Well my 93 VR4 (120K) has been in storage for the winter in my attached garage. Started the car about a month ago and let it run for 5-10 minutes and then drove it down the street and back. Ran perfectly. Since then the car has been moved maybe 10 times and car starts and runs perfect. Last sunday I did an oil change 15W50 Mobil 1. Started the car and ran it, then checked the level. All fine no leaks and pressure was one click better than before the change. I then replaced the ground battery connector for a new one because it was bad and I couldn't tighten it any more. So last night I moved the car outside and it has a miss. At first I thought I might be able to clear it out by a quick rev or two. Nope, so I shut it off right away because I have heard gas contamination in synthetic oil is horrible. Tried starting the car a couple of times and still has the miss and might be getting slightly worse.

So now I need some help on what to start checking first. I will check the battery connections again and see if that could be it but I doubt it. Next I would think to check the ECU for leaking caps. If thats the case I probably have caps I need at home (I repair and restore old video games and pinball machines and replace caps all the time). From there what would be next? Power resistor?

Here I finally decide to put the car on the road for the summer and the night before the car acts up. This car has run flawlessly since I bought it and the time my friend owned it. I was going to take it on a trip to Appleton this Saturday to see my friend in a bodybuilding competition in Little Chute. If I can get it up and running tonight I might take it because I will have a few days of driving it before the long trip. If not I will keep it parked for a bit longer. CRAP!!!

Any help is greatly appreciated!!

Kyle

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93 3000 GT VR4

not really sure if it's the problem, but for 2 bucks a spark plug, 6 new NGK COPPERS will rule out your plugs.

you could also *mist* water on the plug wires at night to see if they are arcing. depending on how old the plug wires are...

I don't suppose you know which cylinder is miss firing?

I would definitely check the battery cables again, if that's the only thing you changed from before...

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First things first,
Can you tell which cylinder or cylinder's it is?
See if it's a bad wire or plug . Don't go for the big stuff so fast.
It could be a coil even. If it misses on 2 cylinders they could be on the same coil pack.
Ceck your vac lines could you have knocked something loose a little
when you did the battery??
Check that ground connection on the back side of the Plenum.
and on the fire wall right by the battery and Wiper motor.
All of these things are basic but if over looked could be your problem.
I always try to look at the ( old school way of assessment) spark
gas, fuel.
No spark or wrong spark ..... bad wire ,plug , coil , ect.
Just my .02
Tim

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Drive it around the block a few times and see if it goes away. Check your oil when you get back for gas contamination & replace it if it stinks of gas.

Oil has maybe 5 minutes on it. Oil was just changed and the engine run to make sure the pressure was there and the oil level was correct. Everything was fine. I don't want to run too long with the miss because I hate to contaminate the oil. Thats alot of $$ for synthetic oil down the drain. If that was the case I probably would never put synthetic oil in it ever again.

What is the best way to check and see what cylinder might be the problem? If after lunch it was still missing I planned on pulling the front plugs and see if any of them were culprit. Checking the rear plugs will take a lot longer. Is there any quick way to check and see if its one of the rear plugs by disconnecting a plug wire at the coil and see if it gets worse or stays the same?

I will check the battery connections again and if there are any vacuum line problems first.

As far as plug wires last time I looked at the paperwork I got with the car the plugs and wires were replaced 75K-80K miles. So worst case would be 45K on the plugs and wires.

Thanks
Kyle

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93 3000 GT VR4

For individual cylender checks, just unplug one wire at a time, then plug it back in. Don't purchase anything until you're sure it's the problem. 5 quarts of synthetic oil is cheeper than 6 plugs and wires...

My vote goes towards a fouled plug or sticky/dirty injector. If that's the case, driving the car around the block a few times will clear everything up. This kind of thing happens fairly often in cars that have been sitting a while.

Most people put platinum or iridium plugs in the 3/Ses because of the fact that the rear plugs are so damn hard to change. While these plugs tend to last longer, they also typically foul easier and don't self-clean as well.

The down side to coppers is they need to be changed much more frequently. If you do your own maintenance and don't mind spending an hour or so with your car every 10k, just run the cheaper copper plugs the next time you change them.

The plugs may clear up on a drive around the block though.

After your done, pull the dip stick and smell the oil. if it reeks of gas, just change it.

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Lunchtime update..... lucky for me I live only 3 miles from work and have a whole hour for lunch. Well I cleaned and checked all the battery connections. I also checked the ground strap to the plenum. So then the moment of truth.... I started it up and chug, chug, chug it didn't even want to idle. I gave it some gas and it would barely increase in RPM...just chug, chug.....so I turned it off. Black soot out of the tailpipe on to my garage door. It seems to be flooding out. I guess I will start by pulling the front plugs quick and see what I find. If they are fouled I guess I will pick up some new ones. How difficult is it to change the rear plugs? Do I need any replacement gaskets? Thanks for all your help and advice guys!!

Kyle

P.S. this really sucks big time. I guess now I'm learning why people trash talk about our cars being broken!!!

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93 3000 GT VR4

gaskets that should be replaced:

upper(plenum) to lower intake manifold gasket.

if you plan on taking off the throttle body, you'll need the throttle body to plenum gasket.

Also may want to pick up a spare EGR tube to plenum gasket, as even though you can re-use them, I always dropped and lost one of them...

It's maybe a bit more than an hours worth of work to change the plugs (for the first time, it gets easier). I did a write up on us3s.org. I'll go find the link if you want.

EDIT: link to spark plug change walk thru.
http://www.us3s.org/freeforum/showthread.php?t=5546

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TTANGEL,

Thanks for the link. Only problem is that I can't view any of the pictures because I'm not a member. Is there anyway you can email me the pictures from that article. My plan was to copy your pictures and print them out with the article but not being able to view them I'm kind of stuck. Thanks for all your help.

My personal email: klindstrom AT uplogon.com

My plan tonight will be to do a quick check on the front plugs and see what I find. I will also remove the ECU and check the caps. I know eventually they will need to be replace so I might as well do it if I have the needed caps on hand.

Kyle

P.S. If you could send the pictures I already downloaded your text. I would place the pictures in the document. I can then send it to you as a Word document or a .pdf. Review it to make sure its how you want it. That way you can email your article to people as a full document.

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93 3000 GT VR4

You can't view the pictures!!?!?!?!?

I never knew that... Did you sign up for the free membership, or were you just under guest?

I've long since cleared the pictures off my work computer... but I do have to make a business trip up to Marquette, Mi tommorrow.

are you anywhere near that?

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All the info I could find was that I had to join the U3S site for $10. If I can sign up for free then I would do that. If your driving from Green Bay you will drive right though Iron Mountain. My office is right downtown kiddie corner from Dominos pizza. My house is only a few miles away from there. What time to you think you will be passing through town? I kind of have flex hours so I can take off for a bit whenever I need to. If you had a few minutes to take a quick look at the car and point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated. Hell I'll buy you lunch or dinner depending when you come through. It would be nice to meet one of the guys from W3SI, that way when I show up to the next gathering at least I know someone.

Kyle Lindstrom

You can reach me through my regular email and I can give you my phone numbers: klindstrom AT uplogon DOT com.


EDIT: I just found out how to sign up for that site for free and now I can view the pictures!

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93 3000 GT VR4

Bunk,

Glad you got signed up. I was curious why other fre members commented on the pics.

Anywho, I'm leaving GB at 6am ish and I'll be in Marrunette (however you spell it.) for about 4~ish hours.

That puts me headed back early afternoon... I believe...

I can stop by either way really.

I PM'ed you my cell number.

I'll throw some tools in my car just incase you want me to stop by. If you do CALL ME, as I am leaving work in a few minutes, and will be out of interweb space...

I don't have it at home, as I believe that porn should only be viewed at work. At home, that's what your girlfriend is for. even if your married.

Adam

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Huge Thanks to Adam (TTAngel) for all his help. He stopped by yesterday and got me on track to solving the problem. He showed me a lot of stuff on the car so now I not as intimidated working on it. Parts will be on order today and hopefully it will be up and running early next week. Thanks again for all your help!!

Kyle

P.S. Now I just need to make it to one of the gatherings and meet the rest of the group.

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93 3000 GT VR4

I have met kyle in person, he's a good sh*t, and we CAN teach him the secret w3si hand shake and let in "offically" into the group.

P.S. guys, I'm still waiting to learn the hand shake...

_________________
Bad decisions make good stories.
Look at it! LOOK AT MY @SS AND TELL ME IT'S PRETTY!