As many of you remember I replaced all my coil packs and spark plugs less than a year ago. I bought the coil packs from www.rockauto.com. I bought the more expensive brand they offered thinking the quality would be better. One of the coil packs was defective right out of the box! After replacing it the replacement lasted about a month and it too failed. SO I bought a coil pack from a local Auto Zone, re-did the job for the 3rd time and all has been well now for almost a year, maybe less.

Now, the engine is mis-firing again anf the "restricted performance" message is coming on. If I clear the codes with my scan tool the car runs again (no restricted performance or engine light) but I can feel the engine "missing" as it runs at low RPM's, then it clears up at highway speeds. I'm still getting 23.5 MPG according to the driver information center so it can't be running that bad, right? But then about the time I think it's going to be OK.........WHAM!!! The car starts jerking and the "restricted performance" code is lit up again.

I am getting codes P301 (cyl 1 misfire) and P303 (cyl 3 misfire) and 1313 (lean surge). My question to the experts is............before I change the 2 offending coil packs out again, is there anything else that could cause the cylinder misfire codes to appear? I'm thinking the coil packs either work or they don't but I want to be sure I'm treating the cause and not just the symptom. Anyone??? Anyone??? Bueller???

Thanks in advance!

 

Oil in the spark plug wells?

 

EZRider800 - Yes, I remember your situation. I have to agree with Darren on this one. When you pulled the original coils did you notice oil residue on the coil boot? If so, you have to get the cam cover and spark well gaskets changed out.

I have had bad experiences with all aftermarket coils, whether inexpensive or more pricey. I firmly believe either go with Jaguar OES or Motorcraft OEM coils...

I currently have Jaguar OES coils in the rear cylinders (these were my new "spares") and Ford Motorcraft OEM coils for the other cylinders and my car has not run more smoothly in years!

The lean surge code might be related to the offending coils - you want to get the misfiring coils addressed promptly as the unburnt fuel could find it's way to your cat converter causing more headaches and $$$

Good Luck!

 

+3 to replace cam cover and spark plug well gaskets.

 

When I changed the coil packs I did not notice any oil in the spark plug wells. Actually I looked and they were all dry. Of course that doesn't mean there isn't any now. I won't know until I look.

Could someone provide a brief description of where these gaskets are located and how much more stuff needs to come off the engine to get to them? Last time I replaced the O-rings in the rear of the engine, the upper and lower intake and plenum gaskets as well as the coil packs and the spark plugs. I also wound up having to change the upper radiator hose because I think I broke the "turrett" looking thing when I was doing coil job 1-2 or 3.

Thanks in advance!

 

Obonano, would the Motorcraft coils work on my 2003 S-type? I know the Lincoln drivers door window motor was not the same (even though some here said it would work) I wound up having to buy the Jaguar part number for about $200 more. I know Jag and Ford shared a great number of parts from 2000-2002 1/2 but I have a later 2003 VIN.

One more clue........my coils have 4 spade terminals not 2 like the earlier cars.

Thanks.

 

Not 100% sure on the interchangability - but look up the Lincoln LS coils on rockauto - looks like they are similar - but the 03 MY had 2 spade terminals and 4 spade terminals...

 

Can someone point me to a post that tells how to change the spark plug well gaskets? I've been sitting here for 2 hours doing searches and reading until my eyes are crossed. I've found several posts where the issue is mentioned but haven't found the one that tells how to fix it.

Thanks.

 

I have the 2000 s type with 4.0 and just started having misfires again. There was water moisture getting in at the windshield cowl and it got down to the engine on the passenger 's side cover to the spark plugs. I used black silicone sealant on the oval caps on the cowl and blue gasket maker on the coil/spark plug cover. I think the moisture would evaporate befour I went after the "misfiring cyclinder" making me think it was the bad coil.

 

I have found multiple 3.0L with trace amounts of oil in plug holes but never seen an oil cause a problem. It is very important to use OEM coils. Also use only NGK iridium plugs. I cannot stress enough how important OEM stuff is when it comes to ignition system.

 

Looking at Rock Auto's website I notice that the spark plug well gaskets come in the valve cover gasket set. This must mean that the spark plug well gaskets are underneath the valve covers. Correct?

I'm just wondering, should I buy the valve cover gasket set to get the spark plug well gaskets or are the valve cover gaskets on my car the reusable type? (rubber?) Currently my valve covers do not leak.

Thanks.

 

Usually when you change the valve cover gasket you will change the spark plug gaskets (it is easier to do).

 

Yes, you must remove the valve cover to get to the spark well gaskets - since you are technically breaking the seal you should plan on replacing the valve cover gasket as well.

 

Last night I ordered the valve cover gasket set which includes the spark plug gaskets as well.

Anyone want to enlighten me on where the cam cover gasket is or how it could cause the coil packs to misfire? I've searched this website until I'm blind and although it gets mentioned in several posts, I have yet to find a description of the repair.

Thanks in advance.

 

You don't need to replace cam cover gaskets.
Just replace coil and plugs with OEM stuff.

 

If you remove the coil-pack and if you see oil in the plug chamber then you have an oil leak and a change of the gaskets is in order. If it is water in the chamber then you have a water leak from above and that is a different repair. On my 3.0 I replaced all the coil-packs on the one side that required my removing the intake manifold to replace them and needless to say I replaced the plugs as well.

I have been told by many and it seems to be true that once the coil-packs begin failing the others will follow suite, replace them and be done with it. I should also mention that the coil-packs will fail without having the help of oil or water.

Note I got my coil-packs from a NAPA store

 

I've noticed the same thing Gus. Once a coil pack fails it is soon followed by others. I would also recommend replacing them all while you're at it. No sense in doing the job multiple times, eh?

 

The cam cover is not your problem. The spark plug well O-Rings or gaskets are. All DOHC engines have this problem to varying degrees. The spark plug is in the center of the 4 valves in the combustion chamber. So the spark plug has to be mounted thru the cam cover.

The older push rod American V-8's and straight 6's have the spark plugs come into the combustion chamber from the side a bit and the valve covers are just one piece. It's a trade off between newer better technology and older simpler engines.

You only have to mess with the cam cover to get to the plug well seals. They can be individual or one complete gasket.

The coils are mounted on the engine and suffer from the heat and vibration so they are a wear item to some extent. Probably more than we realize. Just look at how long our car batteries last since they were relocated to the trunk away from the engine compartment.


Here is one of your cam covers. The arrow is pointing to the cover over your coils and plugs:


.
.
.

 

I bought coils for my 2004 4.2l off ebay.They were SMP "products"I paid about $37 each delivered!
They look an awful lot like OEM coils!
In another life I bought SMP coils for my RX8--they were also repackaged OEM coils.

 

I can only speak from personal experience, but I have found the aftermarket gaskets and spark plug well seals do not work as well as the OEM Jaguar gaskets/seals. I have also not had good experiences with NGK spark plugs and prefer to use other brands. I have had good success with Bosch and Motorcraft plugs, but others on this forum will take exception to this and tell you to use the No Good Kind. Personal choice I suppose.

The part numbers for the OEM cam cover V6 gaskets are:
RH cam cover gasket - XR851930
Spark plug boss gasket - XR847907
LH cam cover gasket - C2S34512

If the inlet manifold gaskets have not been replaced previously along with the manifold o-rings on the control valves, it would be wise to renew all these as well.

It is always good practice to provide the VIN if you are purchasing OEM parts from a Jaguar agency as parts may be superceded at any time.