Two points about disconnecting the spark plug wire from the cylinder in
question:
I've heard that having the fuel air mixture go through a cylinder,
uncombusted, for extended periods of time tends to clean off some of the
normal layer of oil on the cylinder walls, thus leading to faster wear of
the rings and walls. I have no idea if this is true, or if it would even be
a concern in your case. I think that only if it went to the extreme and
caused the piston to seize would it be bad in your case. I consider this to
be unlikely, though.
On a more likely note, I once had the spark plug wire come off of one
cylinder of a four-cylinder car one night shortly after leaving work. I was
tired and just wanted to get home, and since the car was still running,
though badly, I continued the 10 miles home, not knowing what the problem
was. Upon getting out of my car after arriving home, I noticed a glow on
the ground from a light under my car! What the....!? Upon looking under
the car I saw that the catalytic converter was red-hot (and I'm talking
BRIGHT red)! The next day I found the loose wire and realized that the cat
had been combusting the unburned fuel from one cylinder (what it's designed
to do, only not on that scale). If your vehicle still has a cat, I would
consider disconnecting the plug wire to be a serious fire hazard.
Mike Frerichs
-----Original Message-----
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Should I disconnect the spark plug lead from the bad cylinder and drive it
like that, or leave it attached?
Thanks for any info.
Gene
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