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2005 SSR engine running rough

5K views 27 replies 13 participants last post by  beercrazy 
#1 ·
Took the SSR out to get gas today and the engine was really running bad. The engine light came on and the engine on the dash was blinking. The R has been running perfect until the engine light came on and has anyone had this happen to them. The manual says engine misfire??????????????????????? when blinking.
 
#3 ·
Donny, your best bet is to get it in to someone with a Tech 2 so he can read the trouble codes. Rather than guessing at it, you should be able to find out exactly what is wrong, and deal with it quickly.

Almost any repair shop would have a diagnostics tool. You might be able to find someone close by who can come to your place to check it out rather than running it any more with the engine miss and possibly causing more issues.
 
#4 ·
Hasn't happened to our R, but did in another car we owned and agree with Auggie Doggie, sounds like a MAF sensor. Not a huge deal but if it is you'll either need to get it cleaned out or replaced. The OBD II code(s) will clear things up for you right away.
 
#7 ·
Stop driving it IMMEDIATELY when the check engine light blinks. That is indicating a misfire that is surely igniting fuel in the catalytic converters. This will DESTROY them VERY QUICKLY. Don't ask me how I know...I set both of my converters on fire IDLING in the driveway when it misfired. Had to replace them both.

On mine, I checked every single thing it could be...MAF, coil packs, grounds, fuel pump, fuel, injectors...it turned out it was the spark plugs and wires. Replaced them all and it ran perfect after chasing the problem (and destroying my cats) for two weeks without even driving a mile.

A FLASHING check engine light is NOT to be taken lightly. You are destroying your cats IMMEDIATELY when your truck misfires enough to blink the light.

I speak from experience. And alot of time and money fixing the problem.
 
#8 ·
Thanks for all the great advice. The tow truck just left my place with the R on Its way to the garage to be diagnosed. Hope not to mach damage or what Is happening. We were at a place yesterday and when It started missing badly and the engine light came on, We had to drive about 12 miles. Fingers crossed, Or I will have to get money from Flash In Pentiction to pay the bill.
 
#9 ·
Fingers crossed, Or I will have to get money from Flash In Pentiction to pay the bill.
Sorry, Donny

All my funds have gone in to a new motor and clutch. I barely have enough left to buy lunch for a hummingbird.

Let us know what you find out.
 
#10 ·
I agree with others that you have an ignition system problem. The flashing light does indicate a cat damaging misfire and is usually caused by lack of sufficient spark in one or more cylinders.
Best not to drive.
 
#12 ·
Back on the road again. Had the SSR Towed to the shop and got It back yesterday. Running great. Cylinders 7 and 8 had severe misfiring.Decided to replace all Injectors and and they did a couple other things. No damage was done from putting about twenty miles on the R with the Misfiring happening. It Is running better then ever and going on a small trip today. About 500 miles, So hopefully everything Is, A- OK
 
#17 ·
Yes they did. I just got back from my road trip and My SSR Is running better then It did before my problem happened. I use premium fuel every time I fill up. I know some guys never use premium. For the difference In cost for gas, I feel I get better performance out of the engine. I would like to hear some comments from a few SSR owners what grade fuel they use and the performance they get. Thanks For reading and It Is a great feeling to have my SSR In top notch condition. As for the driver, There may be a problem from that statement????????????
 
#19 ·
Ours was tuned/dyno'd by Joe at Left Coast 32. When I called him for a recommendation on spark plugs he made sure to remind me to use premium tier 1 gasoline. The previous owner told me the same thing plus it's always had Mobil 1 Synthetic as well. I personally have no reason to skimp on the important stuff. "Pay me now or pay me later" as they say. It just gives me a little peace of mind.
 
#22 ·
I have used premium gas In the R, From the day I bought It. Every time I gas up, And paying a little more for premium gas will not break the bank,And put me In the poor house., I think some SSR owners who use a lower octane gas, Would be wise to think It over and put a higher octane gas In. I guess, Bottom line to those people, Pay as you go , Or maybe pay big time down the road.
 
#23 ·
We're lucky to have a couple of Chevron stations that supply 94 octane. I started using it before the supercharger went in, so that the fuel in the tank would be 94 octane when it was first fired up with the supercharger on.

Joe tuned it for 94 octane. Sounds like the knock sensors would retard timing if I went to 91 octane, which could happen on a road trip. I would then need to reinstall the previous tune when I switched back to 94.
 
#24 · (Edited)
I changed a few parts and then had a supper dyno tune done on it using the best gas we have which is 91 octane. I also add some TORCO racing fuel every fill up. It raises the octane to 93. I gained 50 some horse power AND a ton of torque for the out of the hole take off. Works for me.

Had my Throttle Body done by Faster Proms in Florida, Jeremy tune. Took it off myself and sent it UPS. They did it and returned it very promptly. They shaved off all the edges inside and took as much material off as possible to enlarge the opening to match the intake. Very responsive and much faster off the line. I also did the throttle body spacer, K&N cold air package, Jet High Performance Mass Air Flo Sensor, true dual exhaust, and super dyno tune. The whole thing is like night and day.

The guy tuning our SSR called and said it was ready. On the Dyno it read 362 horsepower and 369 torque at the rear wheels after the work he and I did. He used some kind of fancy formula and figured 452.5 horsepower and 461.25 torque at the crank. Pretty good increase from stock plus very smooth and more responsive. Reset cooling fans, shift points and firmness and overall adjusted everything. This was all done after the K&N Cold air package, the throttle body port and polish done by Faster Proms in Florida, the Taylor Helix throttle body spacer, the Jet high performance mass air flo sensor, and the Magnaflow true duals exhaust. Split the header pipe and am running two pipes into the special muffler and two pipes out. There is an X pipe in the muffler.
 
#25 ·
Beware of Shady Mechanics - Took mine to an unknown repair facility and afterwards was running a little rough. Drove it home and parked it. Next trip was to Maggie Valley and was running rough the whole time but started up and ran. As I was passing another vehicle, the check engine light started flashing. Slowed down and check engine light went out. I knew I had a misfire but where? So I was determined that I was going to make the check engine light stay on so I could check the code. I have a Bluetooth OBDII plugged in and an app on my phone. Code was Ignition #1 Missfire. I reset the code got it home and tugged on the #1 spark plug wire and it wasn't even connected. Someone sabotaged me. From on top, you couldn't see that the wire was hidden and unplugged.

I drove over 1000 miles on 7 cylinders. That LS2 is a remarkable engine!
 
#27 ·
Wow... that's amazing. That's terrible but maybe it wasn't intentional? Sometimes you get in a hurry or someone interrupts and you forget what you were doing. I know I do. :frown2:

That #1 plug is a PIA on a number of levels. Plus I really do NOT like the fact that the wires no longer have the old-school satisfying "click" when you attach them to the plugs. Back in the day you knew for sure if it was connected or not. Today you can sort of feel them connect, but they're still wobbly and I worry that they aren't quite right. Modern technology.

Glad you got it sorted out though... seven cylinders there and back? It is one tough engine! :wink2:
 
#28 ·
85 octane versus 91 octane. 85 atomizes better at lower temperatures for like short trips and around town driving, 91 octane is better for long trips as the more heat the better atomization, short trips and low heat doesn't help for fuel atomization, GM printed a tub on this several years ago. I use 85 in my 04 SSR and my 03 Avalamche and have never had any issues, even after replacing my stock spark plugs in my 5.3 after 100k miles the burn pattern was perfect.
 
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