I changed all the wires and plugs out and get the same error P0302 error code. I drove it around a bit and the error code kept coming up. It's not running horribly rough… but noticeably rough. It is parked.

I did swap 1 and 2 wires before changing the set. Everything was well seated and I got the same rough idle and P0302 code.

I'll try having a look at it in darkness for any arcs.

 

And pull plug to look for signs of coolant leak steam cleaning. You can also get a dye to put in coolant that will show up as flecks of color on plugs. The rear and the front cylinders are most prone to head gasket leak. A head gasket sealer like KSeal or Irontite may buy you some time.

 

When I pulled the plugs I labeled what cylinder they came from. I was planning to take photos and post but I left them on the front seat of the truck, which is a couple of miles away at the motorhome storage yard.. I had a training session this weekend and needed wheels and a bed.

The plugs looked good. Light tan / brown in colour. The #2 plug smelt of gas and had some black carbon buildup on the side of the ground electrode ( but not near the spark point). Next to it, the #4 cylinder had a slight bit of black buildup in the same spot. As I recall, all the other plugs had no build up.

What signs on the plug would indicate exposure to coolant?

 

steam cleaned

 

None of them looked steam cleaned. I suppose I could get a test kit to check for combustion gasses or a dye kit. Is there any other ways to test for this? I don't smell 'sweet' in the exhaust.

If it is not a head gasket leaking coolant, what other possibilities could it be?
Gas, Air, Spark.

Could it be something as simple as a clogged fuel delivery system? I did put a fair bit of 'camp' gas into the tank this winter. Would it hurt to get something to clean it out, and if so what?

Can single injectors go bad?
I read through some Head Gasket replacement threads and don't think that I'm willing to take on that project. What range of price could I expect a rover shop to do a head gasket job for? Why am I asking you this? I will call them.

Right now they are booked up for at least 2 weeks.

 

-Yes, you can touch it to the block
-No, you did not damage it with only 7 cylinders running.
-Fuel delivery...it's possible, but I'd say coils are more likely
-Yes, replace wires...all of them w/8mm silicone (should be able to find universals w/45 deg boot at any parts store)!
-Sincerely doubt that 1 cylinder is overheating.

 

HG jobs are usually parts + mark up + machine shop + mark up + 12 hours labor + shop fee + environmental fee +

 

Put that dough towards a top hat long block!!!

 

Hold on a second! Maybe I should try something else before swapping engines!

I'm going to go ahead and replace the coils and upgrade my new plug wires to some 8mm STI wires. I don't want those skinny NGKs biting me in the **** down the road.

I was planning some fluid changes and a coolant flush and I might as well do the Seafoam thing too.

Then after doing all that, I'll do the head gasket and right after that I might as well get another engine on the way and swap the whole thing out.

 

I have my truck back in the driveway now. I did the sea foam thing today. Fun!

Being a long weekend, it was the probably not the best day to do this. Horror and anger seemed to be the look on most faces as I sped the heck out of my neighborhood. I smiled and waved!

I did it just like Disco Mike instructs. It took about a minute for a full can. The exhaust was just starting to go white as I shut off the engine. I did not put any Sea Foam into my gas tank, as I already put some other stuff in there. I was trying to fing BG 44 but could not. I put a product called "Kleen -flo Injector Cleaner"

I got no P0302 codes while I was fogging out the Sea Foam, but I dida short tome after the fog was gone. I think it ran a little less rough... But that's probably just me.

I set a page on my Ultra Guage to show the four 02 sensors.
Except for Bank 2 02 1, the Guage shows 0.800 on average (under load), with a little bouncing around. Bank 2 02 1 sometimes matches the other sensor values, but half the time it dropped to around 0.003 and hangs out way down there for a while.

Can somebody please tell me the significance of this?

What other sensors available to me might help me (I mean you) diagnose my problem?


I'm going to look for arcing in the dark tonight.
I will replace these NGK plug wires for something known and better fitting tomorrow. I'm also doing a very thourough coolant flush ( got lots of beer and am hoping for sun!).

I'm also going to do oil change tomorrow or the next day. Should I put a detergent in my oil and run it a bit before a change?





The other day I