Q: Cylinder #2 Not Firing (1997 Ford Mustang, V6, 3.8L)

External Since: Jan 19, 2008 Posts: 4

1997 Ford Mustang, V6, 3.8L
- Car has lost power and engine is running rougher.
- Autozone diagnosed that cylinder 2 wasn't firing.
- Removed #2 spark plug wire from ignition module, held close to
module and no spark.
- Swapped #2 & #6 wires and #2 wire was okay.
- Cleaned and regapped #2 spark plug - didn't fix problem.
- Tested #2 plug by swapping #2 & #6 wires at ignition module and saw
a spark from #2 engine cylinder to #6 ignition module.
- Measured primary & secondary resistance on ignition module and they
were within specificaiton.
- Question1: what are possible causes of no spark from ignition coil
for cylinder #2 and how can I troubleshoot? Could it be a sensor or
computer problem?
- Question2: can I check ignition wires by measuring resistance with
an ohm meter?
- Comments: spark plugs need to be replaced but I don't think this is
the issue.

Thanks for your help,
Tony

External Since: Jan 19, 2008 Posts: 4

On Jan 20, 8:26 am, "Bob Bailin" <72027.3....TakeThisOut@compuserve.com> wrote:
> "Tony" <inbox....TakeThisOut@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>
> news:8d20aa94-0320-4f6e-b6d3-78146029e00a@h11g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
>
>
>
>
>
> > 1997 Ford Mustang, V6, 3.8L
> > - Car has lost power and engine is running rougher.
> > - Autozone diagnosed that cylinder 2 wasn't firing.
> > - Removed #2 spark plug wire from ignition module, held close to
> > module and no spark.
> > - Swapped #2 & #6 wires and #2 wire was okay.
> > - Cleaned and regapped #2 spark plug - didn't fix problem.
> > - Tested #2 plug by swapping #2 & #6 wires at ignition module and saw
> > a spark from #2 engine cylinder to #6 ignition module.
> > - Measured primary & secondary resistance on ignition module and they
> > were within specificaiton.
> > - Question1: what are possible causes of no spark from ignition coil
> > for cylinder #2 and how can I troubleshoot? Could it be a sensor or
> > computer problem?
> > - Question2: can I check ignition wires by measuring resistance with
> > an ohm meter?
> > - Comments: spark plugs need to be replaced but I don't think this is
> > the issue.
>
> > Thanks for your help,
> > Tony
>
> From your thorough diagnosis of the plug wires and the spark plugs,
> the next most likely part to be failing is the coil pack (ignition module)
> itself. It's not horribly expensive and fairly easy to replace. Probably
> less expensive than going to a mechanic and having the car put on
> their diagnostic system to confirm a bad coil pack.
>
> You can check plug wire resistance with an ohmmeter, but you've
> already proven that the #2 wire is adequate because it works when
> connected to #6.
>
> You should change the plugs after fixing this problem. The worn
> plugs aren't the source of the problem, but they do contribute to it.
>
> Bob- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Hello Bob,

Thanks for the advice. Once concern I have about changing the coil
pack is that when I measure the primary and secondary coil resistance,
they were in specification. Is there anything in the coil pack other
than the coil windings, like electronics?

Any thoughts on the ignition control module being the culprit? And,
is this something I can troubleshoot myself?

Thanks again for your help.

Tony