02 Alero engine sputtering

I have an 02 Alero, 3.4L V6 with 175k miles that began sputtering out of the blue. I was talking with a friend while the engine warmed up on a cold night and the exhaust started sounding odd and the vehicle began to vibrate. Taking a quick look under the hood, the PCV valve was rattling and it seemed to have a misfire. The whole compartment smelled like gasoline as did the exhaust. The service engine light was flashing on the dashboard. I was able to drive the car a couple miles home but am afraid to try my luck again. The car has not needed any major service up until this point. Just wondering what may be causing this so I can budget for repairs. Thanks

Obviously, with the CE light flashing, you have a bad misfire, which can create all the symptoms you described......approach the problem as a misfire.....

Last tuneup? Condition of wires/plugs? Check coil terminals for corrosion....check coil output....check fuel pressure.....check compression.....could be an injector problem.....

Check codes...obviously a P0300 is set....check for others.....

Car should not be driven.....that flashing CE light is warning you of possible catalytic converter damage due to the severe misfire....

Pulled the codes today and it had the PO300 as well as P1189. Replaced all plugs and wires but it did not correct the problem. The shop only pulled the codes and did not offer to dive deeper and find the problem

replace the ignition control module (ICM)

Did you tell the shop to just replace the plugs/wires, or did you ask then to diagnose it?

They could have easily checked coil output to determine if it was coil(s) or ICM.....