Talk me off the ledge.....
 

So, I'd consider myself a fairly experienced (emotionally and physically) Rover Owner. I have a 2006 I got w 29K on it and we're now @173K.

So, we'll skip the history lesson beyond that and fast forward to 5 days ago when I decided it was time for new tires. I got some cooper zeon LTZ which is the first 19' tires on this thing that I've seen that has good reviews and a meaty stance. I took it to my local tire shop/mechanic who seem to be stand-up dudes.

My driver window wasn't rolling down as well, so I also took a stab and asked them if they'd take a look at the regulator. They obliged.

Well - they purchased a regulator, put it in, to tell me it was the switch, and that they couldn't return the regulator. They put the switch in for "no extra charge", but the tally of tires, a regulator, a switch, and an alignment was just over 2k.

NONE of that is really the issue; but when I went to pick it up after hours, check engine light on. NOT happy. I called first thing this morning and asked the guy if the tech noted that the check engine light was on.

He referenced notes and came back and said "Was it on in the lot?". I responded "yes", to which he then responded "Was it running rough or bucking", to which I thought "WHAT THE F***". What a suggestive response, I thought.

Here is the thing: It is not. It's running fine, actually. My issues is i got the car back with a check engine light on and it bothers me. It seems they did "something" and are skirting the issue. And after some time to think about it, it's clear he knows "Something" happened. Why would he respond in that fashion? a Check engine light could mean ANYTHING on this vehicle.

So - he says "Come down and we'll read the codes". I go to Autozone and have the codes pulled for my own unbiased need for FACT.

I'm at the "zone". The Girl at starts rattling off misfires on, several cylinders. More than I could write down. I make small talk with the girl and I explain the situation. She's like " Makes no sense" since they wouldn't really need to be under the hood for any of that work you had done". Sounds like you need plugs, coils, wires, (and she keeps going)", but by know, I'm ignoring her, but yeah; what she says make sense.

So- here I am, with a rover with a bunch of codes, a check engine light, that's running just fine. Any thoughts as to....what may have inspired this?

The ONLY thing I can think of; I noticed mud on my rear tire well. I gotta wonder if they decided to test my tires in a mud pit and did something stupid. But, I admit that's a reach.

Do i go back and make a stink or just wait until i get to my indy to clear the codes?

Sorry for the painful post. Your opinion is ALWAYS appreciated. Tires look great; but the wind is out of my sails due to the engine light.

Pull the throttle body off and clean it very well on both sides of the throttle plate. Clean MAF with CRC cleaner and disconnect battery cable from both terminals and jump a piece of 12 gauge wire between the battery cables (not terminals on the battery). This is a quick and dirty way to force the ECU to learn again. Finish it off with a tank of 93 and bottle of sea foam.

It might be worthwhile to see if u can loan the scanner for the day or just buy one and log your misfire counts and fuel trims. At least this way you can diagnose from a clean slate

I bought my rig with CEL on and after the dealer dumped a new MAF and PCV Valve into it with any change in behavior I did the above and have been CEL free for 1000+ miles now.

Hope u get it sorted and the shop owns up to any mistake on their end.

....better yet, make THEM do all that!

Boulderhead: Didn't clean the MAF/Throttle - Had done that NOT long ago (Which helped with an idling issue) but I did take your recommendation with the jumping the terminal wires.. (Not the battery, as you clearly mention). I had heard of this prior to your response, but was always worried about disconnecting the battery on this thing as I've heard stories of battery swaps gone wrong; and trucks not restarting after they've been completely stripped of power. (Even when I change battery I had been jumping the wires to my 12v charger).

TO make a long story short; did what you said. Check Engine light gone. Thanks.... appreciated. Guess I should just pretend it didn't happen and pray that these guys didn't do any damage.

Let us know how things look after about 100 miles. You cleared all the memory so the modules will take some time to trigger a fault again if there is a real problem. If you are clear after 100 miles, I would put it in the past and scratch that shop of your list for any future business. Hope it works out!

I'm amazed that you've driven 150k miles and this is the first time you've had your rover act up on you if anyone else touches it? :D

Hell, I let my wife drive it ONE time, she comes back and tells me the radio isn't working at all. She turned it off, back on, could not get it to work. I hop in, fire her up - radio works perfectly. It's never done it again. My wife is not amused...

I too would suggest the throttle body cleaning -- I was surprised by how little mine was dirty, yet caused me lots of grief.

Dave

The hits keep coming
 

So after looking for years I bought my first LR3 with 161K on it.


I bought it form a dealer that did not have any experience with Rovers and sold me the rig with the caveat that it needed a head gasket or a new engine. Well after doing a ton of research and deciding to find an indie shop to take a look, the rough running was the PCV valve. That took care of the engine issue. So with an oil change, a used coil and a new PCV valve my bill was up to 300.00. I was told whatever work was needed would be discounted by this amount on the cumulative bill. So I wasn't ready to freak out. I know I could have done these things myself for a quarter of the price.


Fast forward to the owner getting back to me with a 5K punch list, I agree to have 3K worth of work done to get her back up to speed. I saw the place, the guy (owner) knows his stuff and I will give him the business thinking he helped me dodge a new engine bullet. Still not a big deal. I knew the EPB actuator needed help because the lights were on the dash and I tried to trouble shoot the lever on the console to no avail. In MA you need to have all that stuff good to go for inspection.
After a month being in the shop, I was told the tech let the battery drain down and then the immobilizer would not let the car start after the battery was recharged. Then I get the story that the wiring in the car is all f-ed up and that is the problem. Fast forward two weeks ago, I am told I need a new chassis harness for the EPB because the PO had some hacks who f-ed up the connector probably doing a quickie fix somewhere. I bought the harness for a quarter of the retail LR cost. Still not pissed yet. Then they tell me that there was a TSB which stats there is a problem replacing the EBP module and tell me the harness is not what they need. I try to return it to Roverland Parts and Robert wont take it back even though he told me he would "make it right". (D!@K). Never ordering from them again. So then I am told the other parts are not what they needed for a supposed TSB that I looked on the internet for an could not find and now they will use the wiring loom but cut it up and use the end. Meanwhile I could have ordered a pigtail for 95.00 instead of 275.00. Still not pissed yet.
Here is the kicker. I feel like either they F-ed up the rig and can't fix it or don't know how. The EBP should be a plug in play and even if the connector is fubar wouldn't you be able to get a diagram and fix it right? I gave them the business thinking I would have to do the repairs anyway and now that the original issue it was there for is fixed (rough running engine) this LR is sitting on a lift for over a month.
I have done tons of repairs myself in the past and I am smart enough to figure things out if I don't know. Internet, research etc. I went down there and talked to the tech / service guy in Malden, MA and they were all confident that things would be wrapped up.
Right now I feel like the rig is being held hostage. No progress is being made, school is out, wife is at home with two kids, truck there over a month and I already paid 2K to the bill because they called and asked me to pay some of the bill because of a cash flow issue with payroll coming up. I work with small businesses all the time being a CPA so I was not overly alarmed about it.


Now I am loosing sleep and every other day I call and I have been told it will be ready today for the last two weeks.


I'm almost at a point were I want to go there ask for the work write up, demand a walk through, and just have them put the wheels on it and take it away. So frustrating. Now I'm pissed.

I had a 08 sport s/c with 60,000 hard miles on my lift last and this week.
It cost Me nearly a weeks pay as it fell apart while i was fixing it..
What roof are we meeting at???

where in malden might this wizz be?

Matt, what you have effectively done is reset the the adaptive fuel trims. hopefully you'll be ok. As far as the shop messing with something, i really doubt it. I've had vehicles come into the shop for just an oil change and had them not make it off the lot without the cel illuminating. All it takes is a loose oil filler neck to flag a lean condition, the fault may have been pending but taking the oil cap off and putting it back on may disturb it enough to cause the vacuum leak to be greater than what it already was. As for misfires, well they're misfires they happen when they happen they may or may not have been current faults. clearing the codes, resetting the adaptions and then rechecking is always a good idea when you're in doubt. One tech has no idea how many different techs have worked on your truck, let alone all the problems you've had with it.

All the best to you and Your LR3