2003 Corolla 160i GLS Misfire

mo_corolla

Hi Guys

Short Version of my Problem - Following repairs was done on my vehicle
New Plugs, Air Filter, Oil Filter, Oil Change, Tappet Cover Gasket Change, Fuel Injector Wiring Repair.

Car still misfiring with a strong fuel smell from the exhaust and the engine bay as well.

LONG VERSION

I've got a problem with my 2003 160i GLS misfiring. My Check Engine light has been on for almost a year now but without any impact to the vehicle. All of a sudden a few days back, the car starts to misfire with no power on takeof. You can press the pedal to the metal in first gear and the car just crawls before it builds up some speed.

I got a mechanic to check it out - we changed plugs but no improvement. He later found that one of the Fuel Injectors wasn't firing - he figured out it was a problem with the wiring. The next day I got an Auto Electrician who tested the wiring and confirmed a problem with the wiring going to the 3rd injector.

He then joint the wire from the first injector to the wire on the 3rd injector as he advised that these 2 injectors work in tandem and also mentioned injector 2 and 4 work together as well. Anyways, after doing so we started up the vehicle and a noticeable improvement - the misfire seemed like it had gone but not so good news.

After a test drive, I found that the car definatley had more power and performed much better than when the injector wiring was faulty however it still had a noticeable misfire. The Auto Electrician said he couldn't do much more since it seems there's a Mechanical Problem.

Now I thought before I become a mechanic's Money Bank, I rather get my ducks in a row as to what the problem could possibly be.

By the way, I should also note that when I changed my plugs, we found oil in the socket - my mechanic said the tappet cover most likely needs to be torqued so he did exactly that before installing the new plugs.

I'm really desperate for some advice so please feel free.

Thanks
Mo