Ignition issues

[lilstrom13]

Hey guys, I tried searching, but no one seemed to have the same exact situation.

Two weeks ago, I left work and my bonne started to run real rough, and turned out to be a bad coil pack. So my brother and I replaced the coil pack and the front plugs/wires(haven't done the back yet, hard to reach without ramps/lift.

Worked fine, and ran smooth as ever, until today, I was on my way home from work, and suddenly it started running rough again, I got home, and sure enough, the same coil pack wasn't sparking. So I exchanged it out, assuming it was a defective one, got home and put the new one on, and STILL no spark.

I'm at a loss, I don't know as much as I would like to about cars, and don't know where to go next. I've read posts on other 3800 forums about the ICM could be bad, but wouldn't that mean no sparks for all coil packs??

Any help is appreciated.

Joe

[crash93ssei]

Do the rear plugs from the top.

ICM can fail leaving one, two, or all three coils without spark. Swap that coil with a known good one (one of the other two that do spark) and if it fires then it is a bad coil, no fire still will be a bad ICM.

[lilstrom13]

Just tried that actually, moved the top (non-sparking) coil to the middle, and the middle to the top, and the top is still not sparking, so I think it's ICM.

Thanks for the message and confirmation, if it's just me saying it, I'm not confident it's right, but if someone else is saying it, then i feel better about dropping $150 on the part.

[00Beast]

Yep, it's the ICM.

[crash93ssei]

Just get a used one.

[lilstrom13]

I was thinking that, there's a place around here called "upullrparts", they have a 01 bonne there, but knowing my luck, that one would be stripped down already.. so just to make sure, as long as the car has the same 3800 engine, the ICM is the same, right? 00-05 Impala/Monte Carlo, and a few buicks, maybe even grand am's?

[lilstrom13]

As far as I can tell, any of these cars would have the same engine:

1996-2005 Buick Le Sabre
1997-2005 Buick Park Avenue
1996-2004 Buick Regal LS
1995-1997 Buick Riviera
1995 California only, 1996-2002 Chevrolet Camaro
2000-2005 Chevrolet Impala
1997-1999 Chevrolet Lumina LTZ
1998-2005 Chevrolet Monte Carlo (Z34, LT, SS)
Holden Commodore (VS, VT, VX, VY)
Holden Caprice (VS, WH, WK)
Holden Ute (VU, VY)
1995-1999 Oldsmobile Eighty-Eight
1998-1999 Oldsmobile Intrigue
1996-1998 Oldsmobile LSS
1996-1998 Oldsmobile Regency
1995-2005 Pontiac Bonneville
1995 California only, 1996-2002 Pontiac Firebird
1997-2003 Pontiac Grand Prix

So does that mean the same ICM/Coil Packs?

[1oldman]

you can get one (an AC Delco) for one of several club members. I did and haven't had any more of that kind of problem. - BC

[lilstrom13]

Thanks for the info, are any of them in the St Paul/Minneapolis area? If I strike out tonight at UPullRParts, I might have to go that route.

Joe

[imidazol97]

Thanks for the info, are any of them in the St Paul/Minneapolis area?

I did a cross reference on the part on Rockauto for AC Delco and there are some other cars
that have the same ICM. Because this list includes the common Buick Regal which might help
at the pull-it-yourself places.

BUICK ALLURE (2005 - 2009)
BUICK CENTURY 1993
BUICK LACROSSE (2005 - 2009)
BUICK LESABRE (1992 - 2005)
BUICK LUCERNE (2006 - 2008)
BUICK PARK AVENUE (1991 - 2005)
BUICK REATTA 1991
BUICK REGAL (1990 - 2004)
BUICK RIVIERA (1991 - 1999)
BUICK SKYLARK 1993
CHEVROLET CAMARO (1995 - 2002)
CHEVROLET IMPALA (2000 - 2005)
CHEVROLET LUMINA (1998 - 1999)
CHEVROLET LUMINA APV (1992 - 1995)
CHEVROLET MONTE CARLO (1998 - 2005)
OLDSMOBILE 88 (1992 - 1999)
OLDSMOBILE 98 (1992 - 1996)
OLDSMOBILE ACHIEVA 1993
OLDSMOBILE CUTLASS CIERA 1993
OLDSMOBILE INTRIGUE (1998 - 1999)
OLDSMOBILE LSS (1996 - 1999)
OLDSMOBILE REGENCY (1997 - 1998)
OLDSMOBILE SILHOUETTE (1992 - 1995)
OLDSMOBILE TORONADO (1991 - 1992)
PONTIAC BONNEVILLE (1992 - 2005)
PONTIAC FIREBIRD (1995 - 2002)
PONTIAC GRAND AM 1993
PONTIAC GRAND PRIX (1997 - 2008)
PONTIAC TRANS SPORT (1992 - 1995)

Good luck.

[lilstrom13]

Got a used ICM for $18 and it's back up and running fine. Thanks for all the help guys!