About a week ago I noticed that my Ridgeline started to hesitate and skip a bit. At first I thought it was some sort of Transmission issue. So the hesitation got worse, the vehicle acted like is was misfiring or not getting enough gas. The hesitation was getting worse, and the check engine light would flash when the vehicle was hesitating. I read some postings and saw some where someone had written up a similar situation. That lead me to believe it was the EGR Valve, so I replaced it. Vehicle still hesitates and the check engine light came on and stayed and the VTM-4 light also came on and stayed on. I used an OBD 2 reader and it showed an OBD Code P0304 (Cylinder 4 Misfire Detected). I reset the code and now the code has not come back, but the check engine light is back to flashing and the hesitation is still there. From what I have read, it is unlikely that it could be a spark plug, truck has 57K miles on it. If anyone has any thoughts or has seen this before any information is appreciated.
OBD Code P0304 (2006 Ridgeline)
1 - 7 of 7 Posts
The first thing I would check is the coil pack. I have seen that happen a lot. You can swap it with the coil pack from #4 cyl and see if the misfire is now on #4. Another thing I have seen a lot on that motor is tight valves causing misfires. But most of the time it is not very noticable. But it will cause the check engine light to come on. And yes I have seen that on Hondas with less than 60k on them. Hope that helps. And just so you know, I am a Honda tech...
If it's happening (only) during the first five minutes after cold start-up, it may very well be a tight valve.
Do you use injector cleaner occasionally? Might not be a bad idea, but, as was said, the coil pack could be bad, or even the spark plug boot isn't pushed on properly.
BTW, no connection, but tranny fluid is probably overdue, based on age.
:act018:
Do you use injector cleaner occasionally? Might not be a bad idea, but, as was said, the coil pack could be bad, or even the spark plug boot isn't pushed on properly.
BTW, no connection, but tranny fluid is probably overdue, based on age.
:act018:
Tight valves will still cause a misfire even when warm. Had a MDX the other day with a slight hesitation even when warm. MAP reading was too high and short term fuel trim was too low. Exhaust valves were very tight. After the adjustment the hesitation was gone. But this problem sounds more like a bad coil pack. It is posable the injector is bad or stuck but that is very rare.
Thanks for the replies to the post. Interesting how this is playing out. So I took the truck to a local shop (one I have used before). So we moved the coil pack to another cylinder and determined that the it was bad. Put a new coil pack in, cleared the code. Took the truck down the road, and same issues and check engine light came on, same P0304 code. Mechanic believes that we got a bad coil pack. Ordered another, and we will install first thing tomorrow morning.
One thing I have learned from this forum is to follow the MM, not knowing if the first owner followed the MM closely. I changed oil, transmission, transfer case and VTM the day I brought it home.
I will post again, to let you know if the second coil pack fixes the issue.
One thing I have learned from this forum is to follow the MM, not knowing if the first owner followed the MM closely. I changed oil, transmission, transfer case and VTM the day I brought it home.
I will post again, to let you know if the second coil pack fixes the issue.
Joined
·
4,590 Posts
I'm always suspicious when supposedly new, out of the box parts fail to fix a problem and the first thing the mechanic says is that the new part must be bad, so let's try another one. Was the replacement coil OEM or an aftermarket part.
I'm a cheapskate by nature and am always looking for a less expensive part, but with the Ridgeline I'm finding out if it don't say Honda on the box, it ain't going fix your problem. I'm sure there are ways to check a coil pack to see if it's good or not. If you mechanic hasn't done so, look for another mechanic.
1 - 7 of 7 Posts
