HI all...

I took the van on a 500 mile road trip and got p0303...figures :lol:

Last road trip I took in the van (over 2000 miles) I had a few mis-fire codes along the way too.

The van runs great and is getting 15 MPG @ 70 on the interstate.

Also I never get misfire codes when doing local driving. They only happen after a couple hundred miles too.

I am on my second set of wires in 2 years...I guess this is 'normal' for the van.

From what I have read, the cap and rotor should be brass (which I have) but the wires seem like they are just consumable. If you look on rockauto the most expensive ones are 20 bucks...

So I have also heard of ceramic boot wires - are these worth it? And if they are what brand was used?

Looks like I am going to put on my third set of wires in 3 years now

 

I am sorry to hear this but as you know from reading these forums, plug wires and distributor caps are known issues on these vans. I'm pretty sure this is due to poor wiring placement and or the serious heat soak issue specific to this vehicle.

As you know I replaced my mechanical fan with an e-fan a long time ago. I don't use the e-fan thermostat to monitor the engine temp, I use it to monitor the underhood temperature within about an inch of the radiator. In warm weather it is set to run for another 5 - 15 minutes after the engine is shut off based on underhood temperature.

There is now hard evidence that this modification is helping.

30 months ago when I bought the van I immediately replaced the plug wires and the rotor/cap with these ordinary Autozone parts:

Bosch/Wireset part#09789
"Gold" (brass) Distributor Cap & rotor part# F2128G

I drive in all kinds of insane weather: pouring rain, drive through deep running water, get stuck in traffic jams at 110F for up to an hour, same as everybody else. Other than a 1 minute warmup in the morning, I do not baby my van. I drive hard & fast and frequently to the outer limits of tire adhesion. 30 months later, same wires, same distributor cap & rotor. Original coil. Never had any CEL lights, no codes, no misfires. I did replace the spark plugs about 13 months ago just because I had the valve covers off and IMO if you do it from the front under the hood, access to those PITA front plugs is far easier with the valve covers removed.

Anyway the point of posting this is not to give you a hard time or rub it in that mine is working. I really think the underhood temperatures are eating your electrical and rubber parts and I think that 30 months on the same wires etc demonstrates enough supporting evidence to make a pretty good case for my theory.

 

BTW I tripped over this when I was researching your issue, maybe useful.

http://troubleshootmyvehicle.com/chr...ot-a-misfire-1

 

I am using BWD wires from O'Reilly Auto Parts. 4 years now with no problems, and I don't have the efan as blackvan does. And not sure I drive as many miles as he does, in 5 1/2 years of ownership of this van I have only added 45K miles to it. So guessing about 30 to 35K miles on these wires.

BTW the BWD wires carry a lifetime warranty from O'Reilly's!

 

I believe that not only quality of the qires used, but how they are routed is directly proportional to their lifespan.

Don't allow them to touch each other, or anything grounded, and do remember that while they might not be touching each other when you are sitting there looking at them, that when you return the Doghouse, it might push them down and in and defeat your work.

I like skinning the insulation of the old set of wires and doubling it over the new wires up in areas where they will touch each other.

I use Zip ties to hold them in place. If they are going to rest on a valve cover or perhaps find their way there, i use some old vaccuum line or something to keep direct contact from causing direct heat transfer.

My current set of 35$ 8mm basic Taylors have been installed since July '07 with not a misfire, but I went through about 5 sets in the 6 previous years to acquiring the taylors

 

I don't know exactly how old the cap, rotor and wires are on my van, but I haven't had any issues. I've recently sanded off the corrosion on all of the cap connections as preventative maintenance on my non-copper cap. I haven't had any issues with it yet. I guess the consensus is that it's a good idea to add some extra insulation to the plug wires? I think I'll consider doing that soon.

 

I wouldn't call my opinion/ recommendation on adding sections of more insulation on the wires in key areas qualifies as a consensus.

Usually it is easy to see where a wire has been rubbing up against something else. I usually put another piece of sacrificial insulation in such an area.

Just remove the old insulation from the old wires like gutting a snake and it easily clamps over the new wire and stays in place.

My taylors came with 2 different coil plugs. i tried to Skin the unused plug, but could not. All my extra insulation is from the old set yellow of accell wires, and I wish i took more if it. It peeled off easily

 

Well, yeah. You're not the first person I've seen talk about or do this, though. It seems to be something at least a few people think is a good idea. I'll see how it works out, when I decide to change my plug wires.

 

I don't know.. from everything I read, it is certainly a very common issue and there is that Dodge TSB regarding wire routing. Re-routing the wires so they can't touch anything or each other (practically impossible at certain locations) is trickier than it sounds. Like you, I use a lot of wire ties. The nice thing about the Bosch set is that they come with a few feet of plastic wire loom already installed. Wire loom is cheap so anyone could pick up 15 or 20' and add this to any wire set.

I doubt they would spend the extra effort or expense for amusement or looks so I'd say it's a known issue.

 

TSB 18-48-98

Ignition System Cross Fire/Secondary Ignition Wire Induction


http://dodgeram.info/tsb/1998/18-48-98/18-48-98-v8.htm


http://dodgeram.info/tsb/1998/18-48-98/18-48-98-v6.htm




As for the year's affected, I would state 1994 to 2003 indeed. It's not just the two or three years the TSB talks about. This is a COMMON issue with the wires.