Robert Henriksen

My car just got back from THREE MONTHS at my mechanic's for a chronic CEL problem. I was going out of town for a week of vacation in June, and thought I'd be really clever, leave it with him for the whole week; come back into town & pick it up, problem solved! Three months later, hey -- at least I haven't gotten the light to come on yet.

I was getting the same fault codes as a number of other people: multiple misfires on multiple cylinders. Three and a half years ago when the problem first arose (during my first DE in February '00) there were misfires on two, maybe three cylinders. This summer it was up to four or five cylinders. The CEL would only illuminate if I cruised at 3,200 rpm or higher for at least a minute or two. I could rev it higher, redline it, no problem -- just no sustained cruising at that RPM range. After two or three start/stop cycles, the light would go out by itself - no reset required.

While I don't think I've got an absolutely comprehensive list of things he tried, one unfortunate thing is that he tried so many different fixes that he's really not sure what ultimately fixed the problem. One thing that stands out to me is that he discovered a failed checkvalve between the intake manifold & the oil sump. I didn't know there was such a thing, but it had stuck open. When the oil in the sump got fully warmed up & expanded, oil was being drawn into the intake! They removed the intake manifold & spent a lot of time cleaning it, and dumping fuel injector cleaner down the intake ports of the heads, cleaning it up as best they could without removing the heads themselves.

They tried swapping the DME, checked/cleaned the fuel injectors, the distributor caps & rotors, spark plugs & wires. I don't have the invoice in front of me; when I get back to my office I'll add whatever else was listed there.

Whether the oil problem was the culprit or not, I'm relieved that that problem was found & fixed. That didn't sound like it was helping anything, that's for sure. Don't ask me where to find the checkvalve, I was nowhere near when that work was being done. If some has the appropriate diagrams, I'd certainly be interested to see.

I plan on adding a large Techron to the next several tankfulls of gas to try & help with the oil cleanup. Not sure if that's going to help, but I'd say it's chicken soup for the motor.

Hope this helps someone.

RNH

dp2boy

Robert, if you don't mind can you PM me with the name of your mechanic. I'm not up on who is doing independant work in the Houston area. Thanks.

Matt Vaughan

Joel, it's Mike Callas, Rennsport in Sealy: 800-631-7304.

911-TOUR

Wow Robert! I didn't realize that your car had been up there that long (I'd seen it several times when I was up chatting with Mike)

Let's cross our fingers and hope that solved it !!!

My car's currently up there for some minor work (oil-change, motor mounts, brakes) since I was going to be out of town for a week...let's hope it doesn't turn into 3 months

Once everyone's cars are in order we need to get everyone together for a nice fall drive !

cheers,

sean

poorb0yw

Happy to hear its back.

Any news in the SRF front?

Robert Henriksen

Not since I went to the Hallett race a few weeks ago. Next race will probably be the October ~23rd race back at Hallett.

DJF1

Yeah...while I'm away...

poorb0yw

When are you returning this time Danny? My car will be in and out of service at random intervals these next few months.

GrantG

Was the car's performance affected by whatever was triggering the CEL? Is this just a matter of annoyance and passign emmissions or does the motor run noticeably worse when displaying these fault codes?

cfdarch

Robert

Glad to hear there may be an answer. Is this the check value you refer to?? PN#930 110 667 01??? As I have your CEL symptoms and I have a 60k service scheduled for Wednesday I'd love to give my mechanic a heads-up. Thanks in advance

Robert Henriksen

I couldn't tell a difference, for whatever that's worth. I never tried to pass emissions while the CEL was on, and they never mentioned anything to me about fault codes when it went in for testing. It was an annoyance, more so for the fact that I don't want to lug the engine. I'd much rather be able to cruise at > 3k so as to reduce the chance of building up carbon deposits.

Robert Henriksen

I've emailed Mike, if I don't hear from him in a day or two I'll give him a call for that part #.

Robert Henriksen

Well, so much for knocking on wood - light came back on last night.

The difference last night was that I left the house & then spent a good 15 minutes sitting in stop & go traffic. When traffic let up & I was able to cruise at ~3,400, up popped the light w/in a few minutes.

Bleah.

poorb0yw