What is a cylinder misfire in a car?
An engine misfire in a car is exactly what the name implies. It’s when one or more of the engine’s cylinders is not firing as it should, resulting in power loss, rough driving and ignition difficulties.CausesA misfiring cylinder is usually caused by one of three things: spark loss, compression loss or an air and fuel mixture that is so out of balance that the fuel can’t ignite.Intermittent MisfiresIntermittent cylinder misfires are difficult to diagnose because they are only present some of the time depending on driving conditions.Steady MisfireWhen the car is suffering from a steady misfire in a cylinder, it is easy to diagnose by individually unplugging each spark plug wire while idling. When the faulty cylinder is located, the idle speed will remain the same.Scanning the ProblemAn OBD II scanner will tell you if you have a misfire and will identify which cylinder is causing the problem. A P300 code tells you there is a misfiring cylinder. The last number will pinpoint the cylinder.
