Last week I was driving to work...I have an hour commute each way...and my ETC light came on. I lost all power and the car wouldn't go over like 15mph. I pulled over and turned the car off and back on again. I was able to get it going and the car was fine for about 30mins then the same issue happened. The light came on then went back off...then it came on again and started blinking. Once it started blinking the car lost power again and wouldn't go over 15mph. Turning it off and back on about 20 times did nothing. Luckily I was right near a reputable auto shop. I was able to drive it there and have them look at it.

Turns out the car was in need of 4 spark plugs and two ignition coils were dead. I see there are a lot of people on here wondering what is wrong when the ETC light comes on. Well my issue appeared to be with the spark plugs and ignition coils.

Now, I picked the car up and on my way to work that day the same thing happened. Only this time letting the car sit for a little bit fixed the issue and it hasn't come on in a few days. A friend of mine at work said to replace the other two coils since they may be firing at a slower pace thus causing the computer to trip and cause the ETC light to come on. I will be picking up the two coils today and installing them tonight or tomorrow. I will keep everyone posted as to whether or not I have the issue anymore.

Let me know if you have any thoughts and/or experiencing the same issue and what you did to fix it.

 

I would scan the PCM for codes to see what the actual code/codes are that triggered the light. Usually the CEL will light for misfire codes. The ETC light is usually lit by a problem with the pedal assembly or throttlebody itself.

Keep us posted.

 

yeah, you need to scan for code.
But from experience, you are most likely need a Throttle body and PCM software update.
These throttle body needs to be recalibrated with Scanner, they are not plug and play.

The Mis-firing you are experiencing has nothing to do with the Tune up, it is a Rev limiter so you don't stuck wide open throttle on the highway.
you will find Codes like "Force limited power" when you scan the car.

keep us updated!

 

Thanks for the responses!

Just a little more information. When the car initially broke down and the auto shop took a look at it, he did read the codes and the codes told him 2 cylinders were failing so that is why he replaced the 2 cylinder coils. Are you saying that the cylinder coils alone would not set off the ETC light?

 

it never happened in my experience. I hardly seen coil failure on these engine.
But, the truth is, he put in 2 coils and did a tune up, and it is not fixed, right?
and All 4 coil failed at once? I don't think so. that only happens if you drive a Nissan product.
Going to need full list of codes spitting out by the PCM to tell u exactly what you need.
However, if you have a bad throttle body, the computer will Kill off 2 cylinder or Mis-fire some of them to prevent you from "unintended acceleration.

I think you can still do the "Key Dance" on caliber.
Turn the ignition ON, turn in Off, Turn it ON, turn it Off, and turn it ON and leave it. without 10 second. The Odometer should spit out codes one by one.