Broken valvespring???
08-15-2005, 08:28 AM
#1
Broken valvespring??? Question for those that have broken a dual valvespring. Did the car start and idle fine?
On my way to work this morning I got the blinking SES light and a heavy miss under acceleration (light accel only), however when I came to a stop or slow rpm, it runs fine and the SES light goes away. I limped the car in the rest of the way to work. Im about 35 miles from home and I have no way of puling a valve cover while im here. Does this sound like a broken valvespring or something else since it idles fine and has no weird noises???
Thanks,
-T
On my way to work this morning I got the blinking SES light and a heavy miss under acceleration (light accel only), however when I came to a stop or slow rpm, it runs fine and the SES light goes away. I limped the car in the rest of the way to work. Im about 35 miles from home and I have no way of puling a valve cover while im here. Does this sound like a broken valvespring or something else since it idles fine and has no weird noises???
Thanks,
-T
08-15-2005, 09:20 AM
#2
Sounds like its something else. I could be wrong though. I replaced a broken valve spring a couple weeks ago in a friend of mines TA (Cartek Heads) Not sure which brand the springs were, but they were old. The inside spring was really thin. It almost reminded me of a spring from a pen but bigger. Anyways it was really noticeable that a spring had broke. It was tapping very loud. But it still idled fine and no SES light. So your best bet is to pull the valve cover & cheeck them out.
Last edited by Z'mnypit; 08-15-2005 at 03:31 PM.
08-15-2005, 09:34 AM
#3
I'd definatly check the plug wires to see if they are all connected. It's just a quick, easy check. I suppose it's possible to be a valvespring. Since you have duals and the inner spring isn't all that strong. It should be able to do fine at low rpms/idle. But once it starts getting up there it will float. I'd prolly get it towed or find away to get the valvecover off and check it. I wouldn't want to risk bending a valve and possible other damage.
08-15-2005, 10:28 AM
#4
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Damn Tony...not good. When i snapped a dual the car really idled like crap. similar to disconnecting a spark plug or two. Once you gave it a bit of revs (above 2k it smoothed out). I knew it had to be a spring so i limped it home approx 30 miles. Not the smartest thing to do but i didn't cause any damage. I would say pull the valve cover at lunch and take a look. Can you hear any funky noises from one specific side of the engine?
08-15-2005, 10:40 AM
#5
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i had four broken dual springs about a month ago. Initially, the would idle and drive fine, but i got float on top....like hitting a wall, the car just stopped accelerating. (at this point i had no idea wat it was...)
Anyways, i had an oil change and BAM!!! the idle got nasty on me!! had the covers removed and one out of the four was completely apart while the others had cracks but still intact..
You could check for a plug, dirty filter and for any irregular valvetrain noise. When the spring broke, i was getting a very light tingy noise, much like a triangle (the music instrument) or a small bell.
Anyways, i had an oil change and BAM!!! the idle got nasty on me!! had the covers removed and one out of the four was completely apart while the others had cracks but still intact..
You could check for a plug, dirty filter and for any irregular valvetrain noise. When the spring broke, i was getting a very light tingy noise, much like a triangle (the music instrument) or a small bell.
08-15-2005, 10:43 AM
#6
Originally Posted by SloppyRob
Damn Tony...not good. When i snapped a dual the car really idled like crap. similar to disconnecting a spark plug or two. Once you gave it a bit of revs (above 2k it smoothed out). I knew it had to be a spring so i limped it home approx 30 miles. Not the smartest thing to do but i didn't cause any damage. I would say pull the valve cover at lunch and take a look. Can you hear any funky noises from one specific side of the engine?
I have the exact opposite problem. The car is idling perfectly and its not till I start accelerating that it starts to miss at all. If I keep the RPMS under ~2k, I wont get the blinking SES, but it misses at anything over 2k rpm.
At no time do I hear any valvetrain noise out of the ordinary. Engine seems surprisingly quiet if it is a broken spring.
Unfortunately, I really cant dig in during lunch since I dont have any tools, but maybe i can bum a ride to autozone to buy a socket set and ill take a look before i go home tonight. Although Ill probably try reconnecting all the plug wires and injector clips first. I dont want to get too dirty during lunch and come back into the office with a black arm.
08-15-2005, 10:50 AM
#7
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I hear you. Def check ignition stuff first. It may be that your outer spring has a crack in it and hasn't totally failed yet. Check the ignition stuff and take it from there.....good luck.
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08-15-2005, 10:52 AM
#8
Originally Posted by SloppyRob
I hear you. Def check ignition stuff first. It may be that your outer spring has a crack in it and hasn't totally failed yet. Check the ignition stuff and take it from there.....good luck.
08-15-2005, 11:18 AM
#10
Originally Posted by SloppyRob
yeah, i'll be around. If you need it i got the air compressor and the tool...question is do you have springs?
08-15-2005, 02:05 PM
#12
I guess i'm the boy who cried wolf. I feel like smacking my forhead repeatedly. Anyway, heres how it went down.
I went outside with a pocketfull of paper towels and wetnaps, rolled up my sleeves and started poking around. The number 6 plug wire was not secured on the plug side. Seems this morning, after having been secured for 5K miles, it somehow rattled loose. It must have been just resting on there perfectly so that It would maintain contact at idle and low RPM, but as soon as it passed 2K rpm, the wire must have vibrated enough to lose contact and make the engine run like ***. But then when the motor revved back down to idle, it ran perfectly again. Im not sure why the plug would have come undone 5k miles after that last time I touched them. Seems like if theyre going to cause trouble theyll do it in the first few miles. Anyway, its all fixed and the only thing still broken is my pride.
I went outside with a pocketfull of paper towels and wetnaps, rolled up my sleeves and started poking around. The number 6 plug wire was not secured on the plug side. Seems this morning, after having been secured for 5K miles, it somehow rattled loose. It must have been just resting on there perfectly so that It would maintain contact at idle and low RPM, but as soon as it passed 2K rpm, the wire must have vibrated enough to lose contact and make the engine run like ***. But then when the motor revved back down to idle, it ran perfectly again. Im not sure why the plug would have come undone 5k miles after that last time I touched them. Seems like if theyre going to cause trouble theyll do it in the first few miles. Anyway, its all fixed and the only thing still broken is my pride.
