LBT 202 Misfire Diagnostics

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Presented by Jim Wilson

Disclaimer of Warranties:
This manual contains test procedures and test information obtained by an ASE Certified Master Technician with known good test
equipment on real vehicles, your tests may vary due to your equipment or technician procedures.
No warranty can be made from the ideas presented due to personal testing procedures, nor does the author or anyone connected with
him assume responsibilities or liabilities. The use of this manual is conditional on the acceptance of this disclaimer. If the terms of this
disclaimer are not acceptable, please return this manual.
Automotive Video, Inc.

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fax: 1-239-561-9111
www.auto-video.com
Content authored for Automotive Video Inc. by Heritage Technical LLC, Cochranville, PA. Copyrighted © in 2010 by Heritage Technical
LLC. No portion of this manual may be copied, altered, or reproduced without written permission of the author.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
OVERVIEW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Ignition Comparison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
CAUSES OF MISFIRES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Lean Mixture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
TYPES OF MISFIRES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Rich Mixture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 High Secondary Resistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Vacuum Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Open Circuit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
Vacuum Testing Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Intermittent Miss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
Scan Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Example Of A Lean Cylinder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Ford Misfire Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Propane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
Scan Tool Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Compression Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
Sensors That Can Cause Misfires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Running Compression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
Outputs That Can Cause Misfires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
Scan Tool History Misfires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 CASE STUDIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Engine Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 1998 Oldsmobile Intrigue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Cylinder Misfire Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Rough Idle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Misfire Detection Limits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 After Complete Fuel Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
GM Misfire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Cruise After Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
GM CAM Retard Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Chevrolet Astro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Random Misfire Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 DTCs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Lab Scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Misfire History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Firing Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
The Three Sections Of The Secondary Pattern . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Exhaust Probe Idle Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Firing Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 TSBs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Spark Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Injector Disabled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Spark Duration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Ignition Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Combustion Chamber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 New Cap And Rotor Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Intermediate Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 HANDS ON TESTING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Secondary Tracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Vacuum And Scan Tool Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Lab Scope Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com 1

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
OVERVIEW
Misfires are a very common problem facing technicians

today. The ability to diagnose what causes misfires and
how to repair them is a valuable skill that you need to
be an effective technician in today's market.
As you can see in the screen capture to the left, not just
ignition problems can cause misfires.
CAUSES OF MISFIRES
Causes of misfires can be attributed to the Fuel system,

Ignition System or the Base Engine
(compression/combustion).
General Motors has in fact issued a TSB in relation to

the misfires caused by the fuel system. They are now
recommending that you add fuel injection cleaner to
their vehicles on a regular basis.
Check with your information provider for more

information on this TSB.
2 1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
TYPES OF MISFIRES
Electrical misfires can be attributed to the spark plugs,

wires, cap, coils or a sensor that could be effecting the
ignition system.
Lean Fuel Charge misfires can be attributed to a

restricted fuel injector or a vacuum leak. Running
propane to the fuel system can help you diagnose a
Lean Fuel Charge misfire.
Rich Fuel Charge misfires can be attributed to a leaking

pressure regulator, injectors or sensors causing too
much fuel to be introduced into the system. Running
propane to the fuel system can help you diagnose a
Lean Fuel Charge misfire.
Density misfires can be attributed to an improper air/fuel ratio mixture in the cylinder. This could be from an EGR
problem, a timing issue or poor compression. Density misfires mimic the same symptoms as a Lean Fuel Charge
misfire, but when you introduce propane in this instance, you will see no reaction and the car will run the same as if
you had not added propane to the system at all.
Primary Triggering Problems. This type of misfire can be attributed to the Base Engine components such as the
Camshaft, timing components or compression issues.
TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES
As you can see there are many tools for finding misfires.
Learning to use each one of these will aid in your
diagnostic strategy.
We will be covering the use of some of these later on in

the hands on portion of this presentation.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Vacuum Gauge
The new “Buzz” word for the Engine is now “ICE”

(Internal Combustion Engine). New name, same thing.
The Engine has been around for a long time and it still
functions the same as it has since day one. Yes, engine
design has changed and variable timing has changed
but the engine is STILL an air pump.
Basic vacuum tests are wonderful for diagnosing

misfires. Introduce propane to the system to see how
the engine reacts.
Cranking Test: Make sure that the throttle plate is

CLOSED. The best way to do this is to disable the fuel.
Crank the engine over. You want to see 1”- 5” during
cranking. This will tell you that the engine is in good
shape.
If you see that it is lower, check to make sure that the

PCV valve is not stuck open, or for Ford vehicles, the
idle air bypass may be stuck open. Either one of those
will cause a low vacuum.
Warm Engine Test: The vacuum should read 17”-21”

steady.
Low Cruise Test: Run this test at approximately 1200rpm - 1500rpm. Anything off of idle. The vacuum should read
the same as idle vacuum, if not higher. If it drops, something has introduced a leak in the system. This is a great
test to diagnose an off idle hesitation condition.
High Cruise Test: Again, make sure that you maintain the same vacuum specifications you did at idle. Make sure to
leave the engine running steady for at least 1 minute. If you are running this test and the vacuum starts to drop,
this could indicate a restricted exhaust system or the EGR just activated. Disable the EGR and run the test again.
Snap Test: From idle, USE YOUR HAND to snap the throttle to WIDE OPEN. The vacuum should drop to below 5” or
as close to 0” as you can get. It should rebound to 3”-5” higher than idle vacuum.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Scan Tool
Many Technicians are now using Mode $06 in their

diagnostic strategies. Mode $06 will give you misfire
counts per cylinder on Ford products.
You can see in the screen capture that we are looking at

Test ID 53, Component ID: 05. The measured value of
misfires is 109 which is well below the maximum limit
of 13,568. Therefore, the result is a “Passed” value.
This is good information, but you still need to know how and why the misfire occurred. Go to motorcraft.com and
research the OBDII Theory and Guide in the Technical Resources section of the website for more information.
Above is a screen capture of what a typical Ford Misfire Data chart looks like. All of these are vehicle specific and
give you great information on how misfires happen and what causes them for the vehicle that you are working on.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Scan Tool
Above is a screen capture of the J1979 Misfire Mode $06 Data sheet. This particular chart is for a later Ford
vehicle and the test ID is $53. The test description is Cylinder specific misfire and catalyst damage threshold
misfire rate (either cat damage or emission threshold)(updated when DTC set or clears). In this instance, you may
need to clear DTCs and re-test to see if there is a problem.
CAN compliant vehicles show the misfires for the last drive cycle or the exponentially weighted moving average for
the last 10 drive cycles. All vehicles that are CAN compliant will be giving you this information.
At the bottom you can see the conversion test. This conversion test will give you the percentage of misfires. You
may have a vehicle with a percentage of misfires that can pass the test, but it is a good idea to repair the misfire
anyway and keep the customer happy.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Scan Tool
Mass Air Flow Sensor: A MAF Sensor that is either

overestimating or underestimating air flow can cause a
misfire condition.
Manifold Air Pressure: A defective MAP sensor can

cause a misfire condition.
Throttle Position Sensor: Rare but it does happen. A

defective or an incorrectly calibrated TPS can cause a
misfire condition.
Air Charge Temperature Sensor: If the sensor believes

that it is running too hot or too lean, it will effect the
air/fuel mixture of the vehicle causing a misfire
condition.
Crankshaft Position Sensor: Defective or improperly working CKP sensors can cause a misfire condition.
Camshaft Position Sensor: Defective or improperly working CMP sensors can cause a misfire condition.
Exhaust Gas Recirculation, Ignition Control Modules,

Fuel Pumps and Injectors ALL can play a big part in
causing misfires.
An example could be a weak fuel pump that will make

the car run lean. Restricted injectors can cause the
vehicle to run lean resulting in a misfire as well.
All you need is one cylinder that is running lean. The O2

sensor is going to see the engine running lean, it will
increase fuel to the system to try and correct the
problem. As a result, the one cylinder that was running
lean has now been corrected, but the other cylinders are
now running too rich which can result in a misfire
condition.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Scan Tool
Misfires in Scan Tool History. Looking at the screen

capture we see a couple things. First you can see the
Misfire Current for Cylinders 3, 4, 5 & 6, all of which
have a misfire count of 0.
Below that is the Misfire History Count for Cylinders 1 -

6. The cylinder with the biggest misfire history is
cylinder #3 with 548 misfires.
Address your diagnostic testing starting with the

cylinder with the highest number of misfires and work
your way down to the cylinder with the lowest number of
misfires.
RPM Input Testing. Use the RPM pattern for testing for a
glitch, injector and symptom based diagnostics of
erratic idle speed or injector pulse loss under load.
You want to make sure that your RPM is steady. Check

the vehicle at idle and make sure that you are within +/-
20RPM of the target idle speed. If you have an idle that
is higher than that, check for things like a faulty sensor
or a worn base engine component.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Scan Tool
Engine Condition. Graph MAP and RPM together. The

trick to doing this is to select the minimum amount of
PIDs that you need to view. The datastream is updated
quicker and more accurate with the less amount of PIDs
you want displayed.
Less data (PIDs) = more accurate readings.
If the MAP is steady but the RPM is erratic, this indicates

an ignition or fuel related problem, if the MAP and RPM
are both erratic, this indicates that a mechanical issue is
likely the cause.
Cylinder Misfire Testing. Another good use of the scan

tool is Cylinder Misfire Testing. Connect the scan tool to
the vehicle, graph and record the rear (post) HO2 Sensor,
and drive the vehicle with the engine at operating
temperature and cruising speed. Record the base line
voltage.
If the voltage goes high, this indicates a secondary

ignition misfire. If the voltage drops low, this indicates a
lean injector misfire or a fuel delivery problem.
This a good test to determine a transmission problem as

well. If the vehicle is displaying a misfire condition but
the post O2 sensor is within the normal range, this could
indicate a torque converter problem.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Scan Tool
Misfire Detection Limits. Not all cars have full range

misfires. Earlier GM, Ford and Chrysler vehicles had
misfires that did not go full range. Chrysler went up to
1,440 RPM and GM went to about 2,500 RPM. In 1999
all manufacturers were required to have full range
misfires..
Diesel engines such as the Power Stroke and Duramax

will only find misfires at less than 750 RPM. This means
that above 750 RPM, the system shuts off the misfire
counter.
As we all know by now, GM has had a lot of problems

with Caps and Rotors causing misfire conditions. There
are a fair amount of TSBs related to this matter that GM
has released.
Make sure that when you are doing a Crank Position Re-
Learn that you have put the components in the correct
position to avoid further misfires.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Scan Tool
GM CAM Retard Tests. The spec is 0 degrees +/- 2

degrees for V8 engines. Monitor the PID with the engine
at normal operating temperature. Raise the RPM to
1000 RPM after adjusting the distributor to force the
computer to recalculate CAM Retard PID.
Repeat these steps until the PID indicates 0 degrees.
Random Misfire Testing. Check for ignition timing

change in relationship to temperature. The scan tool
PID for spark advance should be checked in response to
TPS/RPM input. These should be moving in relationship
to each other.
You can see that at 1,976 RPM the timing is at 40

degrees timing advance. Later in the datastream you
can see that the instructor did a snap throttle to about
4400 RPM and the timing decreases.
If the engine is cold, you should have more timing

advance. If the engine is warm, you should have less.
Using this data you can diagnose a system that may
have a misfire condition.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
The Lab Scope indicates the types of misfires with

indicating lines. Electrical misfires are found in the
firing line, Lean Fuel Charge, Rich Fuel Charge and
Density misfires are all found on the Burn KV line. A
Primary Miss-Triggering Misfire will be in the Coil
Charge/Dwell section.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
The above screen capture shows the Three Sections of the Secondary Ignition Pattern. Section “A” is the firing
section where the work is being done. Section “B” is the intermediate section where the ignition coil is discharging
back to ground. Section “C” is the dwell section where the coil is being charged back up. Keep in mind that all of
this is happening very fast at around 7 milliseconds.
We will take a closer look at all of these on the next few pages.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
The Firing Line is the amount of voltage required to ionize the spark plug gap (between 10kV - 15 kV). There should
be no more that 3kV - 5kV variation between cylinders. If there is more than 3kV - 5kV between cylinders OR a
reading above 15kV, you have a problem. This could indicate such things as worn plugs or bad wires.
You will however have some variation between cylinders at idle. Remember, you have a different air/fuel ratio at
idle and this will effect the firing kV.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
The Spark Line is the intersection on the pattern that indicates the amount of voltage needed to maintain a spark
across the gap. On a distributor type ignition it is at about 1.5kV - 2.5kV. Anything more than that and you would be
looking for a resistance problem. Anything below is indicating a ground problem.
On a DIS equipped vehicle there is a little bit of a difference. You should be looking at a maximum of 4.0kV on a
waste spark and when you are in compression it should kick up to about 10 kV.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
Spark Duration is the amount of time that the spark jumps across the gap. Most DIS equipped vehicles will have a
spark duration of 1.3ms - 1.5ms. You really want a minimum of 1.0ms burn time on a DIS vehicle. If you do a snap
throttle test and the spark duration drops low, you have a problem.
The spark duration is effected by compression and fuel mixture. If you were to break the burn duration time in half
and look at the pattern to the left where the firing kV is, this is external to the cylinder. This can indicate problems
in the wires, cap, rotor and plugs etc. The other side of the pattern is what is occurring inside of the cylinder. This
indicates problems with things such as air/fuel mixture, lean and rich conditions, carbon and EGR problems etc.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
Above is an older picture of a Combustion Chamber but is still accurate. As the air/fuel mixture begins to go across
the spark plug gap in a lean condition (B) the pattern moves up. Conversely, during a rich condition (A) the pattern
is moving down. This will vary ever so slightly as the pattern moves across the screen.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
The Intermediate Section indicates coil oscillation. You want to see 3.0kV - 5.0kV on the older models with a
minimum of 1.0kV.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
Secondary Tracking will usually show up in short downward positive spikes. Notice the difference between the
pattern on the coil section in the previous screen capture and the secondary tracking screen capture above. Notice
that is not the uniform cone shape pattern but short downward spikes. This indicates a coil problem and it may
need to be replaced.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
Keep in mind that you only have so much coil activity. If you are using a lot firing kV, your burn time will shorten. If
you are using less firing kV your burn time will increase. If you use up all of the energy to initialize the plug, you
don’t have enough to maintain the spark across the gap which can cause a misfire.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
Above is a capture of a Lean condition. Notice that the pattern started out normal but at about half way through it
starts to rise up. This indicates a lean condition in the cylinder. If the cylinder is running out of fuel molecules, this
will require the voltage to increase resultin in a higher voltage requirement.
Note that this same type of pattern will show up if you have an EGR that is stuck open. If you were to run propane to
this lean condition cylinder, the pattern will decrease and go back to near normal. If you run propane to this
cylinder and it has an EGR problem, you would see no improvement or effect on the cylinder at all.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
A Rich Mixture condition pattern will do the opposite of a Lean Mixture condition pattern. It will start high and
trend downward. There is a lot of fuel in the cylinder and it requires less energy to ignite it therefore the voltage
requirements will drop.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
If the firing line is high, and the burn line is high, you have a secondary resistance problem. This could indicate
problems with the Distributor Cap, Rotor, Wires..etc. If all cylinders are showing this pattern, you are looking at
Cap, Rotor or Coil wire. If only one cylinder is displaying this pattern, you need to look for individual resistance that
would be effecting just that cylinder.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
Notice that an open circuit has no burn time. This is because all of the energy has been used up to jump the gap
and none is left over to maintain the spark. This is a misfire.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
By looking at an Intermittent Miss pattern you can see that the pattern is jumping up and down.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Lab Scope
Above is an example of a lean cylinder. Notice that we are barely maintaining 1millisecond per division and 1kV per
division. Also note that the resistance jumps are caused by the lean condition. Propane was introduced into the
system and the ignition pattern returned to normal.
Also notice the waste spark pattern at the bottom has not been effected because we are not on compression, but
exhaust.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Propane
As discussed earlier, the use of propane is a great way to identify lean or rich running conditions. If you add
propane to a running engine and the RPM drops, this indicates that the system was running rich to begin with. If
you add propane to a running engine and the RPM increases, this indicates a lean condition that could be caused
by a vacuum leak, fuel restriction, etc. If you slowly add propane to a running engine and the RPM slowly drops,
and the engine compensates by increasing the RPM, this indicates that the engine was probably running normal
before you even started.
If you consider using propane in your diagnostic strategy, use a metering gauge to see exactly how much propane
you are adding.
Compression Gauge
A fair amount of technicians shy away from the use of

compression gauges. Compression tests require the
engine to be at normal operating temperature and
some engines, like the Ford V10, are difficult to get to
that temperature and maintain it during the test.
A good test is a Cranking Compression Test. Disable the

fuel or ignition or both on the vehicle and the throttle
plate must be open.
The first pulse on the gauge MUST be 50% of the final

pressure. If it isn’t, this could indicate a worn cylinder or
worn piston ring. The second pulse should be 90% of
the final pressure with four pulses total.
While this is a good test to tell you if the system is

sealing during cranking, it does not tell you if the
system is sealing at idle.
Leave the gauge attached to the suspected cylinder and

run the engine at idle. The pressure should range
around 50 to 70% of the cranking pressure. Snap the
throttle, (using the throttle plate not the accelerator), to
test volumetric efficiency. You should be within 80% of
the cranking pressure during the snap throttle. If not,
this indicates you have a problem.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Compression Gauge
Using the equation to the left, this engine should be at

50psi at idle. Remember to use the throttle plate to do
the snap throttle and NOT the accelerator pedal.
This screen capture shows what a Running Compression

Normal Readings should look like. Note that the snap
throttle readings are 50 psi higher than the running idle
value
Notice in this screen capture that the snap throttle

value for cylinder number 1 is barely above the running
idle value. This indicates a restricted intake. This could
be caused by a multitude of problems but it gives you a
good starting point for your diagnostic strategy.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
Compression Gauge
Note in this screen capture that the snap throttle value

is 180 for cylinder number 1 which is way above the
running idle value of 75. This high of a value indicates a
restricted exhaust problem.
Since all of the other cylinders have normal values, this

cannot be a restricted exhaust system.
Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs)
Search the TSBs for the vehicle that you are working on. Some may require a reflash of the PCM and some may
require components to be replaced. Some may require both.
Reflashes can be required if the parameters on the vehicle are too narrow. The reflash will widen those parameters
and solve the problem.
NOTES

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
CASE STUDIES
1998 Oldsmobile Intrigue
The customer complaint on this vehicle was a rough

idle. The idle is running between 707 RPM and 754
RPM. The MAP sensor is running at about 11 inHg part
of the time and 10 inHG the rest of the time meaning
the vehicle is losing 1 inHg of vacuum regularly.
Also, the vehicle had a real problem maintaining a 1

millisecond burn time and the ignition pattern indicated
a lean running condition.
After a complete fuel system service of cleaning the

injectors on the vehicle, de-carboning the engine, and
cleaning the MAF, the engine is idling better and there
is no change in the MAP sensor readings.
The Cruise after Cleaning shows that everything is really

looking better now. This fuel system service on this
vehicle cured the misfire condition and cleared the DTC.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
CASE STUDIES
Chevrolet Astro
Here we have a Chevrolet Astro with three DTCs found.
P0102B, P0300B and P0453B, The P0102B and the
P0453B have already been repaired and we will focus
on the P0300B misfire code.
Keep in mind that all of these are “B” codes which are
two trip codes. “A” codes are single trip codes that can
damage the Catalytic converter and the “B” codes are
not as damaging to the system.
The screen capture to the right shows the misfire history

for this particular vehicle. You can see that Cylinder #3
has a history of 548 misfires. Remember, start with the
cylinder that has the highest number of misfires then
work your way down.
Check the firing order. This will tell you where the
misfiring cylinders are in the firing sequence.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
CASE STUDIES
Chevrolet Astro
This is a screen capture of the idle reading wave

patterns using an exhaust probe. Normally these
patterns would be fairly uniform in appearance. This
pattern shows two patterns that do repeat but the rest
of the pattern does not.
Search the TSB library and see if there are any TSBs
that relate to the vehicle you are working on and the
problem that you have with the vehicle.
It just so happens that there was a TSB relating to the

subject vehicle with a Fuel problem.
To verify that this was actually a fuel related problem,

the instructor disabled the number 3 injector. Notice
that the RPM has dropped to approximately 562 RPM
from approximately 617 RPM and the O2 Sensor went
to a lean condition.
This means that fuel was being delivered to the cylinder

and this rules out the fuel problem and is pointing more
towards an ignition problem.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
CASE STUDIES
Chevrolet Astro
To the right is a lab scope screen capture of the ignition

patterns for this vehicle. As you can see, there is high
resistance on all but one cylinder which means the
problem is common to the entire engine.
Note the arrow on the right side of the screen capture.

All of these cylinders are running at more than 4kV.
Again, this indicates a high resistance that is common
to all of the cylinders in the engine.
This lab scope pattern shows what the ignition patterns

look like after a new cap and rotor have been installed
on the vehicle. Note that the pattern is much more
stable but is still not quite correct.
The vehicle still needs a set of spark plugs and maybe

wires but the cap and rotor was common to all of the
cylinders and replacing it was a good start.
The firing kV dropped from 27.2 to 12.3 which solved

the misfire and rough idle.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
HANDS ON
Vacuum and Scan Tool Testing
Remember that when you do vacuum testing you want

to start out with a Cranking Vacuum Test. You need to
disable either the ignition system or the fuel system. it
is easier to disable the fuel system by removing the fuel
pump relay from the vehicle.
You want to see a fairly steady reading on the gauge

and you need to pull at least 2” of vacuum during
cranking. This vehicle was pulling around 2.5” and
passed the cranking vacuum test.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
HANDS ON
Using a scan tool, we will demonstrate how to use the MAP

sensor like a vacuum gauge in the previous cranking
vacuum test.
Set up your scan tool in custom data stream to only view

the PIDs that you need for this test. By doing this, the
speed of the data will be faster and provide you with a
more accurate reading.
The instructor has set up a Genisys to view only the MAP

inHg and the MAP Volts and has started the cranking
vacuum test.
The test started at about 28 inHg and at about 4.8 Volts.

As the engine was cranking, the MAP inHg fell to 28 and the volts dropped to 4.4. This indicates a 2” drop in
vacuum which is the same 2” of vacuum that was viewed in the test using the vacuum gauge. This shows that the
engine has good volumetric efficiency and is breathing well.
The instructor replaced the fuel pump relay and began

an Idle Vacuum Test. You can see that the vacuum is
just under 20”. This indicates a fairly good running
engine at idle.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
HANDS ON
During the Cruise Vacuum Test, we reached an RPM of

about 2,464 and picked up an additional 1” of vacuum.
Again, this portion of testing is indicating that the
engine is running fine.
The above screen captures demonstrate what you should see during a Snap Throttle Vacuum Test. The capture to
the right shows the vacuum dropping to almost 0” when the throttle is first snapped. The vacuum then increases to
almost 25” as the engine reacts to the snapping of the throttle, then dropped back to its original value of 18”.
Mechanically this engine is in very good shape. This does not mean that there are no other problems with the
vehicle. There may be other things such as fuel or ignition problems but the base engine appears to be in good
condition.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
HANDS ON
The instructor has adjusted the custom datastream to

now include Engine Speed (RPM). The RPM has been
increased to 1216 RPM and the MAP reading continues
to get more stable at around 10 inHg.
The instructor has adjusted the custom datastream to

now include Engine Speed (RPM). The RPM has been
increased to 1216 RPM and the MAP reading continues
to get more stable at around 10 inHg.
As the engine RPM is increased you will see that the

voltage pattern stays pretty good and the MAP pattern
stays pretty good. Remember that you will always have
some variations in the patterns and that this is normal.
During the Snap Throttle Vacuum Test you can see that
the RPM reached 3,928 RPM, the MAP inHg reached a
high of 29 and the MAP Volts reached a high of 4.6.
As the engine returned to idle, all of the values returned

to normal. This test also confirms what was previously
demonstrated in the vacuum gauge test. This is a
mechanically sound engine and our problem is either fuel
or ignition related.

MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS
HANDS ON
Lab Scope Testing
As discussed earlier, you want to be between 5 kV - 15 kV

with a burn time of about 1 millisecond. The pattern shows
that the Peak kV is running at 8.5 kV and the the burn time is
around 1.274 milliseconds.
This indicates that the ignition system on this cylinder is

running pretty close to optimal.
Test each cylinder sequentially and compare your results. This

will tell you if there are cylinders that could have a fuel
problem or have an ignition problem.

LBT 202 Misfire Diagnostics

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MISFIRE DIAGNOSTICS

Presented by Jim Wilson

Automotive Video, Inc.

1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com 1

Misfires are a very common problem facing technicians

Causes of misfires can be attributed to the Fuel system,

General Motors has in fact issued a TSB in relation to

Check with your information provider for more

2 1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com

Electrical misfires can be attributed to the spark plugs,

Lean Fuel Charge misfires can be attributed to a

Rich Fuel Charge misfires can be attributed to a leaking

TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES

We will be covering the use of some of these later on in

1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com 3

TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES

The new “Buzz” word for the Engine is now “ICE”

Basic vacuum tests are wonderful for diagnosing

Cranking Test: Make sure that the throttle plate is

If you see that it is lower, check to make sure that the

Warm Engine Test: The vacuum should read 17”-21”

4 1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com

TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES

Many Technicians are now using Mode $06 in their

You can see in the screen capture that we are looking at

1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com 5

TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES

6 1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com

TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES

Mass Air Flow Sensor: A MAF Sensor that is either

Manifold Air Pressure: A defective MAP sensor can

Throttle Position Sensor: Rare but it does happen. A

Air Charge Temperature Sensor: If the sensor believes

Exhaust Gas Recirculation, Ignition Control Modules,

An example could be a weak fuel pump that will make

All you need is one cylinder that is running lean. The O2

1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com 7

TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES

Misfires in Scan Tool History. Looking at the screen

Below that is the Misfire History Count for Cylinders 1 -

Address your diagnostic testing starting with the

You want to make sure that your RPM is steady. Check

8 1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com

TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES

Engine Condition. Graph MAP and RPM together. The

Less data (PIDs) = more accurate readings.

If the MAP is steady but the RPM is erratic, this indicates

Cylinder Misfire Testing. Another good use of the scan

If the voltage goes high, this indicates a secondary

This a good test to determine a transmission problem as

1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com 9

TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES

Misfire Detection Limits. Not all cars have full range

Diesel engines such as the Power Stroke and Duramax

As we all know by now, GM has had a lot of problems

10 1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com

TOOLS FOR FINDING MISFIRES

GM CAM Retard Tests. The spec is 0 degrees +/- 2

Repeat these steps until the PID indicates 0 degrees.

Random Misfire Testing. Check for ignition timing

You can see that at 1,976 RPM the timing is at 40

If the engine is cold, you should have more timing

1-800-71-TRAIN (1-800-718-7246) OR www.auto-video.com 11