Gahh Quad 4s Are a Pain in the Butt

"Suuuubaru" (suuuubaru)
10/01/2014 at 21:49 • Filed to: cavalier, quad4

Well, at least on the 2.4 they put the coil packs right on top of the spark plugs, thus eliminating the need for spark plug wires. Problem is, however, the coil packs are all one big assemly that's mounted to that metal engine cover (which, btw, is also a pain to get off b/c some piping gets in the way.) This is how it all looks once you get it off:

Now, the problem here is that this particular engine only runs on 4 cylinders when it feels like it. Were this my car, I could just pull plug wires until I found the bad cylinder, but since I have to take power from all the cylinders, things have become a guessing game. (although #4 is the prime suspect.) Anyway, once you get to the plugs, they're wedged deep between the two camshafts, and super tricky to get at.

Making things worse was that somebody seriously torqued those suckers in there, and my little ratchet wrench wasn't about to break them loose anytime soon. Ended up having to borrow the big meaty ratchet wrench my friend had in his toolbox to get at those things.

Plus, I dropped the metal negative battery contact somehwere deep in the bowels of the engine bay, and couldn't find it when I wanted to start the car. Soooooo...

DISCUSSION (12)

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > Suuuubaru
10/01/2014 at 21:52

What is this Quad-4 in? I always wanted a Beretta GTZ with one back in the day, never got my hands on one.

Boss2452stolemylunchmoney > Suuuubaru
10/01/2014 at 21:53

That cylinder head is a thing of beauty, though. If you can keep a head gasket in that engine, it'll make serious power.

Suuuubaru > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
10/01/2014 at 21:58

You're going to be disappointed

Kinja'd!!!

For Sweden > Suuuubaru
10/01/2014 at 22:03

[traumatizing flashbacks]

http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/a-good-riddanc…

Suuuubaru > For Sweden
10/01/2014 at 22:11

*shudders* I am glad that this is not my car...

DoYouEvenShift > Suuuubaru
10/01/2014 at 22:50

Ignition control module tends to go bad on those guys too. Then you get random misfires. Also do a compression test, Ive seen many just randomly loose one cylinder.

I love and hate those motors. For the time, they made great power. The 2.3 version was making 180hp in the early 90s. But the NVH was awful! And reliability wasnt too great.

Suuuubaru > DoYouEvenShift
10/01/2014 at 23:29

I have a suspicion that it may be the ignition control, but I figure that would affect more than one cylinder. Already have ruled out fuel injectors, and will probably be able to do the same with spark plugs tomorrow.

I don't think it's compression because the car seems to run on 4 cylinders about 75% of the time now. However, when I first took a look at it the thing ran like absolute poop. It'd start, but sounded like a tractor and vibrated pretty violently. The car had been sitting for about 6 months, and the more I ran it, the less I had problems. However, it still doesn't like to rev above 2500 rpm and the idiot light won't go away. (failed inspection a few months back for this, so I'm trying to get it to pass.)

DoYouEvenShift > Suuuubaru
10/01/2014 at 23:35

Have you scanned it for codes? Also double check the vacuum hose to the map sensor. Should be under the throttlebody. The rubber dries out and leaks causing drivability issues since its speed density.

Suuuubaru > DoYouEvenShift
10/01/2014 at 23:49

Haven't scanned it because I'm too cheap to buy the tool, and the closest Autozone is many miles away. Since the car's pretty sketchy/not insured it's just not worth the risk.

And good, point, the map sensor might be worth a look, it was staring me in the face all day and never even crossed my mind.

DoYouEvenShift > Suuuubaru
10/01/2014 at 23:56

Haha, understandable. Oh, another thing. Its common for the fuel pressure regulator to leak into the intake manifold through the vacuum reference. With the engine running, pull the hose off the top to see if fuel is coming out. That will make it do weird stuff like extended cranking, rich mixture etc.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > Suuuubaru
10/02/2014 at 06:45

I legit had no idea you could get a Quad 4 in a Cavvy.

Suuuubaru > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms
10/02/2014 at 12:14

The Z24 models had them, and it was an option on the upper level LS model. That being said, almost every other cavalier I come across has the 2.2