Z22SE z22se misfirs/dies at 1500-1600 rpm

Hi
my zafria z22se automatic y2000, misfires at 1500 rpm. when starting quietly to drive, also when driving on cruise control. But only when engine rpm is 1500-1600. engine must be warm. I have changed almost everything, except the ecu for motor / gear and injectors.

on video, the accelerator presses calmly down and I continue even though the engine drops in rpm. rpm come again when the accelerator is pressed down a little further. keeps the car on the brake in drive. throttle opens fine, all the way.

engine failure lamp, was due to ignition bridge, no name, not dolphin. okay now.

what can be wrong?
 

corsaZ22se

Senior Member
Have you used OEM new parts or aftermarket parts?
They don't like a lot of the cheap branded parts which often cause more faults than it had in the first place.
 
Thanks for the reply.
I have replaced:
Spark plugs
Ignition bridge Delphi
Throttle body
Gas pedal
Map sensor
Coolant sensor
Thermostat
Catalytic converter
Lambda sensors Delphi
Fuel filter

can it be the ecu?
I have a fully functional spareparts car, is it just too swap ecu, key read and chip in key?
 

KevinH

Senior Member
The video above is marked 'Private' so we can't view it.

What type and brand of spark plugs did you fit?
If you're running a normally aspirated Z22SE then the GM triple electrode plugs are the recommended ones.
(part # 9199038 which are the same as Bosch HLR8STEX).

It may be worth checking that the spark plugs have not been overtightened because that can cause the cylinder head to crack and leak coolant into the plug recess, especially cylinder no. 4 as it has a coolant gallery running close by.
The spark plugs have a conical seat (no washer) and should therefore only be tightened to 20 Nm max.
 
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KevinH

Senior Member
Another thought is, with the vehicle covering 305,000 Km (~190,000 miles) have you had the camshaft timing chain renewed or has it got a history of it being renewed?

If not, then it is well overdue for replacement along with the balance shaft chain.
 

corsaZ22se

Senior Member
Yes you can swap the key chip, reader and ECU over to see if the fault goes.
Have you plugged it in to read any fault codes?
Other things to check are the EGR valve if it has one? some didn't have them. ABS sensors and rings along with tyre sizes, if the ABS thinks one wheel is going a different speed to the rest it will active the traction control and this can cause misfires as it reduces the power.
 
Video is okay now.
Spark plugs are the Bosch triple type.
Complete Chain set have 65000km on it.
Egr is blanked off by previous owner. Do that need too be programmed out also?
There are non faults, fault on video is P340. Got a new Delphi ignition bridge, and no faults now.
Traction control… all same tyres, and haven’t got any fault or trouble with ABS.

thank for all the help.
 

corsaZ22se

Senior Member
EGR can be programmed out, have a emulator resistor fitted or leave the valve connected but in free air.

As that fault is only there while moving I still suspect a fault with ABS or the transmission controller? Can you do live data readings and see all 4 wheel speeds while driving?
 
Hi, thanks for your reply.
If I hold the car on the breaks, and give it gas gently. Then I can provoke it to happen. That’s what I did on the video.
Lately sometimes I’ve seen the speedo and taco, move backwards and flicking for 2 sec when I starts the car.
What if I pull the fuse for ABS, then it can’t do anything, right?
And now the car has been working perfectly for 4 days… but don’t think it will keep working…
 

corsaZ22se

Senior Member
The needles flicking sounds a bit like a poor connection or a bad earth somewhere?
Is the earth to the engine in good order? the earth for the ECU bolted directly to it's outer casing and the other end on the front of the block under the inlet manifold? you can get to these from under the car. There is either 1 or 2 points and usually 3 wires in total bolted on there.
Now I see more detail that the fault occurs once the engine is under load?
 
Hi.
I have now also replaced the ecu. Still having problems.
When driving at little throttle input or cruise control 40 mph, it feel like it misfires, when it needs a little more throttle.

if I park for 5 min. It for sure will not pull away smoothly. It dies for a sec. and the pulls away okay.
Where is the transmission controller location?
I will try swapping it out.
 
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