imported_esp

this incident happened late this afternoon while it was pouring.

I turned on the car and had rough vibrations for 10 seconds before I turned it off. The check engine light was blinking.

I checked oil, and it was ok.
my gas door was open, but the gas cap was sealed. I must have opened the gas door when opening the trunk.

I turned the car on again and began rough but smoothed out and idled fine. Engine light still blinking.

I drove that way and the light kept blinking but the car seemed fine. I was low on fuel so I filled up.

Now the light stays solid.

Can anyone help or suggest the problem? Car was running fine earlier during lunch. This happened after getting off from work when it was pouring. Now car seems fine.

Does anyone know how to get rid of the check engine light as well?

Thanks:cry:

kwikb16a2

reset your ecu, disconnect the battery for a few minutes

imported_loudsubz

what code is it throwing?

imported_EH_94_Civic

Check spark plugs, wires and distributer cap. May have got loose.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

you will come up with several codes - the codes will be misfire.

misfire is due to MOST LIKELY bad wires - open your hood at night, mist some water over it, and start the car - see if you can see any sparks in the dark escape the wires and shoot to a ground on the car. Using a multimeter, test the resistance of the wires - over 8000 ohms I'd replace them, though even 5K ohms is pretty bad. 11,000 ohms is the absolute service limit if I remember right. Basically, if you track this problem to an ignition source, you can reset your ecu and not worry about it.

lordm

what year is your car?
if it is a 96 and up i can tell you exactly what the problem i and clear the trouble code.

imported_esp

b, I had the plugs and wires done 10,000k ago with OEM. I feel so bad. The car has been perfect for so long and now this.

I'm about to do a valve adjustment, fuel filter change, prof. injector clean, and reseal cam and valve cover gaskets. Should I ask Buddah to look at something specific when looking in?

pm'd you lordm. thanks

kwikb16a2

is it only when its cold? I had the exact problem on start up and i cleaned the throttle body and now its gone

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

Then the cap and rotor may be failing. The rough vibrations would indicate a misfire on one or two cylinders. Considering that it was pouring rain, that would lead me to believe it's an ignition problem, esp cuz you say it smoothed out after a little bit (engine gets warm, water evaporates). Don't rule out parts just cuz you replaced them once already, they can get damaged in install or even before you get them double check ALL ignition things before moving on... since checking these things only costs you your time.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

injector clean???? what a waste of money!! Fuels have detergent in them. unless your car sits for months at a time like mine does, trust me, you don't need some magical injector clean. Besides, it's way cheaper to hunt for used injectors on e-bay from guys that go turbo, the injectors often sell for around $10 usd.... and you can use any obd2 injector, Civic, Integra... any trim level too!

imported_esp

light is off now? Weird. I guess the ECU recognizes that the problem no longer exists?

I checked the wires plugs and cap and rotor. They seem ok. Car seems fine now. But I hate to think that when the car was was damaged internally when the misfiring incident happened.

Thanks B, I'll reconsider the injector service.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

Misfire doesn't cause damage per se... it just runs like crap. Next time we get heavy rain, your problem may reappear... or it could have been a spark plug wire just get loose. The code is stored, I'm sure if you check it, it'll show up as a misfire for the specific cylinder that was bunk... In OBD2 it'll tell you exactly what cyl wasn't firing. After a few starts the ECU will turn the light off, but the code will still be there.

lordm

the problem was diagnosed at fridays meet by myself with esp in the car and what we found was much to our surprise. his computer registered 4 trouble codes, his number 1 3 4 cylders misfired and the fourth code was multiple misfire detected, the car seemed to be running find so we cleared his computer and will moniter it weekly.

This service i provide is availble for and car 96 and up so why pay the dealer $85 hour just to look when i charge $50 do look and clear the problem, so imagine your engine light is on and you go to get it fixed but you already know what the problem is and you tell the service check the (i.e. oil pressure swicth) they come back and say WOW you new the problem saved yourself allot of cash.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

Again, esp... I refer to you an ignition problem... wet weather misfire is often the wires. I'd even recommend some dielectric grease in the boots.

imported_esp

thanks b I will look into doing that. I will also test the wires when I get the chance.

Thanks matt. ANYONE who has engine light problems needs to pm Matt. It gave me so much peace of mind and I didn't have to pay the HONDA dealership fees. lol. Even if you are burning rich, or backfiring, any codes, pm Matt.

Honestly, I trust Matt more than someone at a Honda garage.