[Scott]

Rrecently bought a 2009 Saturn XR. While driving I noticed when facing a light grade under 2000 rpm there is either a misfire or a transmission shifting problem . This problem ocurrs when we are at highway speed and encounter the uphill. As we head up the grade the Outlook seems to start skipping like crazy. Once we top the hill to a flat or downhill the problem stops. It's very difficult to determine if this is a transmission shift issue or a misfire. Has anyone else experienced this issue and if there are any tech bulletins on the issue and what fixed the problem. - thanks

 

[GM Customer Service]

@s_man, did you purchase the vehicle from a dealership or independent person? Have you made an appointment with a General Motors dealership to have this diagnosed?

I apologize, since I am not a technician at a dealership, I am unable to prove TSB information. This information is for the technicians at the dealership. Providing this type of information to an owner is at their discretion.

Michelle, GM Customer Service

 

[6Sixathome]

My guess is that it's the #5 coil that we've read about on the other forums.

 

[1917 Oldsmobile]

It probably is the a coil pack. Ours acted the same way. We had a #4 coil go bad at 33,000. We had a #2 and 3 go bad at 78,000. The first one was under warranty. The other 2 they wanted $ 835.00 to replace. I told them no. I went and purchased all 6 Bosch coils and all 6 Autolite Iridium plugs for less than $ 400.00. The Intake plenum must be removed to replace 2 of the coils due to interference. You can do a thorough throttle body cleaning while you have the plenum off and save another $125.00. The whole process took less than 2 hours.

PS: When I removed the old coils, they were the exact same part # Bosch coils that I purchased for $62.00 apiece.

I also discovered that possibility of intake plenum gasket leaks may occur due to a mis-assembly of the plenum. It seems that the bolt holes in the plenum are much larger than the bolts that hold it in place. this allows the plenum to locate too far forward or to the rear which can produce a vacumn leak in up to 3 cylinders. I saw this when I removed mine. The outline left by dust settling on the engine for 78,000 miles came right on the very inside edge of the plenum gasket. I realigned the plenum by lightly installing the bolts and then centered the holes in the plenum on the bolts. I likely had a small leak because the Outlook has never run so good since. :thumb:

 

[medicrxdoc]

I have read on BITOG that the ignition system is made by Bosch. In the same post, the original plugs and coils were reported as Bosch. I bet if you would have purchased Bosch iridium they would have been the same as you removed.

 

[Scott]

Thanks for the tips. We finally got Cylinder #1 misfire code so I will be working to fix. Most likely replace all coils, wires and plugs to prevent having to repeat. Looks like the plugs are a little difficut to get to, so if anyone has any tips on removal and replacement it would be appreciated. Thanks for the help.

 

[medicrxdoc]

Good luck with the wires...you don't have any. Its a coil on plug design.

 

[1917 Oldsmobile]

The plugs are about 6 inches deep under the coil packs. You need an extension on your socket wrench. I used a six and a three inch extension to clear my knuckles.

 

[Ljandbucket]

My 2009 Outlook is having the same issue. I've had #5 go around 60,000 then #4 around 70,000 and now #2 at 77,000, all within the last 8 months. Seems like there is someting else going on that is traveling around from cylinder to cylinder. Or these coils are just junk and I should expect them all to go bad. Anyone found If there is an underlying problem beyond just bad coils?