Hey all. What is the best way to test to be sure i have spark at each cylinder? I have a basic spark plug tester but it doesnt work on my LR2 of course. Thanks.

 

If you suspect an ignition issue and lack of spark, the computer will tell you but you need a reader that can read all the LR2-specific codes from the appropriate modules.

 

I've had this on my Amazon Wish List for a while. Any reason this would not work with the LR2?

 

I think this will only tell you if the coil is working, not if there is a spark out the business end of the plug.

 

This is true. But you should be able to visually inspect the plug and *most likely* determine it's viability. That's not 100% but it's unlikely that a plug would be bad and not have an visually observable anomalies. Google is your friend on plug condition.

You could also use the tester to check the coils for spark and just replace the plugs to eliminate a plug problem.

A basic scan tool should read misfires IIRC. If you have a misfire I'd swap coils and see if the problem follows a coil. If not, try that with plugs, or just replace them. If the misfire still stays with the same cylinder then you have an injector or valve problem. Compression check will easily show a valve problem that's bad enough to cause misfires.

You can also swap injectors to see what happens.

 

You could also do the finger test, if you're looking for an anesthetic.

 

Are you having Misfires? Which Cylinders what are the codes?

I posted this on FREEL2 but I will share it here as well

Note: I used a diagnostic tool that will read Mode $06 data (Autel AL539B but many tools have this capability)




EWMA = Exponential Weight Moving Average (This is effectively the average for the last 10 times you starter the engine)

Last = The most recent time you used the engine (if you check the data before you start the engine it is the number of misfires from the last time you started the engine and it resets to zero as soon as you start the engine)


Here is my data for the LR2 that I collected before starting the engine

Cylinder..........EWMA (counts)..........Last (counts)..........

Cylinder #1..............0.........................0....... ...
Cylinder #2..............0.........................0....... ...
Cylinder #3..............0.........................1....... ..
Cylinder #4..............1.........................3....... ...
Cylinder #5..............1.........................0....... ...
Cylinder #6..............1.........................1....... ..

These are obviously very low misfire counts.

However it is interesting to note that cylinder 4, 5 and 6 have more misfires than cylinder 1, 2, 3. The PCV routes the blow by gases to cylinder 6 then 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. So if any oil gets by the Valve it will tend to affect cylinder 6, 5, 4 more than 3, 2, 1

I did replace my PCV around 100,000 miles and looking at this data I am glad I did.

This is so much better than waiting for things to get so bad that the CHECK ENGINE LIGHT comes on.


By definition the LIGHT is too late.

I want to be proactive not reactive.


Here is the link https://www.freel2.com/forum/topic37689.html


Good luck

Paul


PS I did like the Sparkplug test tool but as other have pointed out it won't confirm that your sparkplug is actually getting a spark