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Help! 1997 SC400 running rough/mis-firing

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Old 08-31-23, 12:35 PM
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UniqSC
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Default Help! 1997 SC400 running rough/mis-firing

Hey fellow SC owners. I recently bought a 1997 SC400 which had been sitting for a couple of years. The car seemed to be in pretty decent shape but has some engine issues. I already have a nice 99 SC400, but felt bad seeing this other SC neglected and decided to try to save it.
After getting a brand new battery, the car started but runs really rough, as if it were firing on only 4 cylinders o if the timing were off.
In an effort to eliminate the easy stuff first, I drained all the old gas and filled up with premium gas and added some seafoam. Nothing really changed. Then I changed all spark plugs, wires, distributor caps and rotors, and even all injectors with OEM stuff. The car seems negligibly better, but the misfiring, lack of power, rough idle issue is still there. I can tell some cylinders are not firing. From reading the forums, people usually recommend having the ECU checked out, but before i go that route I wanted to post a couple of vids of the car and get your opinion.



Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!
Old 09-01-23, 08:46 AM
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Tallyhoe
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Originally Posted by UniqSC
Hey fellow SC owners. I recently bought a 1997 SC400 which had been sitting for a couple of years. The car seemed to be in pretty decent shape but has some engine issues. I already have a nice 99 SC400, but felt bad seeing this other SC neglected and decided to try to save it.
After getting a brand new battery, the car started but runs really rough, as if it were firing on only 4 cylinders o if the timing were off.
In an effort to eliminate the easy stuff first, I drained all the old gas and filled up with premium gas and added some seafoam. Nothing really changed. Then I changed all spark plugs, wires, distributor caps and rotors, and even all injectors with OEM stuff. The car seems negligibly better, but the misfiring, lack of power, rough idle issue is still there. I can tell some cylinders are not firing. From reading the forums, people usually recommend having the ECU checked out, but before i go that route I wanted to post a couple of vids of the car and get your opinion.

1997 Lexus SC400 - Running rough and misfiring - YouTube

1997 Lexus SC400 - Running rough - engine bay - YouTube

Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!
Try checking the ignition coils... I had a misfire and cooked my cats, check all the wires and make sure they're fully seated.
The following 2 users liked this post by Tallyhoe:
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Old 09-01-23, 06:22 PM
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UniqSC
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Thanks for the feedback. The wires all seem to be seated properly, and the ignitors seem to be firing strongly into each distributor. Thanks again.
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