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 Jim Grant's Tech Tips‘99 Mitsubishi Galant, Hesitation & Check Engine Light Q: I have a ‘99 Mitsubishi Galant ES 2.4L. The problem I am having is with hesitation. I took it to AutoZone and had diagnostics run, and it said there was a misfire in cylinder 2. I checked the plug wire and noticed it was loose, so I pushed it back on. The hesitation is still there, so following some advice from a friend, I unhooked the battery to reset the computer. Now the problem is worse, to the point where the car won't idle without quitting. Any suggestions? A: The computer in today’s vehicles is always trying to adjust, compensate and optimize the engine. When there is a running problem the computer does its best to overcome that problem. When you disconnected the battery, the computer lost all the stored information that it was using to overcome the running problem. The computer has to start all over learning and adjusting but is likely having a hard time trying to get things back under its control. I would suggest having the computer checked again for codes. It’s likely that the computer is going to report that # 2 cylinder is misfiring. If that is the case, you have to go further than just a possible loose plug wire. There may be a bad spark plug, spark plug wire or ignition coil problem. These are the more common items. If replacement of one of these components corrects the misfire code, you’ll likely find that the computer will quickly learn and get things back in control.
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