Check engine light

My 2002 overland check engine light is on and I got P0308 when I pulled the codes,which is a misfire detected in cylinder #8. The vehicle is running normal with no rough idling, stalling or loss of power. The plugs have been changed only a few months ago. Anyone have any ideas of what could be causing the light to come on?

I just took it to the dealers and turns out to be low compression in that cylinder. Gonna cost $1000 just to pull the head and check the valves. Does that sound right to anyone? I know its pretty labour intensive to remove the head. Hopefully its the valves and not the pistons.

If it runs as well as you described, I would clear the code, check the compression and if it's normal or even close, drive it with no problems.
I've never heard of a misfire code set by low compression unless it's VERY low, low enough to affect performance.

The stealership just called and gave me more bad news. They said that theres rust on the cylinders and that its on cylinder 3,4 and 8. They only pulled one side of the head and don't know about the other side. Now I'm starting to think they're just trying to dig deeper into my pocket. How can there be rust on the cylinders I asked and they said they don't know. Now the total bill is gonna be $2000ish. What a joke I say. I should've just left it or get a second opinion. Now I'm gonna be out 2 grand and the problem is still not fixed. I told them to just put it back together. If the engine light comes back. I know not to take it to a dealer. What do think I should do next Bob? I mean the vehicle was driving fine except for the check engine light and misfiring code. Thanks a bunch on the info on your first post.

I didn't realize that you had left it with them. ALWAYS get a second opinion, especially if you plan on having the work done by a dealership.
I don't know how you can back out of this without the dealer wanting big bucks for tearing your motor down. And they will just keep pilling on as many repairs as they can.
Maybe ask them how many $ you are into them so far then tow it to a reputable independent mechanic and have them look at it and put it back together.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, unless you are having warranty work done, stay away from the dealer!

Yah, bummer I told them to put it back together already,but maybe I can call them first thing in the morning and tell them to just leave it and get it towed. Can I still do that even if part of the head and its parts are all apart? I also wanted ask you what do you think would cause rust in the cylinders if thats whats really there and not the dealer just telling me that. Thanks again for your input Bob! Much appreciated.

Rust in the cylinders? I have no idea. That should have been a red flag. The only way rust could form and stay on the cylinder walls would be if you only rarely drive it, or if there is a cooling system leak, head gasket leak etc. but you said it was fine right? I would ask `them` exactly what they mean by "rust on/in the cylinders" and what is actually wrong with the motor.

And 2k just to pull a head? You should be able to get a complete top end rebuild for that price.

I don't see any reason why you can't tell them to box the parts up and tow it to another shop - it's your vehicle isn't it?
I would pick it up from the dealer and make them justify every penny they charge - sure sounds like they rolled you.
But It may be too late - they might tell you it's going to be the same price to leave it or reassemble it, but you can try.

Talk to a good repair shop, tell them what you have, that the dealer started work that you think wasn't needed and you need them to check it and put it back together - get at least a ball park figure first.

But be aware -- unless you are a regular customer another shop may hesitate taking on someone else's mess - they won't know what they're getting into so you may have to get a little creative about why you're bringing them a partially disassembled motor.
Just be up front, if it's a good shop they will understand the situation.

I called another shop this morning and they told me to go see if I can bring the head to them to look at. So I called the dealers and ask about taking the head. Told them to hold on the job since the head was still off and told them that I was gonna come take the head to go get checked. Seems they didn't like the idea much, they said that I couldn't just leave my car there and that they need the space which was B.S. There's tons of space in the shop bay area when I got there.

A service lady then asked me how I was gonna take the head cuz she said it was really big and weighs 200lbs. I was thinking what a crock of sh@#. It only weighs about 50lbs. So I asked to see my car and the parts.Seems theres a lot of misinfo between the advisors and technicians. One shop guy was even shaking his head when I told him about the lady saying that the head weigh 200lbs. I got the feeling that they weren't very professional at all. Seems some of them don't have a clue what they're talking about. I go into the shop area and the tech that was working on my car showed me the rust in the cylinder(#8). The walls weren't pitted and didn't look damaged but I'm not a mechanic so I wasn't too sure. There was some discoloration that was rust color. The tech said it looked like the car was sitting for awhile in order for that to happen. I bought the vehicle in 03 and a year later the bottom end of the engine blew. Luckily It was under warranty then. So maybe it sat for awhile before I got it.

I looked at the valves and the seats on the head and the seats looked fine. Again I'm no mechanic but I can see that it didn't looked damaged. The tech at the dealer said the valves weren't sitting quite properly so maybe that would cause the low compression. He lapped them and cleaned them up. He seemed pretty understanding and said he did what he was told. I know now that the service advisor was a scam artist. I asked if the valves are burnt to which he replied "no not really". I think he meant no but didn't really wanna say that it wasn't necessary to pull the head. So I took the head, which weighs about 50lbs to another shop to look at. The mechanic I took it to said the head looked fine and that theres no indication of damage. I asked if they can put it back together. He said it would be better If I just let the dealer put it back because theres alot of loose parts involved and that it would take some time to figure it out since they didn't take it apart. He didn't want to see any missing parts if they were to do it which is understandable. He told me to put it back, drive it and see if the light comes back. If it does then he told me to bring it by. He told me they shouldn"t have pulled the head to begin with but thats partly my fault to because I told them to go ahead.

Anyways to make a long story shorter I 'll know how it goes after its back together. They basically took half the engine components out to get the head off. It looked like a big job from my point of view. So all in all the bill was quoted 2200ish for removing and putting back the head. Sorry for the misinfo. You thought it was 2k just to pull the head off. It didn't sound right when they tried to sell me a used engine after taking the head off my truck. Basically all the options they gave me was to spend anywhere from 8k and up. I told them if I was gonna put that much out to fix it, I might as well trade it in and get a new vehicle. The advisor then said ok and then tried to scare me by saying drive it till it blows up or something. What a jerk I say.

I have a pic that I took of the cylinder but unfortunately the thread won't let me post an attachment. Anyways thanks a bunch for the input Bob...Really appreciate it! By the way my name is Rob...people call me Bobby too..lol.