1990 caravan 3.3 coil pack

jlohrer · #1 12-21-2004, 07:51 PM

Hi all,

I have a 1990 caravan which has been running great up to about 2 months ago. One day it started running very rough - definitely down a couple cylinders. The check engine light came on so I pulled over and by the time I stoped it was running good again. I hooked it up to a computer and it had a code 43. About 2 weeks later it did the same thing. It then ran fine for about a month and yesterday it acted up again - this time it ran rough all the way home. I just hooked the computer up to it again and it has the code 43 - but is now running good again.

Is it possible for the coil pack to be acting up this way or is it more likely a wire between the coil and control module giving me trouble?

Any insight is greatly appreciated.

GTP Dad · #2 12-22-2004, 06:52 AM

Code 43 indicates several things. Primary coil voltage not acheived with max dwell time, cylinder misfire or problem in power module to logic module interface. I would change the plugs and wires before the coils. You probably have a wire going bad, if that is the case the coils won't be far behind. You may also want to change the plugs if they are getting old and look at each one. A wet plug will indicate where the problem may be occuring. The coil isn't that expensive so you can change them if you wish so all the work can be done at once.

murph7727 · #3 12-23-2004, 04:37 PM

I agree with everything that GTP Dad has said. Good luck with it. Keep us posted!

jlohrer · #4 12-24-2004, 09:12 PM

Well, wednesday night I put a new coil pack on...I thought the plugs/wires would be OK because I installed them about 13000 miles ago. Van ran great until this morning when it started acting up again. Tonight I tossed a set of plugs in and changed the wires (always a fun job with cyl. 1, 3, & 5).
Thanks for the suggestions.

jlohrer · #5 12-29-2004, 09:39 AM

Well I have tried the coil pack, plugs, and wires. Runs good for a while then acts up. I then checked for any bad wiring and cleaned all my grounds - same thing, ran good for about 1/2 hour then running rough.

Can any other sensor cause a code 43? Perhaps a bad crank position sensor.

Jason

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