there, with the codes you have.

I wouldn't touch the heads yet unless you just want to spend money. I have seen a case where a slightly bent valve would throw those codes at WOT randomly, but start simple. No reason to do the heads unless you plan to do a full rebuild.

Chris told you correctly on the coolant level. There is a stem that looks like a plus sign right under the cap. Fill it to the top of that stem. That is the joke of a level indicator..

 

Thanks everyone....

My wife told me something as I was telling her about the light... She said she went to the store the night before and when she started it she didnt quite turn the ignition all of the way as she turned the key, but it still fired up.... (she said bad positioning of her hand or somethin??) she said it kind of stumbled as it fired up. I'm thinking because of the poor ignition at that particular start, it may have read that as a misfire and I didnt notice the light when I fired it up the next morning.

And yes, I always let it warm up at idle for a few mins. Habbit.