Hi all. I'm new to these forums, but I have been browsing them for tips for the past month or so. I could use some help in the saga I've listed below, keeping in mind I'm totally not a car expert, or even a car novice, though I do have a friend who seems to know his stuff and also owns a Fit, and he's offered to help me check out this issue. The car in question is a 2010 Base Fit.

(1) Starting about a month ago, I've been receiving constant P0302 cylinder 2 misfire codes. They come on for about a week, then turn off for a few days before appearing again. But I haven't noticed any performance decreases until yesterday (see #4).

(2) Around the same time this all started, I began to smell something strange in my cabin, particularly when I start the car or accelerate out of a stop. I thought it might be a coolant leak at first, as my levels were low, but since topping them off they have remained level for several weeks. It sort of smells like exhaust, but I am a total newb, so I could be wrong.

(3) My friend helped install a new coil pack in Cylinder 2 last week, and the old one was covered in some kind of brown rust-like substance. Maybe extreme arcing?

(4) Yesterday when my car almost seemed to be in neutral as I was accelerating out of a stop at an intersection. As this extreme misfire was happening, my check-engine-light was flashing/blinking. I read this means the misfire was "Severe?" I stopped at an AutoZone on my way home and the code was the same: P0303, cylinder 2 misfire.

My drive to work this morning was fine. The check-engine light/P0302 is still constantly on, but I didn't notice any performance issues. The smell is still apparent when I first start the car, or when I'm pulling out of a stop. Not sure if the two are related. This weekend my friend and I planned to pull all of the other coil packs to check their status, and also replace all of the spark plugs while we're at it.

Is it possible the smell is from the spark plugs or something? Do you think it's even related to the misfires? Hopefully replacing the spark plugs alleviated the misfire problem entirely.

 

how many miles?

the "seemed to be in neutral" sounds like "limp mode" where the ECU limits power to avoid damaging something.

Pulling the plugs to help analyze the problem is a good idea.

Crap on the coil pack sounds like an issue where the plug isn't seated and gases are escaping. There are several accounts of people having this issue. Some where the plug has blown out, damaging the threads.

I'd check it soon.

 

Nearly 76,000 miles

That sounds about right. It hasn't happened again since, but it worries me.

Do you think that smell is related?

 

It could be unburned fuel and/or uncatalyzed exhaust gas that you smell, so yes...

 

I am experiencing the same issues. See my posts to read about my problem.


It's been going on for months! I've replaced spark plugs, coil pack, cleaned my fuel injectors and ran a compression test. The next thing on the list to replace is the fuel injector. My car seems to lag and the engine light is constantly on. When first starting the car when the engine is cold, it will spit and sputter and there is a "smell" similar to gas... My mechanic is awesome but even he is stumped!

 

I see from your threads the "valves are ok." Did they adjust them? That's where I'd start. Then I'd look at O2 and MAF sensors.

You might try another mechanic. There is more information stored in the car's ECU that can tell the whole story. Sometimes the dealer is the best place.