SwansS2K

Thanks Kevin for the OBDII connector. Turned out that hotmail thought the software file was a virus and would not let me download or forward the attachment. It ended up being too late for me to play with that night considering I was leaving for Cali early the next morning and still needed to pack.

Annnnnnnnnnyway, got back Sunday night and tried to start the car, and it would not turn over. This morning had the car towed to the dealer. They pulled the code and showed a cylinder #3 misfire. After looking into this they found that the #3 sparkplug had blown apart and pieces fell into the cylinder (lovely ). He said the initial repair is going to be replacing the battery, plugs, plug holes, and coil cover (?). Quoted ~$470. This is just the initial quote as he said they need to get down in there to look for more damage possibly to the cylinder.

Now I have not heard of a spark plug blowing apart. Any ideas about what could have caused this??

smyroad

This is the spark plug TSB! The plugs back out until the cylinder pressure overcomes what's left of the screw threads shooting the plug out destructively. At that point several small broken pieces can enter the cylinder causing additional damage.

Don't pay for this! This is a manufacturers defect!

https://www.s2ki.com/home/index.php?option=...id=29&Itemid=41

TSB 02-042

https://www.s2ki.com/home/uploadfiles/A02-042.pdf

bigpurp

No way should you be paying for this. I'm assuming you never had the TSB done for the plugs?

SwansS2K

Well I bought the car at a Chrysler dealership so I don't know how much Honda will help. At the time I bought it I had asked about recalls and if I remember correctly they said all had been completed.

In the times that I have been at the Honda dealership, none have mentioned anything about the TSB.

I also purchased an extended warranty through them that covers bumper to bumper. So that warranty hopefully should cover it. If the warranty does not cover it I guess I will then take it up with Honda.

SwansS2K

Just got a call from the dealer. Dealer contacted the Chrysler warranty company and they are not giving a definitive answer on if they will cover this. From what I could gather, the warranty company is saying if the spark plug caused this problem, that they will not cover this. We then went through the possible situations and costs.

In the good case:
Replace plugs, plug holes, coil cover and battery, and fish out the pieces of the plug from the cylinder with a magnet.
~$550

In the middle case:
The ablove plus the cylinder head needs to be replaced and I think he said possibly the piston.
~$4000

In the worst case:
The above plus the short block.
~$9000

He said they were Honda plugs but didnt get the model #. I asked for that. I am going in tomorrow moring to get a full understanding of the situation and will bring the TSB. Does anyone have any advice on how to handle the warranty company or Honda?

I dont think I could afford the middle cost, and in no way could afford the worst case cost. I do not see how I could be responsible for something that I was never notified about and would have definitely taken care of hand I know.

THIS SUCKS!!!

SwansS2K

I am going into the dealership tomorrow morning. Anyone have any advice as to what "fire power" I should bring tomorrow. I am not sure if the TSB was done prior to me buying the car. I will ask to see my car and the spark plugs. Then will check the model # on the plugs and then the VIN # to see if they made the punch above the 5th character to see if they tried to swap out plugs. Then would bring out the TSB and sit down to get all scenarios.

Should I be trying more to get the Chrysler warranty to cover this? Or should I be trying to get Honda to take care of it?

In my warranty it states that if there is a defect in original manufacturers parts then they will replace. So if it's the regular plugs should I go the warranty route even though they're trying to state that if the plug caused the damage they will not cover it?

Sorry to ramble on, but I am trying to just get some advice on the best way to approach this so that I don't end up paying for it.

Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks in advance everyone!

apex2k

I would think Honda has a responsibility to check TSB status while the vehicle is in their possession. They didn't, the plug failed as a result of it, closed case, no? I would NOT stop at the dealers decision if it is not in your favor, contact American Honda.

SwansS2K

I was thinking about this last night and pretty much came to that conclusion. The car has been in for multiple oil changes and the 50,000 mile maintenance.

I went in this morning to take a look at the parts. The plug was blown in half on the #3 cylinder. Same with the coil cover. The piece that dropped in the cylinder in the part that makes the electric charge to the tip of the spark plug. They are going to be going in there today to replace the plugs, plug covers, battery, and plug holes and then determine if there is any further damage.

I then pulled out the TSB 02-042 and said I did some research about this last night and found it. He then said he had thought about that and was planning to look into it Then I sat down with him at the computer and had him run the VIN. The seatbelt recall was completed, but not the spark plug recall. They are planning on calling American Honda and possibly filing a claim about this.

I do feel that if I am in for service that this should be checked and I should be notified of this. Especially if I was in for the 50,000 mile maintenance and not just an oil change.

I should hear back from them later on today about the status and where we stand on coverage. I will keep you guys posted.

smyroad

You may wind up having to go to a honda dealer to get this fixed...

SwansS2K

Yeah, brought the car in to the dealer yesterday. See above for the results.

They have the engine apart now and said that they can already see the cylinder head needs to be replaced with the possibility of the small block. The District Rep. is coming by tomorrow and I plan on meeting with him. The more I have thought about this, I am going to try and have Honda cover this. This was a recall that was issued prior to me owning the car therefore I would not have received the notification. I have brought the car in numerous times to this dealership and nothing was ever said to me. We will see what the rep has to say.