ronemca
Well-Known Member
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- #1
* * EDIT 181007 * *
This thread rambles a bit. Initially I thought I had one problem with 2 or 3 different manifestations, but in the end I had two different issues that were solved with two completely different solutions. So - if you're interested in the more gnarly problem (which was WMI-related) - you should skip lightly over the first posts and pick it up at post #67.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Swapped in ACCEL coil packs & NGK's about 14 months ago. Car's been running fine with these parts for over a year. Tune file was installed prior to that, and has been rock solid.
The WMI system went on about 5 months ago and has been working perfectly.
About 30 days ago, I installed a UPR SCCC. At about the same time, the following issue appeared:
When the car's been sitting for a couple of hours or more and I start it up, it coughs a couple of times while idling. It actually idles smoothly in terms of RPM, but will suddenly make a single, dull thwop like hitting a rug with a stick. And if I sit there for another minute or so it will do that again. Once I begin to move gently, it will make that same noise about four more times at very low RPM over the course of just a few hundred feet of driving...then it will smooth right out. And from that point onward it runs strong & solid under all conditions until the next time I shut it off for awhile.
BUT...
If I pull away immediately after start-up, the car will hiccup & cough fairly dramatically for a few hundred feet, then smooth right out like nothing's wrong. This is at modest load - no heavy accel and very low speed.
So I swapped in the OE coils (which have very low mileage, btw). No difference.
The next day I pulled the Iridium's. They were black, so I changed them (carefully gapped to .028" - same as set #1 - as directed by tuner) No difference.
The next day I re-gapped NGK set #1 and re-installed them. No difference.
Today I plan to re-install the OE plugs.
Meanwhile, I'm wondering about that CC. What stumps me is that the problem is so short-lived. If there is a vacuum leak...how would it "heal itself" after just a few minutes of running?? And then return after the motor has cooled down a bit??
The other thing I'm wondering about is carbon tracking on plugs and/or coil boots. I plan to replace the boots (because it's easy & cheap) but I find it hard to believe that there could be carbon tracking on two sets of plugs.
FYI - a Ford scan tool has revealed two misfires on 2 cylinders during a 3-minute idle session (no movement of car)
The only thing that's changed in months & months is the installation of the CC -- and I acknowledge that the most recent or only change is typically the culprit in cases like this -- but I would like to understand the mechanics involved before blundering on too much farther.
I have very carefully examined the various vac hoses, IC piping, clamps, air filter housing etc. etc.. And I've pumped hundreds & hundreds of liters of 94OC fuel thru the car over the past year+. The car has < 20K km's on it, so I've discounted a dirty fuel filter as well as various other age-related possibilities. And the CC piping and the can itself appear fine. The fittings and the seal seem okay to the naked eye. It has been catching watery oil at about half a teaspoon/10 days since I installed it (and I assume the watery nature of the collection is a function of the "W" in the WMI injection)
This thread rambles a bit. Initially I thought I had one problem with 2 or 3 different manifestations, but in the end I had two different issues that were solved with two completely different solutions. So - if you're interested in the more gnarly problem (which was WMI-related) - you should skip lightly over the first posts and pick it up at post #67.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Swapped in ACCEL coil packs & NGK's about 14 months ago. Car's been running fine with these parts for over a year. Tune file was installed prior to that, and has been rock solid.
The WMI system went on about 5 months ago and has been working perfectly.
About 30 days ago, I installed a UPR SCCC. At about the same time, the following issue appeared:
When the car's been sitting for a couple of hours or more and I start it up, it coughs a couple of times while idling. It actually idles smoothly in terms of RPM, but will suddenly make a single, dull thwop like hitting a rug with a stick. And if I sit there for another minute or so it will do that again. Once I begin to move gently, it will make that same noise about four more times at very low RPM over the course of just a few hundred feet of driving...then it will smooth right out. And from that point onward it runs strong & solid under all conditions until the next time I shut it off for awhile.
BUT...
If I pull away immediately after start-up, the car will hiccup & cough fairly dramatically for a few hundred feet, then smooth right out like nothing's wrong. This is at modest load - no heavy accel and very low speed.
So I swapped in the OE coils (which have very low mileage, btw). No difference.
The next day I pulled the Iridium's. They were black, so I changed them (carefully gapped to .028" - same as set #1 - as directed by tuner) No difference.
The next day I re-gapped NGK set #1 and re-installed them. No difference.
Today I plan to re-install the OE plugs.
Meanwhile, I'm wondering about that CC. What stumps me is that the problem is so short-lived. If there is a vacuum leak...how would it "heal itself" after just a few minutes of running?? And then return after the motor has cooled down a bit??
The other thing I'm wondering about is carbon tracking on plugs and/or coil boots. I plan to replace the boots (because it's easy & cheap) but I find it hard to believe that there could be carbon tracking on two sets of plugs.
FYI - a Ford scan tool has revealed two misfires on 2 cylinders during a 3-minute idle session (no movement of car)
The only thing that's changed in months & months is the installation of the CC -- and I acknowledge that the most recent or only change is typically the culprit in cases like this -- but I would like to understand the mechanics involved before blundering on too much farther.
I have very carefully examined the various vac hoses, IC piping, clamps, air filter housing etc. etc.. And I've pumped hundreds & hundreds of liters of 94OC fuel thru the car over the past year+. The car has < 20K km's on it, so I've discounted a dirty fuel filter as well as various other age-related possibilities. And the CC piping and the can itself appear fine. The fittings and the seal seem okay to the naked eye. It has been catching watery oil at about half a teaspoon/10 days since I installed it (and I assume the watery nature of the collection is a function of the "W" in the WMI injection)
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