What are the chances? Coil Pack failure

[kennyao30]

What are the chances that three coil packs fail within 50 miles of each other? I thought this was pretty weird. let me recap it for you

Sunday night
-CEl comes on on my drive home pull into autozone and get code read, pulls up code p0301.... so i replace ignition coil on cylinder 1...

Monday
- truck runs fine and dandy

Tuesday
- truck starts to shake at idle, almost like a misfire but no CEL
-take in to dealer and they report that cylinders 3 and 7 coil packs have failed

I just thought this was really weird and wanted to know if all my ignition coils should be replaced or just carry a spare?

 

[AimCOtaco]

Well did they actually fail or just report failure? Could be a grounding or other connection issue were they are detected as failing when in fact they have gone intermittent due to another electrical issue. I would think it strange to loose 3 in a row without a cause OTHER than just 3 bad coil packs but it could happen.
I would switch all the coil packs from one cylinder bank to the other and see what happens.
Good luck with it, sounds like a pain,

 

[kennyao30]

The Tech said he got them to fail and throw a CEl at the dealer. he also said he took a multi meter to them and they were reading bad. I picked up two coil packs to change them tonight

 

[consalvochris]

I had 4 go bad within 3000 miles, pretty common for them to fail around the same time, if you replace all 3 and everything runs good, don't sweat it and keep another spare on you with a decent socket set

 

[APKhaos]

Just the luck of the draw. There are 8 of them, so having 3 go out around the same time is quite possible. I've been replacing mine as they fail, and two went within a week at one point. If the new coil pack completely solves the problem, then you have your answer. If there's an underlying wiring or grounding problem then the symptoms should reappear, new coil packs or not.

Given there are five more originals on your truck, its a good idea to buy a spare to have ready for the next one that quits.

 

[kennyao30]

Well back to the dealer. I changed the coil packs in the parking lot of the dealership and it still runs like crap. I'm thinking injectors at this point.

 

[hkeller]

Maybe a really bad tank of gas?

 

[kennyao30]

Maybe a really bad tank of gas?

I get my gas from the same place every time. I wonder if the tanker truck to refill the station left a few minutes before I came and there was a lot of sediment in the fuel I got.

 

[LandCruiserPhil]

Loose spark plugs will show the same trouble code...just say'n if the same code reappears

 

[Nottajeep]

the codes should also be telling you the exact cylinder location. swap with a cylinder location that is good and drive and see if the code location changes.

instances like this where you have a bluetooth adapter plugged into your ecu and being able to read codes live on your android are valuable. The adapters are like $50 on amazon.

 

[kennyao30]

P0308. Just appeared. Coil pack 8 failure. This just keeps getting worse. I'm thinking the head tech needs to look at it.

 

[CappyKD]

P0308. Just appeared. Coil pack 8 failure. This just keeps getting worse. I'm thinking the head tech needs to look at it.

Swap a coil pack from another plug, reset codes and see what happens before you keep spending money.

 

[kennyao30]

Swap a coil pack from another plug, reset codes and see what happens before you keep spending money.

They swapped the coils. And code switched cylinders. Replaced the coil (4th one). Problem still there but less noticeable. Should I suggest injectors?

 

[re_guderian]

Injectors have rarely been a problem here on the forum. Tell us more about what has been done to the truck in the last six months.

 

[kennyao30]

Injectors have rarely been a problem here on the forum. Tell us more about what has been done to the truck in the last six months.

Really nothing, I changed the starter last weekend.... that's about it maintenance wise. I did have the oil changed about a month ago too.

 

[re_guderian]

Triple check all ignition electrical connections around coils and injectors, including ground at back of block? Anything pulled, stretched, strained while R and r starter? Not unheard of to have several go out in fairly short order, but your case is a little extreme.

 

[kennyao30]

Triple check all ignition electrical connections around coils and injectors, including ground at back of block? Anything pulled, stretched, strained while R and r starter? Not unheard of to have several go out in fairly short order, but your case is a little extreme.

i double checked the ground at the back of the block.. and nothing out of the ordinary on the starter install (ive done it three times before ) ya its getting a bit out of hand..... i left it at the dealer again to re-diagnose

Would clogged cats cause a slight miss/ rough idle? (I'm just thinking out loud at this point)

 

[kennyao30]

Had the fourth coil pack replaced, MiL is off. Still having the roughness at idle only. I cleaned the throttle body yesterday. Still the same rough idle

Any more ideas?

 

[bamachem]

Clean MAF and I'd drop some Seafoam in the tank to clean the injectors. Won't hurt but I'm honestly leaning towards an electrical issue related to the starter R&R. Pinched wire, broken insulation, or bad ground somewhere is my guess.

 

[kennyao30]

New fuel filter went on yesterday. And no idling issues. Looks like the fuel filter cleared up the rough idle