[Jmsully]

A week ago,I had my CTS's valve cover gaskets replaced, as well as the spark plugs since it was right there. I got the car back, and on the way home, it started to misfire. It was misfiring on 1, 2, and 4. Fast forward to now, I have replaced all 6 of the coil pack boots (three of the six old ones were severely torn) and I now have a misfire in only #6. The CEL will blink then disappear. Then the misfire will straighten out to the point where it happens at the same time every time, like the computer is correcting it. Immediately after I clear the codes, the misfire is going off randomly. The next step is to swap the coil packs to test if the misfire swaps sides, correct? Is there something to test before that? Thanks!

I should add that I do have an appointment with the mechanic on Tuesday, but I am trying to fix the problem in the meantime.

 

[Kingoftypos]

Exactly, swap the coil packs between the sides. If it follows, then it's something on the coil pack. If it stays, then it could be the spark plug or fuel in injector. Most likely the spark plug as this started right after the change.

KOT

 

[jran0823]

Can't swap coils from side to side on 3.2, check the spark plug on 6 to see how it's burning. When the coils fail on the 3.2 you get a bank that misfires. Could be an injector or defective spark plug.

 

[Jmsully]

Can't swap coils from side to side on 3.2, check the spark plug on 6 to see how it's burning. When the coils fail on the 3.2 you get a bank that misfires. Could be an injector or defective spark plug.

Are you sure about that? When I got my CTS, the coil packs on the passenger side is labeled 2-4-6 and the drivers side is labeled 1-3-5. It appears they they have been swapped for a while. I will be checking the spark plug tomorrow, as it is a very good possibility that is the case. When the valve cover gaskets were replaced, my mechanic said a lot of oil flooded into my coil pack area, so the spark plug may be dirty/ruined. Thanks for the input!

 

[jran0823]

When I had mine apart the plugs are just a little bit different. Either way when a coil fails you'll have an entire bank that misses, not just one cylinder.

 

[Jmsully]

Well, on my trip home from the university, my CEL came on again. I pulled up the codes, and I now have a misfire in #4 and #6. I believe this is showing signs of a bad coil pack. I know when we removed them, my dad said there were hairline cracks in the ignition coils, but he said it was fine. Was he correct? So as of right now, I'm looking at either a bad coil pack or possibly my car rejecting non-OEM spark plugs?