JDMman

ok my car just recently started spewing out black smoke... mostly when i hit the gas.... it just keeps gettting worse and worse..

now ive read around and from my understanding it could be the ecu or fuel pump. Not sure what else it could be. I do know that black smoke means my car is running rich.

Its a 92 dx hatch. Is there any other cause or perhaps common causes that i could check.

im really hoping its the ecu as that is an easy fix.

Thanks in advance.

chris_v2

sometimes its hard to distinguish burning oil and fuel. I would quickly pull a plug and take a look, check if its got alot of carbon on it, possibly do a compression test. Unless you are running VERY rich, you wont spew out black smoke.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

loss of power? y/n

weak spark? injector stuck open?

JDMman

i just checked the ecu by replacing it with another... its not it its still shooting out black smoke...

my uncles a mechanic and my dad called him up and asked him what he thought it was and he did mention that it could be a busted injector? or a sensor i think he said? do you know what that might be?

JDMman

oh another thing.. im might just deal with it tomorrow cause i have some serious meetings and then take off from work early and hit the shop... what do you guys think somethign like this might hit me for?

forcefedsi

1 million dollars...

JDMman

nice.. thats perfect because thats exactly how much change i have left in my wallet after buying that island this weekend...lol


i know its a retarded question but it doesn't hurt to ask.. especialy ssince im not a mechanic and perhaps there is a price range that can be involved...

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

with something as general as this, no range can be given.

does the black smoke happen w/ engine cold, hot, or doesn't matter? does it happen at idle, no load revs, or only under load? is there a loss of power associated? what's your base timing at? did you read your spark plugs? etc etc etc

JDMman

if the car sits at idle its fine... if i rev hard in nutral some black comes out... most black smoke comes out when im driving off from being stopped...

and yeah i notice a bit less power ... as for reading the spark plugs im not really sure what that means,....

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

remove all 4 spark plugs. take good pictures of each one and post them here. I, or whoever is online ATM will be able to tell you what's up with your isht.

there is a 'standard' color for a plug... a nice rusty matte brown. that's a nice running engine. if it's white, black, sooty, oily, shiny/glossy.... these all indicate various problems.

keep track of which one came out of what cylinder so we know. write on the porcelain with a sharpie or something...

zeeman

iTrader: (1)

good advice bruno.
Or if you don't wanna do this, just take it to a competent mechanic that is good with hondas, i've seen a lot of "good" mechanics, not be so great with hondas.

JDMman

yeah im thinking that after i post up what the spark plugs look like im gonnna give my uncle a call and let him also know what i see... he works at lakeshore honda so these cars are literally his life... but im definitely gonna check the sparkplugs when i get home today.

kingjames1983

I saw someone have this problem before from over filling the oil. Pretty dumb mistake but it happens

JDMman

lol... i did that once... when i first got the civic about 4 years ago... i mis read the damn stick.... it had a bunch of lines on it and i assumed that the top line was max so i made it go about half way or so but little did i know that those lines ment **** all and there were these other markings at the bottom... lots of blue smoke that day... easy fix though.. just drained some oil and done.

this problem is not so simple though

JDMman

ok well i just came in from checking the spark plugs... they don't look to good... here's a picture..




what could this mean?

driven905

This might help:

http://www.verrill.com/moto/sellingg...colorchart.htm

or this:

http://www.theultralightplace.com/sparkplugs.htm

Fr0z3N

Looks like it might have had some heat issues or burned some oil, change your plugs and report back to us!

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

holy crap that's not normal at all!!!!!

there are multiple problems... the ground looks super worn, it has white/tan deposits on it, the electrodes are worn and appear distorted, and there is oil fouling around the base.

i'd first of all replace the spark plugs and run the engine for a day. then pull them again and take pics. it's hard to believe you're getting black smoke seeing those plugs, unless the plugs are providing really weak spark leading to the black smoke...

the condition of the plugs would indicate a sustained lean condition and occasional detonation. in any case, you need new plugs. and we'll continue from there.

zeeman

iTrader: (1)

man those plugs are killed.
Get a new set of NGK's. I like the v-power, which also happen to be the cheapest and what you've got in there, just so worn you can't see the "v"...lol.
If you're plugs are that killed, i'd inspect the rest of the ignition system, take the distributor cap off and look at the contacts inside, if they're worn down really bad and all corroded, its time for a tune up, chances are the rotor is badly worn too. Inspect the pcv valve and air filter while you're at it.

JDMman

well thats great my car is going to explode... anyways where can i pick up a set of these spark plugs... does canadian tire or parts source carry these?

oh and just because i feel i should bring it up... I just saw a freaken possum.. two actually... in my front yard... in north york... first time ever seeing one.. we thought it was stuck on the fence but it was just playing dead... damn weird...

anyways before my car starts playing dead im gonna get a set of sparkplugs tomorrow.... and i'll get back to you guys with some more info...