Sorry, Iggy, not sure how I got it in my mind that the oil pressure light was coming on. If it is throwing a code (CEL on), then it’s not a motor mount. I’d still be inclined to think it’s a engine skip or the ATF issue mentioned above.
I had the exact same symptoms on my 2004 Chevy Impala. After it warmed up it would shake and miss until it hit around 2500 rpms then it would run smooth. In my case it turned out that one of the coil packs was bad. I bought a new one for about 30 bucks and my problem was solved.
This may not be the best way to diagnose the problem but the way I did it was too start the car and let it warm up until it started missing. Then you uunhooked one spark plug wire at a time. You know you have found the defective wire, coil, or spark plug when you unhook one and it doesn’t make a difference on how the engine runs. If you try this be very careful. If you accidentally touch or get too close to the end of the wire it will give you a nasty shock.
Spoke to the mechanic briefly today. When the engine was swapped out the coil pack were moved over but he swapped out the plug wiresfor the other two cylinders because he said they were leaking.
We’re going to switch plug wires again, hopefully tomorrow, and see if that fixes it.
Well, swapping plugs didn’t really help. It is actually a plug in wire combo. The auto parts stores in my little island (Grand Cayman) didn’t have the coil heads. I’ve ordered two coils to pick up in the States when I visit in early April and I’ll give that a try.
I can tell yah what was skakin’ in Rosanna’s Daddy’s car…
It’s fixed. Well, *that *problem is fixed. The car has many other problems, but this is a small victory.
For anyone still following along, or those who may stumble upon this trying to diagnose their own difficulties here is how the problem was isolated.
- With engine running pull out the plug/coil from each cylinder. Seems like a misfire at #2 cylinder (which has a coil + boot).
- Replaced the two spark plug wires and the two ignition coil boots. Still shakes.
- Swap the coils between cylinder #2 & #4. Still misfiring at cylinder #2. Does not misfire when coil is pulled from cylinder #4 - instead the engine dies. So the it doesn’t seem to be an issue with the coils. Start to think about fuel injectors.
- Check electrical connector for fuel injector at cylinder #2. Lo and behold, connection is faulty.
- Cut off old fuel injector electrical connector. Splice in a new junkyard connector. Pretty up the connection with a heat gun and shrink tubing. Done. Runs nice.
Now I just have to figure out why the cooling fan is not coming on for the radiator. Starting to overheat sitting in traffic. I do *very *little driving in stop-and-go conditions, so this may have been happening for some time now.
Time to check thermostat and wiring and perhaps the motor for the fan. Sigh.
First thing to test for a non-functioning radiator is its fuse, second thing to test is its relay.
The thermostat is a mechanical device and doesn’t have wiring. Perhaps you’re thinking of the coolant temperature sensor.
Non-functioning radiator FAN, that is.
Is this Pajero not the one that’s the same as a Montero? I ask because my info shows a 2000 Montero to have a belt driven fan.
Not quite the same as a Montero. Pajero iO is not a belt driven fan.
Yeah. Better start with a fuse. This car has a variety of electrical issues. May have been flood damaged in a hurricane in a previous life.
My first question would be when you say it is starting to overheat. How high does the gauge go up?
There is essentially zero room above the top mark… there is barely a red line zone. The needle gets up on the H when it is overheating.
It loses coolant when it overheats… so its serious if I get stuck in traffic. No steam visible but I hear the boiling coolant bubbling through the overflow tank. So it is a true overheat and not a faulty gauge. Fortunately my job start and end times are outside of rush hour… smooth sailing for 99%+ of my driving.And so long as I do not get stuck in traffic it stays at a normal temp range… and does so for days or weeks at a time without losing coolant Just have to keep checking the coolant periodically to be sure it’s not low.
I’ve double checked and the cooling fan is not turning on. The fuse looks good. I’ll dig around a bit more on Thursday when I have a day off.
The fan not coming on could also be a symptom of the problem, not the cause. On many cars, the temperature switch that tells the cooling fan to come on is located near the top of the radiator and is separate from the coolant temp sensor mounted on the engine that’s connected to the ECU and runs the dashboard gauge. If the dash gauge indicates the coolant in the engine is overheating but the cooling fan is off, that often suggests a coolant flow issue. For example, with a stuck thermostat, the engine can be overheating but the radiator is cool to the touch. The switch also might not work if the coolant level is low and it’s exposed to air instead of liquid coolant.
If the hot coolant is boiling out of the overflow container, you know that hot coolant is at least getting to the top of the radiator, but there could be an obstruction in the radiator itself or in the lower hoses or cooling passages. Also, have you changed your radiator pressure cap recently or ever? Those can cause all sorts of mysterious cooling system problems when they go bad, and are cheap enough to be worth a try.