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2008 Buick Lucerne - 3.8L - Ignition Control Module

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4 years 3 months ago #35701 by tmcquinn
I'm a Subaru guy but I'm going to help a friend with a Buick, which is way foreign to me. I haven't had the opportunity to lay hands on it yet but I've been reading up. We shall see what the scan data says but I am suspecting an ignition problem. It looks to me like GM used the same ignition parts on about a zillion cars so I thought maybe you folks could clear up some things for me.

1) My friend is in money saving mode, which we've probably all been in at one time or another. At the salvage yard, does 'igniter' mean the Ignition Control Module? (They are pretty hostile around here and I doubt that calling would get me anything beyond being treated like an imbecile.)

2) If the Ignition Control Module turns out to be the culprit, has A/C Delco somehow come up with a replacement part that is worth paying twice the price for? I'm just curious because we could end up getting one from a parts store and I'm a bit surprised at the cost differential. Now getting sick of the same module failing repeatedly, and being willing to shell out for better reliability, that I can understand.

"I'll never know it all but I'm willing to settle for knowing where to find the answer!"

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4 years 3 months ago #35832 by tmcquinn
For posterity:

My buddy had a 2008 Buick that had sat for years. After he bought it he started getting a P0300 and the car barely ran. He was convinced that it was fuel related. I got him started with a cheap ODBII adapter and his Android phone. The fuel trims we great, which didn't scream 'fuel issue' to me. The middle coil was not firing. We swapped it with the upper coil and still it was the middle one that didn't fire. When it's cold, raining, and you have limited diagnostic tools, well, there's an old saying in medicine about 'When you hear hoofbeats...'. We went to the salvage yard.

At least at this yard, ignitor (sic), meant ignition control module. They had one from a relatively low mileage 07 for 35 bucks, and it came with all 3 coils. We changed the module, reset the CEL, and the problems went away.

So that answered my second question as well. If I have a GM car with very common ignition parts that can be had for cheap at the yard, I don't need to know how good the $290 module is. YMMV.

"I'll never know it all but I'm willing to settle for knowing where to find the answer!"

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