Blinking service engine light but only P0159 code?

[PogiQX]

driving the interstate this morning on my way to work then all of a sudden service engine light came on and started blinking, followed by a violent shake. I slowed down and took foot of gas for a bit then the light stopped blinking...but just stayed on. The QX went back to driving smooth.

I was pretty sure that it was some type of misfire as the QX is famous for ignition coil issues especially the earlier models like mine ('01) so I was prepared to deal with it. I went to Autozone to get the codes pulled to find out which coil is misfiring. To my suprise...no misfire code. It only pulled P0159 which is pretty much an o2 sensor bank 2 sensor 2. So....i went to advance auto to get another reading as a second opinion. Same result...only P0159

I never heard an O2 sensor issue would cause the service engine light to blink and shake the whole vehicle violently.....any if you guys experienced this? Please advise....Thanks

[Towncivilian]

P0159 is indeed just a rear oxygen sensor code and would not cause a misfire (blinking SES light).

What is the manufacturing date of your QX4? It can be found on the driver door jamb sticker. Certain dates are less prone to coil pack issues.

[PogiQX]

P0159 is indeed just a rear oxygen sensor code and would not cause a misfire (blinking SES light).

What is the manufacturing date of your QX4? It can be found on the driver door jamb sticker. Certain dates are less prone to coil pack issues.

early built date of Feb 2000

[Towncivilian]

OK, so you'd have the coil packs that are more prone to failure.

There should be a stored misfire code at least, it's strange that there isn't one. Do you have an Android smartphone? Perhaps it would be worth buying one of the cheapo $15 ODBII Bluetooth adapters and using Torque Lite (a free ODBII application) to scan for codes next time the misfire occurs (if it does happen again, that is).

How many miles are on your QX4?

[PogiQX]

OK, so you'd have the coil packs that are more prone to failure.

There should be a stored misfire code at least, it's strange that there isn't one. Do you have an Android smartphone? Perhaps it would be worth buying one of the cheapo $15 ODBII Bluetooth adapters and using Torque Lite (a free ODBII application) to scan for codes next time the misfire occurs (if it does happen again, that is).

How many miles are on your QX4?

128K on the QX. Yeah I was surprised as well that no misfire code is stored. That's why I went to autozone and discount autoparts to get another scan to make sure.

I checked all the coil packs last night just to check if any came loose....but all looked ok.

Could a clogged fuel filter cause a misfire since P0159 also states a possible fuel pressure issue? I am planning on getting a new o2 sensor for the rear (bank 2 sensor 2), and change fuel filter. Hopefully it won't happen again.

[Towncivilian]

A clogged fuel filter can cause inability to reach higher RPMs, but I've never heard of it causing a misfire.

Were spark plugs replaced at around 105k miles?

[PogiQX]

A clogged fuel filter can cause inability to reach higher RPMs, but I've never heard of it causing a misfire.

Were spark plugs replaced at around 105k miles?

according to the previous owner...he replaced the spark plugs, and MAF since he had an issue with rpm surging....so he replaced those and solved the rpm issues. That was at least over a year ago....