P0301 Chrysler 2000 Intrepid. Help appreciated.

Hello all,

I'm new to this so bare with me. I've never posted to anything before.

Some car history...I own a 2000 Chrysler Intrepid 3.2 L. 205,000km, purchased when there was 165,000km on it. Purchased it from from an aquaintance who was a Millright and part-time mechanic and son of a mechanic. He had purchased the car from someone after the engine had blown, he dropped a used replacement engine in it, from same year and make and rebuilt it as he went. He says nearly everything was rebuilt and replaced that needed maintenance at the time.

Approximately 3weeks ago, error code P0301 entered my life. I had noticed for several months prior, sporadically, at times of high rpm on the highway (passing someone) etc the car would start to hesitate and sputter. The engine light would start to blink but once I settled down to a consistent speed again, the light would go off and no code ever registered. Till 3 weeks agow that is, now the light is permanent. The car is shaking and sputtering everytime i drive it for the last few days and this weekend on the 31st is the scheduled "Operation". I would like to attempt some minor troubleshooting and minor repairs myself if possible. I like to tinker but I'm a little put off as this is the newest vehicle i've owned. I'm not used to Engine lights and error codes or even fuel enjected vehicles. My last vehicle was a 1985 Pontiac Parisienne Broughm. A roomy 305 carburated engine. I had the opportunity to rebuild a starter, and alternator for that vehicle as well as replace wires, plugs, distributor, radiator, hoses and belts, water pump, thermostat, fuel pump and fuel filter. And boy....it was pretty easy and roomy with that car. I could have crawled under that hood for a nap. This Intrepid..different story.

Any advice for this error code would be grateful. I've reviewed this site and already found 9 possible causes for this one error code..everything from plugs and wires to faulty fuel injector and defective computer?? Anyway of isolating the cause faster?

Thanks!

yeah take the plug out for cyl#1 and see how worn it is, check it's gap etc, if it looks okay then the coil for #1 and switch it with #3, if it starts to miss on 3 then coil is bad. You may only require a tune-up

Hey there,

Will do. I will start with the plugs and then perhaps the coils if need be. I was really hoping to get more out of them. My repair manual states they should be replaced every 60,000miles (95,000ish km) and I've had this car for only around 40,000km, supposedly after a complete major tuneup was performed on the used engine that was dropped into it. Ah well...what can ya do.

What kind of life can you expect from an O2 Sensor? This information is not listed that I can see... Can it also be causing these driving symptoms? I do need exhaust work from the Converter back.... Just a thought.

Thanks again for your original advice!

o2's can last awhile depending on variables like fuel quality, driving habits, whether the engine burns oil, coolant, runs rich alot etc, it's not likley the cause of that code but it certainly won't hurt to change them out using good quality replacements. It'll likely will lead to better fuel mileage once the misfire is resolved.

Excellent,


I will do some investigating on costs for the 02 sensors. I did some research on location and its seems there are 4 on my car, 2 in front of the catalytic converter and 2 behind. As I said, I need a new exhaust from the converter back so I might as well include it into my estimates.

Thanks alot for the info!
Looks like this will be a busy weekend. Heh heh.