Intermittent misfire

[Chapperz]

Hi all,

Little help needed please

The car has started to misfire over the last couple of weeks (Clio 182) and the problem has slowly got worse. My 40min drive to work today had me running on three cylinders for about half the time and fine for the rest (on and off). Last week it did the whole journey on 3 cylinders and the day before the whole journey on all 4.

Now I have worked out (by pulling HT leads) that it is top left (left HT lead closest to the bulkhead) that has the error (not sure what cylinder this relates to No3?).

My question is how do I go about diagnosing if its Coil pack, HT Leads, Spark plugs or Injector? I have no idea what to look for on the coil pack. After some searching on the forum to check the spark plugs I have to take off the air inlet thing and need a new seal, also pulling out the injectors is quite easy even though they may be stuck.

How would you guys go about this (apart from getting it plugged in) and any experience of the fault being intermittent like this (even though it seems to getting worse/longer each day).

Any and all opinions (on this matter) greatly appreciated

Ben

 

[Silent_Scone]

If it's the furthest to your left that's cylinder number 4. You want to take the plug out firstly and get a look at it and make sure it's torqued up ( 25-30nM), might just be knackered. The VVT solenoid under the inlet sometimes leaks down that cylinder though so you might find there is oil down there as well. The rubber seal is cheap as chips from Renault.

For ref the plugs should be NGK PFR6E-10. If they're not, you want some.


Just realised you're local!

 

[DannyR]

I'd get it on diagnostics but its 90% an injector fault.

 

[Chapperz]

Cheers guys, best check the plugs after all then. Yeah Silent Scone if you spot a Blue 182 with after market exhaust that now sounds like a scooby driving around give me a wave thanks for the advice too. Will get that seal from Coulsdon Renault and check the plugs starting with no4 tomorrow.

Cheers
Ben

 

[Chapperz]

additional just spoke to Renault at Colusdon and the bloke was a bit perplexed at why I needed a rubber seal to change the plugs. He quoted me £7.09 for a thing that seems to go between the intake manifold. So do i need this?

Cant say I've ever changed the plugs in the 5 years of owning the car, so will it defo have perished?

 

[Silent_Scone]

There is no rubber seal for the plugs, I was reffering to the VVT solenoid which you will see on the far left hand side. It's circular and has a plug to it. Sometimes the rubber seal leaks and chucks oil down the plug hole. You've bought an inlet to plenum gasket probably, which you don't really have to change.

 

[Chapperz]

Quick update;

After doing the man thing of starring at the engine and wiggling some wires the problem seems to have gone away. . . . Either that or my Clio has a great sense of humour and waited till I forked out £40 for a set of new spark plugs (which I haven't fitted yet).

Anyway cheers again for the help guys

Ben