Ignition coil pack & spark plugs?

[iGas]

2 years ago I replaced the #5 ignition coil pack with an aftermarket part on my 2007 Camry V6 2GR-FE that wasn't covered by the warranty. Now I get an intermittent error of P0304, P0300, P0301, P0534, and the my car only have 44,800 miles on the odometer.

Should I just go ahead and replace all 6 ignition coil packs with aftermarket parts that available on ebay for $120, instead of replacing only the #4 ignition coil pack?

Should I go with OEM or aftermarket parts, and which make is the best?

http://www.ebay.com/bhp/2007-toyota-camry-ignition-coil

or take my car in to the stealer ship for service at $200 per coil pack + labor + taxes?

And, what iridium spark plugs are best for Japanese cars, Bosch, Denso, NGK?

Thanks.


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[SpatiallyAware]

The p0534 doesn't show anything for me.

I have dealt with bad aftermarket coils before, I only use OEM or name brand... IE bosch.. None of the china ebay junk.

If it's simple I would swap the coil and see if the code follows it before spending a bunch of money.

 

[phucheneh]

I use NGK in everything from every continent. Never had an issue. Also never had wrong gaps or bent electrodes out of the box. Denso is also good, they're next in line if NGK's aren't in stock for a particular application. Or maybe if I know Denso to be OEM.

You have a random misfire code, and cyls 1 and 4 misfires. The last code, P0534, I had to google. It appears to have something to do with the A/C system, but I'm not getting a clear picture of the ECM sees that causes it to be set.

I highly doubt you need six coilpacks. May have never even needed one. Misfires are flagged based upon the signal being sent by the crankshaft sensor; it's not just a code concerning the ignition system. But it's still a fairly basic problem to troubleshoot, most of the time. Boils down to: spark, fuel, compression. That's it.

Make sure you know the cylinder number on your engine. The bank towards the front bumper should be 2-4-6, the one by the firewall is 1-3-5. Also worth noting that cyls 1 and 4 are companion cylinders...they hit TDC at the same time, but one is on the exhaust stroke while the other is on compression. If it were a waste spark system (uses three coils instead of six, fires two plugs at once), that would be a strong indicator for an issue with that coil. But with a six COP setup, it's probably just coincidence.

Is the misfire there all the time?

If it's not setting primary or secondary winding codes, you probably don't have a wiring issue. But I'd still check for a constant 12v and a pulsed ground from the ECM just to be sure. Also can check the resistance of the windings while the coils are off. Then inspect the inside of the plug wells for 1 and 4 (other cylinders could be having issues, as well, but I'd go off of the obvious culprits first), and pull the plugs. Are they black? Wet with fuel?

Next step would be doing essentially the same tests for injectors- power supply, ground from ECM, resistance of solenoid windings. Then compression test.

edit: yeah, swapping coils is the quick check. I would just worry that he's having pretty massive misfire issues and would try not to run the car for too long. Don't wait for the CEL, have a scan tool hooked up and shut it down once some cylinders get flagged in pending.

 

[Jimzz]

I've used a lot of aftermarket parts and never had a problem with any name brand ones. Just go for the cheapest name brand (like wells, GP, standard, airtex, etc...) and you should be fine. Many are made in the same manufactory, even pulled some aftermarket ones from OEM boxes and vise versa.


But I agree with what was said, swap the coils and reset the engine light. If the next set of codes follow the coil you know what to do. If it stays on the original Cyl you move the plug and start again.

 

[bruceb]

I would replace the spark plug and the plug wires (if used) reset the code and see if it returns. If it does, then suspect the coil pack. Plugs and wires are cheaper than the coil and they will fail. Wires go bad with age and the plug could have a very small crack on the insulator which will cause a misfire. And I agree, the NGK plugs are very good and reasonable cost.

 

[iGas]

Thanks all for the replies.

It turn out that #4 ignition coil failed, and the engine run perfectly after I replaced it with an Intermotor ignition coil.

I think I will go ahead and purchase the 6 ignition coil pack kit, because it is the second Toyota ignition coil that failed in the last 2 years.

 

[phucheneh]

It's unlikely that a bad #4 coil caused all the misfire codes you listed. Cylinders 1 and 4 have combustion strokes that are as far apart as they can possibly be, so the ECM is not going to flag #1 by mistake.

 

[iGas]

It's unlikely that a bad #4 coil caused all the misfire codes you listed. Cylinders 1 and 4 have combustion strokes that are as far apart as they can possibly be, so the ECM is not going to flag #1 by mistake.

I agree, however every single coil look good upon visual inspection except for #4. And I didn't need to clear the error code log, because the engine light went off by it self after I installed a new #4 coil.
And thamks, I will keep an eye on it for the next few weeks to see if any else creep up.

 

[kitatech]

As for plugs, Denso are the OEM of choice but...I've read on the net of FACTORY INSTALLED 3 Densos AND 3 NGK in the V6...either will work great...I replaced the factory Densos in my Camry L4 (@100k miles) with Densos @ $7/ea @ Advance Auto Parts on sale...

 

[rhondas]

a similar situation as your camery testing my coil 2001 sonata
How do I test a coil for a 4 cylinder 2001 sonata for example there 3 pins when you pull off the connector
on the coil ,what pins do I put my probes from my digital vol ohm meter on and how many ohms is good or bad, then how do you check the secondary part like where do you plase the ohm meter probes? thanks foro any one that can help me my no 1 cylinder has a 301 missing code,engine check light is on

 

[tortillasoup]

sometimes you cannot check the resistance of the coil packs with the multimeter. I don't know about your car but I know on a Toyota and a Honda I worked on, neither of them had a way for testing the COPs and the service manual simply stated to do a process of elimination and then finally change out the part to resolve the issue.