Dear JB,
   
My car is an old rattletrap, but it is paid for and since I don't mind driving it why should I care what some other Bozo thinks!  First of all it is a 1986 Buick Lesabre with the 3.8 L engine.  It has distributorless ignition and last week right in the middle of driving the wife to the quack it quits running.  The module for the ignition had gotton so hot that it actually melted itself and the wiring connector that attaches to it.  In the end the mechanic stuck me for over $500 dollars for towing, a new module, coil pack, wiring and labor.  My question is how did I overheat the module without burning up anything else (like the engine)?

Signed,
Louie Lesabre

Dear Louie,
You found someone to tow your car in and put all those new parts on for only $500?  You got a bargain!  Let's look at what happened to your car.  First of all,

I don't think you could have prevented this from happening.  The module overheated itself because something shorted internally inside the module.  Once you got a lot of current flowing through it the module became a heater and melted the plastic housing and connector.  I have seen these things look like melted cheese sandwiches.  Put your mind at ease about the possibility of it happening again.  After all, the first one lasted eighteen years.

Dear JB,
I have a 1998 Ford van with a 4.2 liter v-6.  A couple of months ago the engine light came on and my mechanic tuned it up for me.  Now the light is on again and the diagnostic code is P0306 which is a misfire code for number 6 cylinder.  The mechanic says that there is nothing

more he can do because the plugs and wires are new and the engine has good compression. I need this problem fixed but don't know what to do next.

Signed,
Miss Fire

Dear Miss,
Your problem is one that we have seen several times lately.  The intake manifold has passages in it that carry exhaust gases to be recirculated

through the engine to help control emissions.  There is a small outlet for each cylinder and these outlets can become clogged with carbon build-up.  The number six cylinder is the only one which hasn't clogged on your engine, therefore it is receiving too large an amount of exhaust and making it miss.  The repair consists of removing the upper part of the intake and cleaning out the EGR passages.


JB can be seen each Thursday morning on WDEF-TV News 12's Morning Show at 7:30 A.M. where he answers your car questions.  He can also be heard Saturday Mornings 7-9 on Talk Radio 102.3 FM on the Saturday Morning Garage.  He spends the rest of his time taking advantage of helpless motorists at North Shore Auto Repair in Chattanooga.  E-mail JB at jeepster1515@yahoo.com to have your car care question answered in this column.