Guest Copper81 Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 My 88 had the Mavnavox coil pack and was getting an E048 (misfire code) and found some light goo upon removal of the coil pack. I went to the U-Pull-It and got the Delco pack from a 1994 Park Avenue Ultra. I swapped the pack out, reinstalled the plug wires making sure they were connected properly (plug 6 to coil connection 6, etc) but now it runs terrible ... No power, idle is rough, struggles to get to 45 mph. I have no error codes with the new pack. I put a spark checker between each plug wire and coil and the spark tester lights up (indicates that the coil is giving out a spark). Before the coil pack swap, the car ran much better but would occassionally stumble at lower speeds but now the car has no power at all speeds and idles very rough. I did searches but found nothing that really helped. I am stumped and looking for suggestions from the excellent source of Reatta knowledge here. Thanks for the help in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 Are you sure you put the correct wires on the correct coils? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Copper81 Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 I used the following link that shows the delco col arrangement ... autorepair.about.com/library/firing_orders/bl-fo-9000.htm. If this is not correct, please let me know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Copper81 Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 To try to make it clear on the way I coonected the plug wires, the #6 cylinder is connected to the coil marked with #6 an so on. This assumes that the even cylinders are along the firewall with # 2 on the right (passenger side) and #6 on the left (driver side). #1 cylinder is on the right (passenger side) and #5 is on the left (driver side). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 The link you provided seems to show the correct firing order. The problem you describe sounds like crossed spark plug wires, Have you traced the wires all the way from the spark plug to where they connect to the coils? ... or are you relying on marks on the wires? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Copper81 Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 I traced out each wire from the coil to the cylinder. The connections all seem correct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 I traced out each wire from the coil to the cylinder. The connections all seem correct.If the spark plug wires are correct, then the only logical conclusion I can come to is you got bad parts from the salvage yard. Padgett's 50% rule applies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-a-n-i-e-l Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 My 88 had the Mavnavox coil pack and was getting an E048 (misfire code) and found some light goo upon removal of the coil pack. I went to the U-Pull-It and got the Delco pack from a 1994 Park Avenue Ultra. I swapped the pack out, reinstalled the plug wires making sure they were connected properly (plug 6 to coil connection 6, etc) but now it runs terrible ... No power, idle is rough, struggles to get to 45 mph. I have no error codes with the new pack. I put a spark checker between each plug wire and coil and the spark tester lights up (indicates that the coil is giving out a spark). Before the coil pack swap, the car ran much better but would occassionally stumble at lower speeds but now the car has no power at all speeds and idles very rough. I did searches but found nothing that really helped. I am stumped and looking for suggestions from the excellent source of Reatta knowledge here. Thanks for the help in advance.Let's start with the reason you swapped the packs. Code E048. I do not believe any one has verified that the new packs have the same sensing as the old ones. This means there is no way to know if the pack will throw a code in our computers. Now for the code being misfire. Did you replace the wires? plugs? If not I would start there. ($50 is well worth it and if it has not been done in a while it can not hurt) I think if you update the wires your issue may go away. The old coil pack is not as strong as the newer ones. This means to me that if you did have a leakage current on the old one the new one most likey finished it off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-a-n-i-e-l Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 also check you grounds. Make sure it is bolted tight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Copper81 Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 Thanks for your suggestions, very much appreciated. I forgot to mention in my initial post on this problem that I had replaced the plugs and wires about 5 months ago. One thing I have not done (which I just remembered from Padgett's coil pack write-up) is to regap the plugs from .035 to .060. Aside from having picked up some bad parts from the junkyard, do you think the smaller gap (.035) could be causing the engine to have this lack of power? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 (edited) I don't believe the gap is the problem. If you have your plugs gapped at .035" you might want to change it but I doubt it is causing the problem you describe.EDIT: I should have said Padgett likes .045" with the Magnavox system. I agree Edited May 28, 2012 by Ronnie (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 Daniel has a good point about grounds. The ICM grounds through the base plate that it is mounted on. Did you clean the base plate and the back side of the ICM where it mates to the base plate? They both must be clean... NO paint. Also be sure you don't have two gaskets in the ICM connector preventing it from going in deep enough to make a good connection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jimmyk Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 Are you sure that you installed the coils in the correct positions? The Delco coils can be installed out of order and then you will have no spark at the cylinder at the proper timing. Could it be that the coils were out of order on the jucnked car and you followed that order when installing them on the ICM?If the lack of power is characterized by shaking, misfiring, bucking, then this could be your problem. If the engine is running smoothly, but no power, like the car is pulling a trailer, then more likely the salvage parts are bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Copper81 Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 When I installed the new ICM and coils, I sanded the mounting plate surface as we as the under side of the ICM so that both surfaces were clean and smooth. There had been some white colored corrosion beforehand and the sanding took care of that. I tightened the three mounting bolts very snug. I also checked that there was not an extra weather seal gasket in the ICM connector. I cleaned the connector with some contact spray before attaching it to the ICM also. I will check the gap on the plugs and regap as necessary. Also, I am starting to wonder if I may have damaged a plug wire while disconnecting the old coil, I will check that too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mc_Reatta Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 I do not believe any one has verified that the new packs have the same sensing as the old ones. This means there is no way to know if the pack will throw a code in our computers. Interesting thing about code E048 ... It doesn't even look at the ICM, coils, or any secondary ignition components.It triggers when the O2 sensor registers too many cross counts (over 21) when engine is running under specific operating parameters. (TPS, speed, and rpms)So changing to the Delco ICM and coils won't have any effect on the ability of the ECM throwing code E048.I'd vote for a bad Delco unit from the yard since your confident the wires are installed correctly. Hopefully you got a few days warranty with the ICM and can swap it out for another. Once you sort it out, if E048 remains, check out O2 sensor for operating proper range. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 I tried 3 different delco icm and coil combos. I spent 3 days traveling to the closest junk yard (20 miles away) And my car still ran rough.New plugs and wires didn't affect it either. Since the delco seems to some here to be a gift from God, I was told that I must have another problem. Ended up leaving it as is which lead to a clogged cat ($250 to replace). In the end, I swapped a used magnavox from a parts car onto my car and it has run flawlessly ever since (8 months and counting)I've heard several other people have equally bad luck with the delcosMoral of the story: I don't really care what anybody says, or some "50% rule", stick with original equipment and save the headaches. Go find a nice magnavox and be done with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 ... Since the delco seems to some here to be a gift from God, I was told that I must have another problem...I must've had another problem too or I must not be living right. Mine wasn't a gift from God. I had to pay the junk yard $35.00 for my Delco. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 One thing is that the Delcos are more powerful so anything marginal (plug wires - I use 8mm, or plugs - I use Delco Rapidfires #14 gapped .060) could cause it to run worse. I have had some failures most of which I think stemmed from improper seating & a few (2 or 3) bad coils but have only had one Delco ICM fail since 2001 and several Reattae - all three here now have Delcos.BTW coils can get swapped so need to make sure they are numbered correctly, 3-6 on the firewall end, then 2-5, and 1-4 on the radiator (connector) end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Copper81 Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 I wanted to get back on thisproblem and not leave it hanging. I was able to dig into this finally and got the ICM tested at Autozone. The module checked good so I reinstalled it and rechecked the plugs and plug wires. In doing that, I found a bad wire, replaced it, and now it runs nice and smooth!! Thanks for all the input and suggestions. As always, the people on this forum are THE BEST! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 89Reatta Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 Spark plug cable or other wire? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Copper81 Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 It was a spark plug wire that was causing the problem. It was basically a dead wire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 One of these could have saved you a lot of time troubleshooting. Every mechanic should have one of these, or something similar, in their toolbox. They are available in the Tools & Test Equipment category of The Reatta Store.Lisle 19380 Spark Tester - $7.25 as of 5/31/12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 89Reatta Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 Glad u got it fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BobbyBubba Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 Umm... Any mention- of new Heatsink Compound (Arctic Silver or equivalent) under ICM?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Copper81 Posted June 2, 2012 Share Posted June 2, 2012 I was considering putting some heat sink compound under the ICM, figured that it probably wouldn't hurt, but didn't have any in the garage. Will the heat from the engine compartment cause the heat sink compound to just turn to liquid though? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 2, 2012 Share Posted June 2, 2012 I wouldn't use a heat sink compound unless it is a good conductor. Normally the bottom of the module and the mounting plate should be clean. I believe it is used to ground the ICM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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