Hey all, new to the forum.
I have a base 2009
987.2 Cayman
, right at 99K miles. Owned for 2 years now, added about 10K miles. Never tracked it under my ownership and have not done any repairs or work outside of the shifter cables.
This morning, I go to leave for work and when I start the car, it runs pretty rough and is vibrating a lot. After idling for a bit, it pops a check engine light ("go to a workshop", I think) and a 'reduced engine power' warning message. I read the codes and got P0303, the cylinder 3 misfire. Now, here is some context that might help with a diagnosis.
1. The weather - it sat for 4 days without driving in our coldest weekend of the year. It went down well below freezing a few times. It was garaged, so it was dry but cold.
2. The
battery
- in the last few months, especially after not driving it for a week or so, I've noticed it hesitates just for a second or two longer when starting. I'm thinking it's the
battery
on its way out. I'm not sure if it was replaced before I got it so at minimum it's a 2 year old
battery
, could be older.
3. The coils - this is my guess based on my prior experiences. My
BMW
E46 coils were the first thing I wrenched on as a high schooler, so I'm well versed. I have no reason to believe these are anything other than original coils, so 100K miles on them.
My question is, has anyone else had experience with a misfire in any of the similar circumstances like above? I've read some things about low voltage causing weird issues, or excessive cold causing things to crack prematurely. Not sure if I should expect anything based on my circumstances.
My plan tomorrow is to test the
battery
voltage first, replace if needed. Misfire or not it probably needs to be done.
Next
would be ordering coil/
spark plug
kit and plan on doing that upon arrival. Luckily this is not my only car so I'm not completely stranded.
Thanks for any input/suggestions.
Hi - welcome to
Planet-9, The Fast Response Team Forum!
#1 - I think it might have worsened a weak battery condition..
#2 - if you don't know the history of it - replace it
#3 - excellent idea. Coils and plugs. The base 2009 engine calls for them at 40k mile intervals. SO.. if they weren't done at 80k miles - they have at least 60k miles on them, and at 100k miles I can about promise you'll find cracked coil towers when you remove them. They owe you nothing at all.
BTW - did you use to hang out on BMW forums (car or bike) I moderated? I love numbered questions! Makes it SO easy to respond. I've been using the same username for about 20 years..
Two other things:
Please visit:
https://www.planet-9.com/forums/new_members/
- and introduce yourself and your car. We like pictures of your car. You - not so much.
And please read:
https://www.planet-9.com/threads/before-posting-a-technical-question-please-read.254556/
- although you've done a wonderful job so far (another reason I think you must have been on a forum I modded..)
And finally (hey - a 3rd thing.. go figure) - I'm moving this to the tech section. A lot of stuff gets moved from Chat to tech sections because they get better attention there. Hang on..
