Hi all, long time lurker for good reasons, I have had 2 second gen neons for 12 years now, but I need some help please, hopefully to save some dough.

I'm going to try and condense this, so if you need more let me know.

2 years ago max, I started getting the engine light on and with research learned about how to get the codes myself, they were all piston misfire types, so I did the plugs and the wires and after a day clight and codes went away.

Fast forward to 2 weeks ago and the same type of codes came up. kind of like.....I can't remember what the first 2 were, but they were about misfires, there was 3 in total with the third being p-2097.

I went and bought new plugs as I figure the wires were still good and replaced them, after a day the light went away and that was that.

Now 2 weeks later, the light has popped on again and I get..............p-0300, p-p-0304 and again p-2097.

Is there a certain distance you have to travel before the lights disappear, because the first time through we drove further, this time not as far in the 2 days.

The car only slightly feels odd at idle or with say the brake on at a light, otherwise it runs fine.

I also have read that the p-2097 refers to an oxygen sensor, now from what I understand this would make sense since the car 8 years old going on 9.

I think it referred to downstream oxygen sensor.

At the cat, is there 2 oxygen sensors, one just in front ie: upstream and one just behind it ie: downstream or is there more then the 2 of them.

It is a 2004 Dodge Neon SX 2.0, not the high output engine either.

Any help yall could offer would be greatly appreciated

P.S.-The actual plan was to get the new Dart, just love it, but wifey lost her job so this will do for now, just can't put loads of money into her, the car not the wife

 

Hmm. The only thing I have found for P0297 is "vehicle overspeed condition." Not sure yet on how to proceed with that one.

P0300 is a general misfire code and P0304 is a misfire in cylinder 4.

An engine needs three things to run: air, fuel and spark. One of these is missing, or is weak, in cylinder 4. I doubt it's air as it would likely be restricted to all cylinders. That leaves fuel and spark. You could swap fuel injectors with one of the other three cylinders and see if that code moves. By move I mean that if swapping the injectors causes a misfire code on the cylinder it was swapped with, it's either a bad injector and/or injector wiring. If the code stays on cylinder 4, you're down to spark as the problem. Spark plugs should be replaced with copper core plugs gapped to 0.035" every 30,000 miles. Spark plug wires should be replaced every 60,000 miles, or, every other spark plug change. If the spark plugs or wires aren't the cause, you'd move onto the coil pack and/or coil pack wiring. Might need a new coil pack.

I'd start with that and see where you end up.

 

Thank you sir, I will get back to you sometime tomorrow after I check............but more importantly, if I can't find that, how do I change, or where are the injectors connected, I'm guessing by the way you wrote it that there must be only 2 injectors servicing to plugs at a time, or one for each,lol.

I could have sworn that code was the same as the one 2 weeks ago, the 2097, perhaps it is different now and perhaps the one I had 2 weeks ago was related to the oxygen sensor, it made sense to me that if the wrong mixture was getting through the sensor would notice and send a code as well.

I get the feeling though that the gap measuring tool I used said 0.35............this would be a problem correct.................and if so, why would it not start sending codes immediately, you know what I mean

 

Sorry to appear to be a pest, I would just rather that your brains had all the info, you can help me more then mine can, I found these searches and it was the same code as before as I remember finding these searches, does it make any sense that it could be the oxygen sensor.

Please don't take any offense at these other links, none intended at all, I just don't know how to proceed with some of this info, I do feel like I just wasted 50 bucks on new plugs though

http://www.fixya.com/cars/t3202557-error_code_2097

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/in...7112712AARcJeP

 

Just 2 clarifications, first I thought I had given you the wrong code, then I rechecked and rechecked, because of those links I found, I thought, he knows way more then me,lol, then I saw in your post you have the wrong code listed, the one you said got you the "speed" limit issue.

Just want to clarify as I'm guessing that would change your response to my problem

Also I double checked, I had the right spark plug gap, see how I question myself, but figured I better respond to let you know.


thanx again.

 

One injector and plug per cylinder, yes. The injectors are under the fuel rail (that chrome tube forward of the valve cover). You'll have to make sure you relieve all fuel pressure before you attempt to remove any of those parts!!!

Yes, that would be a problem. Big difference between 0.35" and 0.035". Could it have been .35MM, considering your location? .35MM = 0.014", which is way too small. If you are using MM, you need to gap the plugs to 0.889MM, which is equal to 0.035". At least make sure you are as close as possible to the correct gap. It doesn't need to be perfect. I think if they were all that small of a gap though, you'd be having problems in all of the cylinders.

I did read the code incorrectly. P2097 is "Down Stream Fuel System 1/2 Rich." There are a few causes of this code:

• Exhaust Leak
• Mechanical Engine Problem
• O2 Sensor or O2 Sensor Circuit

P0300 and P0304 are "mechanical engine problems," so I'd still do a check on everything up top. At that point, if all of that is good to go, you can check the exhaust for a leak. From there, I'd check the O2 wiring. The wires could have been melted somehow or otherwise damaged causing a false/bad/no reading situation. If none of that is the problem, the O2 sensor is about all that's left. Checking everything may take time, but it's free (labor-wise) at least.

ETA: See now you checked the gap. You're fine there then!

 

Thanx again for quick response, wifey is taking the boy to a rugby game, its a good jaunt, not real far, should I consider putting one of those injector cleaners in a tank of gas, I started wondering about bad fuel, or they just need cleaning perhaps, not that its related but I have never had the fuel filter replaced as of yet.

I don't think I mentioned, it has 160,000 kilo's on it it and of course its a 2004.

So far as making sure the fuel pump pressure is gone, should I follow whats in this thread and I will be fine.


https://dodgeforum.com/forum/neon-sr...procedure.html

 

Yeah. You could also depress the schrader valve after that just to be absolutely sure as well.

 

Hi Darth, just a weird update for you, I guess it could mean a few things.

I mentioned the injector treatments you can buy at auto stores and whatnot, I don't use it religiously but I have used it before more then a few times.

Well yesterday my wife took our son to his rugby practice which is one way 25 km, before she left I put some injector treatment in and had her fill the tank up, on her way back is when she said the lights went out.

Could it possibly be a bad fuel filter, in the sense that its past its usefulness and the gas thats getting by is in a way considered "dirty" by the computer, or is it just that the injectors themselves that need a good "proper" cleaning, like the services they provide at the shops.

I just always assumed that they did not do all that much with them and it was kind of a gimmicky service.

2 years ago when the lights came on, it was *******ly identical, except without the p-2097 code, that made perfect sense that it was due for plugs and wires and all had been great till 2 weeks ago when the light first popped on again.

My question is kind of one that I don't know how to word,lol, but as I said 2 weeks ago the lights came on, they were pointing I'm pretty sure anyways to the first cylinder, then the last one was p-2097..................................now as I said in this post a few days ago the lights came on again and it was pointing to the third cylinder and that same p-2097 code.

No need to rush an answer, at your pleasure, as the lights are out now, but if you think of anything else that may be helpful that would be fantastic............................for instance, how long can you expect the oxygen sensors and perhaps even the cat to last and if I were to replace the oxygen sensors should I replace all of them at once.

Thanx again for your help, I know its odd how it solved for me, but you game me some more much needed knowledge on cars