jeff ,
you have a natural knack to explore which is great - don't let anyone or anything take that away from you .
That said ,would you please stop playing quite so vigorously/carelessly with your ignition - bare handed ?
(you're married FCOL - so do it for her)
You may have that special body resistance (trace minerals and good clean living - whatever that really means helps ..... although the right kind of beer doesn't hurt either) -or so it would seem from a distance .
And with that said (times two) thats all useful observation from the rest of your evening's work .
I'm going to be up and down all night so I probably won't be functioning early AM and you will .
So here are a few things that I hope will help you tomorrow AM .( I'll end up in useable form at noon at the latest ) .
1) However you do it , stay totally open minded ( previous conversation/list ) - we are a long way from
definitive conclusions although you have done
much to narrow things down today and previously .
Do not assume anything - including a fuel system malfunction . Just test , observe , and eliminate - don't have a point of view but don't give up your intuition either -use it sparingly or not at all but always have it ready .
2) As an example , I still think you have an ignition system performance issue but its not at all clear what that is ( although its much clearer what it is not ) and I less confidently expect that to be a #2 kinda deal possibly with a twist .
I also think in general terms this should be pursued later , and that its not necc. your main or most important problem ( This could be completely or partially wrong )
You have eliminated some and reduced odds on much and also developed information that will be very useful later in this ignition area .
Do one thing in this area if you have time and it is easy ; find out if there is a minimum resistence
required here in OEM terms or "practical" terms for your spark plug wires as opposed to a maximum .( we can get into all that tomorrow if needed )
4) Now that you have a VOM/MM there are many , many things you can do and you can multiply the value of that when you combine using a VG ,VOM/MM , and whatever you have been doing to get OBD2 codes .
Also with regards to the many other posters/owners observations and others who have insight as well . Although we are in mild disagreement in an academic kind of way I would point out Gary Allan in this regard as well as a lot of early unacknowledged posters in your thread here - the onesies and twosies - its very much worth reading your thread from front to back for those kinds of things .
3)Try to systematize your work (plan your work - work your plan ) - including writing things down .
Just a thought , but now that you have a vacuum gauge , a VOM/MM , a borrowed fuel pressure gauge , and maybe some other stuff plus at least part of the day off for this I suggest (only) that you consider starting over and using your manuals troubleshooting guide if it has one .
I sense you want to learn ,and if we have failed here as a group it is that you aren't being encouraged to learn an orderly
method or way of thinking which does sometimes vary from vehicle to vehicle . Then there are the principles - which are basically of a universal sort .
So having said all the above and armed with a little more experience ( B.S. term for mistakes made
) I would do exactly the same thing !
5) So ,what I'm thinking in my own mind ( without manual) is that if nothing else I would really ,really like to see you eliminate all non ignition possibilities including a few
electrical ones as well that may or may not be affecting your ignition system . ( ignition switch/grounds #1 )
More than anything however , I would like to see the fuel system in every possible aspect eliminated or at least made very less likely .
Also the ignition coil and if possible the igniter module - if its still located under the cap . ( These usually can be checked by simple VOM/MM tests ) .
BTW , make sure you disconnect the Battery when needed - I 've just about given up on you and personal electrical safety
so this is to avoid damage to your vehicle if nothing else .
Its a good rule of work to make sure in a positive kind of way( informationally) as opposed to assuming or guessing that the battery should be hooked up or not during a test .
Final thought when you make a
change as opposed to a test do them one at a time and run the engine enough to know that things have either changed or not . In this way you will have better information for the future .
Same logic in regards to TB cleaning etc .
