Thanks for the tips. Honestly, I'd rather not tear into her if I don't have to, I just need to pass smog in 3 weeks, and was really hoping the MAF and O2 sensors would do it, but no such luck. I can't seem to find any vacuum hoses leaking, but I'm not super familiar with anything other than older inline 6 Jeep engines, so there could be something I'm missing. Behind the alternator, in the area under the intake manifold I guess where the injectors are, is the area that gets the biggest rpm change when I spray the starter fluid around like suggested on here. That's what's making me think I have to do it...
To top it all off, it developed a coolant leak I finally tracked down to a tiny hairline crack in the bottom corner of the reservoir itself, so replaced all that today. While doing that, I noticed the black rubber on the spark plug wire boots looks kind of old, though don't really seem in bad shape, but thinking maybe I should try changing out the wires and maybe plugs too before doing the injectors and see if the small misfire and codes go away. No idea when the previous owner might have changed them?
I know, kind of just grasping at straws here, but it's getting close to the registration wire now.

 

Grab a can or carb/brake cleaner and while running spray underneath the upper manifold in different sections. If idle or sound changes you have injector leaks.

 

Thanks, that's what I did from the advice in my other thread, and I definitely get an RPM change when I spray behind the alternator and around the back of the manifold, so unfortunately sounds like I'll be doing them at some point. Hope it's not too crazy of a project.

One other thing I thought to try was the water in the spray bottle test last night after it got dark. Sure enough, I can see arcs out of several of the wires, so who knows how old they are and if the previous owner ever changed them.

I ordered a set of Kingsborne 8mm blue wires that were recommended on this forum, Bosch Platinum plugs and a new coil pack, and my friend who used to be a mechanic in the military is going to come over and give me a hand when the parts come in. I'm hoping that does enough to get the check engine lights off to pass smog, other wise it looks like I'll be doing injectors.
Unless anyone has a better idea to try before that?

 

Return those Bosch plugs and get NGKs or Champions. Hell, even the cheapo Autolites.

I wouldn't put Bosch plugs in any of my vehicles if someone gave them to me for free. Not worth the pain to change them.

 

100% true!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

That's crazy, I thought the Bosch platinum was O.E. for these Rovers? Maybe the site I was looking at had wrong info. I'll look around and see if any place around here has the correct NGK plugs then.
What could make the Bosch platinums so bad? Almost everything else on this Rover seems to be Bosch...

 

OEM are Champions.


The most important thing is to get double-platinum plugs, whatever brand.


I've had the double-platinum Champion RN11 PYP B4s (aka Champion 7070s) in my truck for 7-1/2 years and probably close to 60,000 miles and they've performed great. I'll probably replace them proactively later this year because the LR maintenance schedule specifies changing plugs every 60,000 miles.


The shop that worked on the truck a few times before I got back into wrenching put in copper Champions and they failed with only 13,000 miles on them. If you want to learn more about why double-platinum plugs are important Google "wasted spark" or search this forum.

 

Thanks, that’s great info! What’s the recommended NGK part number? I seem to come up with several different ones depending on where I look.
But if Champions are OEM then that should be plenty good as well, unless they are lower quality now (14 years later).