Honda Engine Misfires: Learn the Causes from Experienced Technicians in Allentown
by schearerswpadmin March 11, 2020Frequent engine misfires can begin as an annoyance, impacting handling and performance, but when left unchecked, misfires can quickly turn into a serious problem that puts the health of your engine at risk. While your Honda does have the extreme efficiency and reliability synonymous with Japanese manufacture on its side, it definitely isn’t impervious to engine misfires. Let’s get to the heart of this issue by learning what misfires are and what causes them.
Engine Misfire Explained
In layman’s terms, your engine needs 4 things to run successfully. It requires fuel, oxygen, pressure, and a spark. If one of these elements is missing, or there’s not enough of it, then your Honda’s engine won’t be able to combust correctly, and you’ll either have a dead engine or a car which performs poorly. While explaining the nature of a misfire is simple, the engine is comprised of so many different and intricate parts, so figuring out what is causing the misfire is actually quite difficult.
Even if you can’t put your finger on what’s going wrong under the hood, frequent misfires should never be ignored and should be dealt with swiftly. Each time your engine misfires, it puts strain upon the engine system, which can cause further part damage and accelerated wear. Let’s now look at the 3 different types of misfire.
Ignition Misfires
Starting with the most common form of misfire, ignition misfires occur when the air and fuel mixture inside your engine’s combustion chamber isn’t ignited correctly. The 2 chief parts responsible for the ignition of the fuel, the ignition coils and the spark plugs, work very hard each time you drive. This means that they become worn out more quickly than other parts of your Honda. Therefore, they need to be serviced and replaced many times in your vehicle’s lifespan.
When the ignition coils become old, they struggle to give out the powerful electric output the spark plugs need. When the spark plugs become worn, the gap between each pair becomes so wide that passing a spark between the two becomes challenging and oftentimes unsuccessful. Ignition misfires tend to get worse over time and rarely happen suddenly. So, you have time to diagnose and make these repairs to keep your engine running smoothly.
Lean Misfires
Lean misfires can also be quite common and are caused by an imbalance of either air or fuel inside the combustion chamber. The air and fuel need to be precisely balanced in order to achieve combustion, so when this is out of whack it becomes much thicker and sometimes impossible for the mixture to be ignited. Though they work less hard than the ignition system, the parts of your fuel system still need care and maintenance in order to work correctly and may need replacing at some point or another. The most common parts that need care are the fuel injectors and the fuel filters.
Lean misfires can occur quite suddenly, especially when they’re caused by the failure of a part, such as the MAF sensor. While idling, the issue may seem to go away, but you’ll quickly notice the problem when driving at higher speeds.
Mechanical Misfires
Mechanical misfires tend to be more rare and often times occur due to poor maintenance and care practices. As the name might suggest, mechanical misfires occur when one of the engine’s mechanic parts starts to fail, such as the pistons, gasket, and cylinders. This may also be the result of cracks in the vacuum lines or timing belt or valve train issues.
In general, these mechanical failures negatively impact the pressure levels inside the combustion chamber. As we learned earlier, your engine needs the air and fuel to be under pressure to be able to be ignited. So, when this is compromised, combustion becomes much more of a challenge. You’ll notice the effects of a mechanical misfire at any speed, and your Honda will be at great risk of severe engine damage and backfires if the problem is ignored.
Schearer’s Sales & Service
If you’re driving your Honda around 
Allentown, Bethlehem, or Macungie, PA and notice the early signs of engine misfire or realize its been some time since you’ve had your vehicle serviced, then pull into Schearer’s Sales & Service for top-quality auto repair and servicing. We’ll use state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment to get to the root cause of the misfires, and we will swiftly repair and resolve the issue to get you back on the road quickly. Call or visit our expert team today to find out how we can help you.