A Honda Odyssey came into the shop with a continuous misfire on cylinder 2. After confirming which cylinder had the misfire, the next step is usually to look at the spark plug to see if it’s damaged or covered in oil.

When I removed the ignition coil, I saw that it was covered in oil, indicating that the spark plug tube seal was leaking. Oil getting into the spark plug tube can damage the ignition coil. When I tried to remove the spark plug, I couldn’t get my socket onto the plug.

I got the shop’s bore scope and stuck it into the tube and could tell there was something in the way, but it took me a few minutes to realize it was actually part of the ignition coil that had come off.

Using a flexible pick-up tool, I was able to remove the remainder of the ignition coil and check the spark plug. The plug was okay, and it was clear that the ignition coil had to be replaced and was probably the cause of the misfire. I replaced the spark plug, coil, and spark plug tube seals, and the car ran great again.

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-Dan