Experiencing a misfire in your 2008 Volkswagen Passat can be frustrating, but with the help of your car’s onboard diagnostics system, or OBD-II, pinpointing and fixing the issue becomes significantly more manageable. This guide walks you through a real-world experience of diagnosing and resolving a misfire in a 2008 Passat, focusing on how to use OBD or OBD2 to understand the problem and perform a DIY repair.
The journey began with a suspected coil pack issue. The initial step was to methodically remove each coil pack, labeling them 1 through 4 to ensure they were returned to their original cylinders if needed. While the spark plugs were inspected and appeared to be in decent condition, considering the vehicle’s age (8.5 years) and mileage (45,600 miles), a preemptive spark plug replacement was performed, even though it was slightly ahead of the recommended 60,000-mile interval. After reassembling everything, the car initially seemed to run better, and the engine light was off. However, after some more spirited driving, the engine light reappeared. An OBD scan revealed code P0304, indicating a misfire in cylinder #4.
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