1997 Ford DOCH intermittent miss at idol and start up what could it be due to

You are correct in your statement that it was the coil. The engine went to a constant miss then it threw a p0303 code for cylinder 3 misfire and p0171 bank 1 lean. After some diagnostics it was found that the spark for cylinder 3 was almost impossible to see. Replaced the coil pack since this is a durateck doch v6 and it runs like new. Thanks you were right on!

You're welcome.I experienced that same sort of miss on my 02 Taurus.Even an expert thought the problem was somewhere else,but the problem was still there after I replaced several other parts,and the coil became the only possible culprit.

Yeah, the mechanics were thinking it was a compression problem or some other type of mechanical issue on mine, possibly a valve. After a compression check the range was from 170 psig to 185 psig. The fuel injectors were spraying ok too.