new tune up, now an engine skip. (1 Viewer)

[PDoyle]

I just had the pvc, spark plugs, wires, and cap and rotor changed. As well as the motor oil.
I probably put 100 or so miles on the motor after the tune up and there is a skip (not a knock) a skip. It happens only at idle ( I don't feel it at any speed ) and is very sporatic. Won't happen for a while, then the motor will skip two or three times in a row.
I checked all the air hoses I could find. Could it be the new wires or plugs?

 

[chitown40]

I would check the plugs first. Start with the gaps. If a gap is off it can produce a slight miss that would only be real noticeable at idle. You may also have one bad plug. Also check the wires to make sure they are on all the way and also just to make sure they aren't resting on something hot and burning through the insulation.

 

[PDoyle]

Thanks Chitown. Seems like the most logical places to start. I haven't pulled the cover over the wires off yet. That could be next...

 

[Beowulf]

Pat,

Put in a can of fuel system cleaner ( BG44K or Red Line) and run a tank of gas. If you also put in a new air filter then carefully inspect the intake hose. The underside will develop cracks in the rubber. They're hard to see but will let in unmetered air and cause a rough idle.

-B-

 

[PDoyle]

Thanks Beowulf.
I'll recheck the hoses off the air box and add fuel injector cleaner.
I have Lucas fuel injector cleaner.
Hope that stuff is good enough.

 

[schum4]

I had the same problem with my '97. I replaced the plugs, wires, cap, rotor, and air filter. It ran good for a few weeks, then I noticed the slight skip at idle. I've put in STP, Redline, and the expensive stuff from the dealer but it still has that anoying skip.
One thing that I noticed was that the plugs that I got from the local dealer were not gapped properly - none of them. The invoice shows the right PN but I threw out the boxes.

Can anyone tell me what number should be on the plugs themselves?

 

[Scamper]

Pat - did you use OEM parts? I once replace the cap and rotor with non-OEM and noticed quite a difference in quality of those parts. I too had the odd skip. I replaced plugs, wires, cap and rotor, as well as run thru a can of BK, and the skip went away.

I agree that the plugs should be gapped to spec, even if they claim they're pre-gapped. I have no idea how they gap them at the factory, but I don't think I've ever checked six plugs without finding at least one out of spect--sometimes by quite a bit. For the five minutes it takes, it savea a lot of headache.