P030X Random Misfire & Limp Mode Questionaire and Discussion Thread

[zzyzx]

Yesterday evening while slowly accelerating to about 5.5k RPMs (light load), I got a CEL.

Steve @ BBR kindly pulled the code and it's the P0300 "random misfire" code - I told him not to reset it. I went straight to the dealership, primarily to "document" the event with Ford, and two hours later they confirmed the same, with little explanation and cleared the code.

Today on the way home from work, CEL lights up again, this time going around 80 in 6th gear - at least that's when I noticed it.

It seems 2012YellowBoss and I both have a chronic case of the P0300, and he's told me that this can lead (has for him) to limp mode, which is not something I look forward to.

Anyways, figured I would start a thread here about this since there are at least two of us in the same situation with no readily apparent resolution to the issue.

 

[cloud9]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Take it back to the dealer and have them perform the Crankshaft Sensor Relearn. It has all but eliminated the issue for most people. It seems to keep happening to Scott but that's because he got such an early build that his car was assembled by hand on a Friday night right before the Tool concert

 

[zzyzx]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Thanks for the tip, Gary!

That will likely be my mantra when I go back to the dealership. I'm out of town until Monday, so next week we'll see.

That said, it seems KBBOSS1086 is also having a recurring issue, with no resolution. Refer to the "Warranty" thread in this subforum. I've posted there and requested him to post up his details here.

 

[2012YellowBoss]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Today on the way home from work, CEL lights up again, this time going around 80 in 6th gear - at least that's when I noticed it.

I may have miss something in your email, sorry. If you are not hitting the rev limiter then this sounds like a real mis-fire, plugs, coil pack or something else. You should be no where near the 7500 at 80 MPH in 5TH. The only thing that does not fit is the P0300 code and not a certain cylinder.

Take it back to the dealer and have them perform the Crankshaft Sensor Relearn. It ha all but eliminated the issue for most people. It seems to keep happening to Scott but that's because he got such an early build that his car was assembled by hand on a Friday night right before the Tool concert

You car was about two Mustangs behind mine ;D Maybe it was not meant for beginners :

I was fine after the first re-learn until I threw the 0131 0020 and 0022 codes, now it happens all the time

 

[KBBOSS1086]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Here is a quick summary of issues I've had with misfires:

1st time: CEL flashed for several seconds while using TK - at approx 4500rpm. Car went into limp mode for a few seconds. Light went out and car ran fine. Spoke to Ford Racing was told to take it to the dealer and have them perform a nutreul profile re-learn. Dealer found code P0304 and performed the re-learn

2nd time: At a track event. CEL's for P0304 & P0300 occurred 3 out of 5 runs with and without TK. I cleared the codes and moved on.

3rd time: At track event. 3 out of 4 runs the CEL came on - some flashing with Limp mode active and others a steady light. Codes P0300, P0304 & P0307. Cleared them and continued on. First time was with TK - all other runs with silver key.

4th time: At track event. 4 out of 4 runs a CEL came on whilke using silver key. Same codes as above, some flashing w/limp mode and some without. Cleared and left track.

On my way home from the last event the light came back on. I contacted Ford Racing and they once again told me to take it to the dealer. This time the light was for a catalytic issue (P0420 & P0430). Dealer ran a drive cycle and could not find any problmes. The cat codes cleared themselves and did not come bacj. Car deamed fine. Dealer told me that they would not look at the car any more (even if it happened again). RegionalFord rep told Service manager that since the car was used on teh track that all warranty coverage was void.

Many are talking about these misfires as being phantom - In my case, I don't think so as the cat codes were most likely due to excessive fule entering the cat after misfires (at least that is what the dealer told me).

Emailed Ford Racing wiht all the info from the dealer, stating that they donce agein found no issues and therefore did nothing. Ford Racing's response was to take it back again wen it happens. I guess they missed the part where the dealer told me not to bring th ecar back...

I was able to find some additional info on this problem on aother forum. It appears that Ford may be aware of these issues when on track. From what I read it has to do with a flimsy wiring harness. Which is one reason i suspect that a beefier one is used in the 302R. I also read that Rousch identified this problem and has upgraded some of their car with better harnesses.

 

[zzyzx]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Great write up Sean. Please keep us posted on what FCC and/or Ford Racing does to resolve your issue.

It looks so far like I'm the only 2013 lucky enough to have similar issues - at least that we know of at this point. And not only that, but the one lucky enough to have it happen @ 400 miles on the ODO and NOT on the track.

That said, I ordered a nice scan tool which will be here Monday. I'm assuming that the current CEL is the same, but I'll know Monday for sure what codes are involved and will post them up.

 

[cloud9]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

I was able to find some additional info on this problem on aother forum. It appears that Ford may be aware of these issues when on track. From what I read it has to do with a flimsy wiring harness. Which is one reason i suspect that a beefier one is used in the 302R. I also read that Rousch identified this problem and has upgraded some of their car with better harnesses.

Bingo. When you said you had the cat codes my first reaction was wiring harness. I had very similar experiences to yours and then had the Crankshaft Sensor Relearn done last fall and haven't had the P030x issue any more. Then at Road America a couple weeks ago I got some P0010 and P0155 cat codes. Took it in to the dealer and they were told by Ford to replace the entire wiring harness. Two weeks prior I had P0022 and P0020 codes intermittently and we found it was a broken pin on one of the connectors to the camshaft sensor. They fixed the pin at that point and solved the issue. I was told the early builds had bad wiring harnesses and supposedly several of the first cars were stopped before shipment for wiring harness replacements. I'm curious what build # is yours? It certainly sounds like you need a new wiring harness.

 

[2012YellowBoss]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Always hate hearing stuff like this Sean. It does not make sense that they would turn away work they are getting paid for in the first place. Plus we pay for certain amount of warranty when you buy the car.

Besides that the car was made to work up to 7500 RPM and 155 MPH, there is no doubt about that. I would ask them if they think the car should be covered throwing the same code on a public highway at 140 in traffic vs. doing it on a safe controlled environment like a close track? Simply stupid thinking there

Back on topic (think I said this before) I would like to get a Ford authorized patch to stop the codes on the silver key, like it is suppose to do with the red key. I would take out the Trackey program and have my full warranty back with no difference in lap times. Wishful thinking.

Edit, I doubt but not sure you are getting excess fuel into the cats while at the rev limiter. I assume it also cuts gas along with electric when the rev limiter is active. From what I understand when you coast in newer cars gas is not being pumped into the cylinders, just air.

 

[zzyzx]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

So this thread is closely related:

https://trackmustangsonline.com/boss-302-technical-forum/help!-p0010-and-p0012-camshaft-position-sensor-issues/

Sean - If you haven't you'll want to read through that thread in detail.

 

[KBBOSS1086]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Thanks for the link, Pete and for rest of the help/support everyone. It's been 2 days since my last email to Ford Racing (basically begging them for help) and no response.

I can deal with and am more than patient to work through problems with the dealer and/or Ford, but at this point my local dealer will not work on the car again (after their regional rep told them that they would not be reimbursed for warranty work since I've tracked the car). I've called several others in the area and none of them have any interest in troubleshooting this type of problem. (the dealer I bought the car off of is over 2 hours away and did not impress me with their service when I had a problem 2 days after picking the car up)

My next step is to call Ford Customer Care on Monday. If that doesn't work I really don't know what I'm going to do. As much as this impacts my time when I track the car it really hasn't looked good for Ford. The car get's enough attention on track day's...I guess Ford doesn't mind 100+ track enthusiasts (or potential target customers) seeing me pull off every run to reset CEL's. Let alone what I have to say to them about how little Ford Racing and the dealers have done to fix the problem.

 

[ORANGE CRUSH]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

I think my next truck might be a Dodge.

 

[cloud9]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Thanks for the link, Pete and for rest of the help/support everyone. It's been 2 days since my last email to Ford Racing (basically begging them for help) and no response.

I can deal with and am more than patient to work through problems with the dealer and/or Ford, but at this point my local dealer will not work on the car again (after their regional rep told them that they would not be reimbursed for warranty work since I've tracked the car). I've called several others in the area and none of them have any interest in troubleshooting this type of problem. (the dealer I bought the car off of is over 2 hours away and did not impress me with their service when I had a problem 2 days after picking the car up)

My next step is to call Ford Customer Care on Monday. If that doesn't work I really don't know what I'm going to do. As much as this impacts my time when I track the car it really hasn't looked good for Ford. The car get's enough attention on track day's...I guess Ford doesn't mind 100+ track enthusiasts (or potential target customers) seeing me pull off every run to reset CEL's. Let alone what I have to say to them about how little Ford Racing and the dealers have done to fix the problem.

That's too bad the dealer isn't working better with you. Some of us are spoiled to have dealers that will make more of an effort to make things right. I suggest you PM Deysha over on The Mustang Source. It seemst that any issues with the Boss that get elevated at Ford get the proper attention.

 

[KBBOSS1086]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Thanks Gary. I just sent her a message. I will post back when I hear more.

 

[zzyzx]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Ok, I now have a nice scan tool.

If you recall, I went in and had the dealer reset the P0300, then the CEL came back on that same day (last Wednesday).

Now I've confirmed it's another P0300 Random Misfire Detected DTC.

Here's the Freeze Frame data (partial):

Calc LOAD(%): 34.5
ECT (F): 195
Eng RPM: 3946
Veh Speed (mph): 81
Spark Adv(deg): 40
IAT (F): 93
MAF (lb/min): 5.759
TPS(%): 22.7
Run Time(sec): 728
Fuel Level(%) 50.9
Clr Dist(mile): 24
BARO(inHg): 29.8
LOAD Value (%): 22.7
Rel TPS(%): 10.5
Ambient(F): 89

I wrote the ones I actually understand. There are a lot of others.

So, this confirms what I thought was happening:
1. Light load.
2. Not at redline.
5. Below 5k RPMs.

I'm at < 500 MI, and still taking the "mild" engine break in approach per the Boss owners manual. Given the RPMs, looks like this happened when I downshifted to 4th gear to vary engine RPM. I've completely avoided constant engine speed by simply down/then up shifting while on the highway and varying load via throttle.

I have noticed a pretty obvious abruptness in partial throttle engine response - hesitations / hiccups - as it crawls up in RPMs. However, I've ignored this as this is pretty common in many vehicles and the engine is still breaking in. I guess it's possible that these two issues are in fact correlated. Hard to say at this point.

Next step is a long write up of all that others have reported, including my details and sending this to my salesman and will go from there.

 

[CaliMR]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

I have not experienced any hiccuping, I don't think that is normal.


The misfire code, is that knock triggered? It sounds like it is. I do know that some cars will knock on shifts, my old car did though it was mostly phantom knock (confirmed by det cans). Is it normally during acceleration or shifts?

 

[2012YellowBoss]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Still sounds to me like you may have an actual misfire problem plug, coil, etc. While it would be nice to see a code that is not random like P0306, it is not uncommon to see the 0300 even with a real problem. As an example I had a small piece debris in an injector on my V10 F250. It was only that one cylinder missing but it only gave me a random misfire.

One easy thing you can check is the connectors to the coil packs, lightly push one in and make sure they are all clipped in.

 

[zzyzx]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

^ Yep, that's my take on it.

I don't know if the code reset itself, or I unintentionally did, but it's off right now. I took it for a long drive and it did not occur during the drive.

I've pulled the neg. terminal and I'm going to reconnect it in the AM, and let the engine come up temp. on 93 octane, which I've been using from the beginning, but I know that the dealer put 87 in it. This should "erase" it's memory of running on 87, and I'll see if it does anything to smooth things out.

I'm going to do a visual inspection of all the applicable connectors in the AM.

 

[KBBOSS1086]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

ZZYZX - based on everything I've gone through with misfires and not being able to get them corrected, I'd suggest not erasing the codes do there is a record of them ocurring. I erased many and I think I'd be getting more help from Ford if I had left proof of the CEL's. If you in-fact have a problem the dealers will likely do nothing until they've seen the code(s) for themselves numerous times.

I believe (feel free to correct me anyone) but the engine light should go off after 2 warm-up/cool down cycles if the misfire doesn't happen again. Again, I may be wrong but I think the computer will store all codes that are not manually cleared for a certain length of time. This (IMO) will be helpful in proving that you have a problem.

 

[zzyzx]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Sean - Agreed. And though I read in another thread it takes 3 full cycles to reset the CEL, mine reset in 2 like you state.

So... update. My salesman happened to call me in the AM and I missed his call and after work decided that on my drive, I'll simply drive up to the dealer and chat about things. He wasn't there, so I headed out... and within a 1/4 mile of the dealer on the way back home, the CEL comes on.

So, this is the third CEL in the past 4 days of driving.

Here are the stats:

P0030 - Random Misfire Detected

Calc LOAD(%): 41.1
ECT (F): 195
Eng RPM: 3767
Veh Speed (mph): 59
Spark Adv(deg): 41
IAT (F): 100
MAF (lb/min): 6.150
TPS(%): 23.1
Run Time(sec): 200
Fuel Level(%) 72.9
Clr Dist(mile): 64
BARO(inHg): 29.8
LOAD Value (%): 25.0
Rel TPS(%): 10.9
Ambient(F): 89

This morning I did a quick visual, but only really checked the cam sensor connectors. I also had the "brake reservoir overfill" issue with slight leakage, so I cleaned that up and took some brake fluid out (it's now at the top mark, not above it...).

So, first thing in the AM I'm taking it to the dealer I bought it at.

 

[07SGT0547]

Re: CEL - "random misfire" (recurring)

Here is a quick summary of issues I've had with misfires:

1st time: CEL flashed for several seconds while using TK - at approx 4500rpm. Car went into limp mode for a few seconds. Light went out and car ran fine. Spoke to Ford Racing was told to take it to the dealer and have them perform a nutreul profile re-learn. Dealer found code P0304 and performed the re-learn

2nd time: At a track event. CEL's for P0304 & P0300 occurred 3 out of 5 runs with and without TK. I cleared the codes and moved on.

3rd time: At track event. 3 out of 4 runs the CEL came on - some flashing with Limp mode active and others a steady light. Codes P0300, P0304 & P0307. Cleared them and continued on. First time was with TK - all other runs with silver key.

4th time: At track event. 4 out of 4 runs a CEL came on whilke using silver key. Same codes as above, some flashing w/limp mode and some without. Cleared and left track.

On my way home from the last event the light came back on. I contacted Ford Racing and they once again told me to take it to the dealer. This time the light was for a catalytic issue (P0420 & P0430). Dealer ran a drive cycle and could not find any problmes. The cat codes cleared themselves and did not come bacj. Car deamed fine. Dealer told me that they would not look at the car any more (even if it happened again). RegionalFord rep told Service manager that since the car was used on teh track that all warranty coverage was void.

Many are talking about these misfires as being phantom - In my case, I don't think so as the cat codes were most likely due to excessive fule entering the cat after misfires (at least that is what the dealer told me).

Emailed Ford Racing wiht all the info from the dealer, stating that they donce agein found no issues and therefore did nothing. Ford Racing's response was to take it back again wen it happens. I guess they missed the part where the dealer told me not to bring th ecar back...

I was able to find some additional info on this problem on aother forum. It appears that Ford may be aware of these issues when on track. From what I read it has to do with a flimsy wiring harness. Which is one reason i suspect that a beefier one is used in the 302R. I also read that Rousch identified this problem and has upgraded some of their car with better harnesses.

So I have just returned from picking up my 2012 BOSS #2788 after having the Engine Replaced due to a #3 Spun Bearing... Everything fine, except for the EXACT same problems you are having with the Random Misfires... Even the EXACT same codes... Numerous P0300, followed by almost the same number of P0304 and a couple of "random" P0307 codes on the 75 mile drive back home from Dealership...

Most occurred with the Silver Key and went away (almost completely) when I switched to the Track Key about 1/2-way home... Only one time did it throw a P0304 + P0300 Code with the Track Key...

Since the engine was completely replaced, I'm guessing that I'll have to get my Local Dealer to do the Crankshaft Relearn Procedure to solve this... I will check all the connections in the AM when the engine cools... But since I also got the P0307 code a couple of times, I guessing that all the connections are just fine...