Have problem after friend did tune up.

[Ratardid]

Recently I had someone change my spark plugs in my garage. Bad idea. Ever since, if my Q45T is driven more than 5 miles it idles rough and then rougher and doesn't want to go unless I force it. The warmer the engine gets the worse it gets and the engine will smoke, but the temp is ok. When the plugs were changed, I had bad valve cover gaskets, but they were not changed until a week later. They are not leaking now, but it is still acting horrible. Do you think the delay caused a problem? Can it be fixed? Or could it be something else?PS I’ve been bad and have been not using premium gas for a while.

[Jesda]

Im in west county and may be able to take a look at it. Did you use the correct NGK plugs? Did he reconnect all the hoses and connectors properly? What year Q?

You should post this in the Q45 section of NICO.

[Ratardid]

1999 Q45T. Got the plugs from O'Reilly's. NGK plugs? I just asked for them and I chose the platinum (can't remember the brand). Did he connect all properly? Knowing this guy, maybe not. Didn't do the wires at the time cause no one had them. I've come to discover something about "coil boots?" Could this be the problem? Thanks

[oldmako]

You've pretty much got to use the factory plugs in these motors. I can't say that from my experience, but from reading this site. Everyone seems to be in agreement that anything else is bad news. They are 10 bucks a plug (more or less....try Advance, I got some there for just over 8 bucks each) and worth it. They last 100K so it's money well spent.

The car has no plug "wires", because it doesn't have a traditional distributor. Each cylinder has a dedicated ignition coil which lives right on top of the plug. They can become problematical as they age. They have an electrical connector on the top, and a 3" tube or boot which reaches through a bore machined into the valve cover and down to the plug end. These coils are also expensive but last at least 100K...mine have 150K.

The have an electrical snap connector to the wiring harness that provides the juice and probably about 300 other functions. These connectors and coils need to be handled carefully and the pins & sockets must be free from corrosion and crud.

How did the car run before it was wrenched upon?

[Ratardid]

It seemed to be that the engine ran fine. The car has almost 200,000 miles on it. It was suggested to me (by said wrencher) that maybe since I was not using premium (ever since the gas prices went crazy) that it could be the problem. I put premium in it last night. It seemed maybe a tab bit better, but not still not ok. Problem is, my commute is not far. Tomorrow I have to drive further than usual. That will be the real test. I'm worried I'm doing further damage. So, could it be the gas and if so, will it take more than one tank fill to find it out or should it be good by now? Could it be possible that the coil boots were fiddled with or got oil on them because the gaskets were bad? I know its hard to diagnose when you can't physically see, but any help is greatly appreciated. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow.Thanks

[Infinitiguy19]

I think the person that performed the "Tune-up" inadvertently damaged the coil packs. If the coil packs haven't been replaced before then this may be the issue. And further driving the car is not good for the crankshaft, main bearings...So replace the costly coil packs and possibly harness and all should be well.

[goody90q45]

Im in west county and may be able to take a look at it.......

Take up Jesda on his offer to help. He's a wealth of information and a really nice person and can help you diagnose the problem. He may be floating around some warm place in the country in who know's what car but he'll be back soon.

In the meantime have you pulled the ECU codes? Do you have a code reader? Look at the EC section of the FSM and learn how to do it yourself without a code reader. It's not hard. The stored codes will help you (and Jesda and us) with the diagnosis. Good luck.

http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/Q45/1999_Q45/1999_Q45/

[oldmako]

There is almost zero chance that a leaking valve cover was able to get oil on the coil.

[Infinitiguy19]

Don't know how much more different the FGY33 coils are from the G50. But I seem to remember a member that had a problem with the coil packs failing due to a leaking valve cover. So although its very rare it is definitely possible to have coil pack (Boot) failure due to leaky valve covers.

[Ratardid]

Thank you all for your help. Drove it alot today, seems power is better and I didn't have to force it to go, but idle is still very rough. Seems though that if I put it in park, it's much better, but still not what it should be. I've decided I'm going to put it in the shop on Friday and see what they can find. Unfortunatly, I can't afford the dealer and I happen to have little bit of credit on my Firestone card, so have no other choice.

[BCC93QT]

First off, what i have learned about the Q45 is that YOU should maintain it yourself. Do all your work yourself or atleast be there watching/learning. YOU have to work on YOUR own car if YOU want to keep it running for as long as you want. If you bring it to a dealer, they will just over charge you and if they find something wong they didn't quote you on, half the time they won't even tell you or do anything about it. They will just wait until it leads to something worse and more expensive. Did you watch him work on it or were you inside playing nintendo? I've done alot of mods in my day but i've never done the type of repair work on any of my cars that i have done to my Q. Its a tough car and its very easy to mess up or have it run improperly. Spark plugs are like pie. Also, i can't believe i read the fact taht your not putting premium gas in it. What its like 30 cent more per gallon? 30x20 = 5 DOLLARS MORE A FILLUP! I call shotgun on your car when it hits the junkyardBTW, not to be an a-hole but your name speaks for itself.

[NightRiderQ45]

First off, what i have learned about the Q45 is that YOU should maintain it yourself. Do all your work yourself or atleast be there watching/learning. YOU have to work on YOUR own car if YOU want to keep it running for as long as you want. If you bring it to a dealer, they will just over charge you and if they find something wong they didn't quote you on, half the time they won't even tell you or do anything about it. They will just wait until it leads to something worse and more expensive. Did you watch him work on it or were you inside playing nintendo? I've done alot of mods in my day but i've never done the type of repair work on any of my cars that i have done to my Q. Its a tough car and its very easy to mess up or have it run improperly. Spark plugs are like pie. Also, i can't believe i read the fact taht your not putting premium gas in it. What its like 30 cent more per gallon? 30x20 = 5 DOLLARS MORE A FILLUP! I call shotgun on your car when it hits the junkyardBTW, not to be an a-hole but your name speaks for itself.

Very true! There are a lot of variables that could cause this. Someone asked you earlier how the car ran and you couldn't even give a clear answer. Are you just purchasing the car from someone? You stated that it "seem to run fine"...so you wasn't sure how the car ran before you took physically took it to the mechanic!? Did it run rough before you took it there? What brand were the spark plugs!? You said you don't know but you can easily verify it...look at your receipt!!! If you put any American car plug in, you are screwed. Driving on regular gas will NOT cause your car to run like this. I've ran regular for months in the past and never had any issues you state. Obviously the mechanic messed up your car and is throwing blame to gas since you obviously are a noob with cars.

You have to help us help you; if you can answer the questions that I stated, that would a lot.

[qsiguy]

I suspect a vacuum line, loose wire, loose MAF plug. Something of that nature. I doubt the new plugs are to blame and not likely the coil packs unless they just got installed incorrectly. Double check every vacuum line, electrical plug, and definitely the MAF socket.

Maybe I missed it but what year is this vehicle, for us to help properly we need the info...

[Infinitiguy19]

He has a 1999 Q45t. So at this point coil packs are the things most likely but we would need to know the ECU/CEL codes.

But to the original poster:

Put premium gas and DON'T TAKE IT TO FIRESTONE TO HAVE IT CHECKED OUT.