RootBreaker

Ok so I did search but didnt find the answer...

anyway... I had the wires and plugs changed at 100k by someone else as I didnt want to do it..
so now I have 185k and the car bucks during rain storms.. so needs plugs and wires....

I replaced them this weekend and man was that a disaster!!!! very hard and time consuming...

anyway... I fired the car up and still has the problem... well I drove it to work and it ran like crap...

so at work im talking to a guy that had a 1995 3.4l and mine is a 1996 3.8l and he changed his wires..

I did change 1 coil as I replaced a coil last month that fixed my other issue then...

so I figured maybe I mixed the wires up.. well I rotated them and now the car runs.... seems to.. havent taken it out yet.... but no check engine light as I cleared the codes...


so I looked on the sticker on the rad support of the firing order.... I then notice that the guy that did the wires last time must have mixed everything up... but not too much as the car has ran for 85k miles fine...


so my question.. yes I finally have a question...

from the front of the car back the sticker says 6 is the first plug. Well that first one is going to the passenger side front plug...

my father whom is a mechanic told me that start at drivers side is 1 but then he looked it up in the book and said.. oh seems they changed it on v6's (he doesnt work on 6's usually)

so I guess cylinder 1 is the front passenger side? and if so how can the car run good due to my first coil, first pin is going to the passenger side front plug?

Fierotom

I hope I can help you.....

If you stay in the front of the car you see right hand the coilpack
first wire you see next to you ist #6
then #3, #2, #5#, #4, #1 (coilpack!)

left hand cylinder bank is - front to rear: 2, 4, 6
and right hand bank is - front to rear: 1, 3, 5

(left hand : passenger side)

RootBreaker

I appreciate the reply.
We got it working last night.
Some how the guy that did the plugs and wires at 100k messed it up all the way but had the car running. Im almost positive that he had the first one instead of going to 6 that it was to 2.. then from there I dont remember....

but seems that during the night we saw a lazer light show... front coil pack was bad. Replaced it then the multi missfire went away but I got a missfire cylinder 6. We took the coilpack up and cleaned the pins.... put it back, replugged in the wire on both ends and still didnt fix it. So we pulled the plug to see if it was fouled... well worse.. new plug was cracked.. must have did that upon putting it in as it was hard to get in to begin with as the 02 sensor is in the way!!!!!
car is running but I still need to replace the heater core hose as that piece of plastic broke (think designed to) a few years ago... I just put a coupler in and did away with it.. well the hose clamp cut into it now...

smithtim

You might want to check to see if this firing order varies from year to year as if I remember right my front left cylinder was #4 on a 97 3.8 but that is off hand and I may be remembering it backwards?? anyways it should be diagrammed in a Chilton's or whatnot

Also if you did have the wrong plug wire on a cylinder I am pretty sure it would throw a cylinder specific code

Fierotom

The firing order is: 1, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2

I read the 1998 GM-Service Manual up and down, but I don't see a picture with the cylinder numbers..... Damn it!

But I'm 100% sure, #4 is not at the beginning of a bank!
It's 1-3-5 and 2-4-6
Only possible mistake in my description is that I mixed up left and right hand
But I'm not sure

I went tomorrow to the garage and look under the hood, my wires a numbered

Don350k

Agreed 100% right on FO

viper03af

smithtim

anybody know if this is it the same on the firebird as camero or is it a generic for the GM 3.8??


as I'm thinking I might have my #2 & #4 wires reversed on my fbird, and that’s probably something I want to double check before I finish of this rebuild and see if the old girl will crank up for me


thanks,

Tim