I have a 1997 2.0 Dodge Stratus I bought from a friend of mine last summer (114K miles). He took very good care of it and was the original owner. It has been running fine up until a week ago when I started experiencing poor acceleration and rough idling.

The check engine light came on, I got home with it and checked the engine code. The light blinked the codes "43" and "21" - and I think there are several possible causes for the 43. Cylinder misfiring was one of them but then it said there could be also a coil wire or "PCM" module problem. I don't have much experience with Dodge cars - I owned a Toyota for 15 years before this and did my own mainenance.

I can drive the car but if I try to accelerate it seems as if the engine is missing until I back off slightly then it gets a little better. Sometimes it will idle rough and sometimes it won't. The check engine light will start flashing at me if I am going up a hill and it's having a hard time doing it. I don't think it is fuel related but I could be wrong.

I checked the plug wires and each one measures 2.8K ohms across it so I think they're OK. Could it be this electronic distributor (PCM) module that sits atop the valve cover? I tried unplugging the control wire from it and reseating it but no dice. I haven't tried anything else yet. I'm waiting for my Haynes manual to arrive to see if it gives me any clues. I did notice that there is oil fouling 2 of the 4 plugs which I know is a problem but shouldn't necessarily cause a misfire. Any other thoughts? Thanks in advance.

 

Well, over the weekend I removed the plugs and noticed there was a lot of oil coating the threads (not the electrodes - whew!) which means to me that there was oil pooling up in the plug tubes. I pulled the valve cover, replaced the gasket and o-rings for the plugs and replaced the plugs and wires by default. $75 later the car runs like a dream now. I'll check it again this weekend to see if I still have that oil seepage into the plug tubes.

Now if I can just get that "check engine" light to shut off. Anyone know how? Should it go out by itself if the problem goes away or does the code(s) stick in memory until it's cleared by a dealer, disconnecting the battery, etc???

 

you can disconnect the negative side for 5 mins, and will go off. but honestly, i think your problem is coming from the EGR valve or O2 sensors, they are the main cause of power loss in our cars. [X(]