Q: I want to race my 1998 Civic ex. It has a 1.6L sohc, 127hp stock. I recently installed a 4-2-1 set of DC headers, and I already have a muffler, but never messed with the cat.
Saturday I was at Raceway Park and ran my car. The bottom end speed is pretty good but as soon as I put it into 3rd gear, I lose a lot of power.
I'm not sure what to do. I could put nitro or turbo on this engine. But I'm not sure this one is worth putting the money in. Or, I would consider swapping engines.
Do you think it has potential? Or would you just go for another engine like an Integra GSR, Type R or Prelude 2.2 VTEC?
If you think an upgrade is good, please tell me the best possible set of pistons for my car, and also other parts I might consider.
Thanks for all your help...!
A: As you know, the very first step in a successful journey is to select the destination......
All of your questions have answers, but you must first ask your self, "what exactly do I want???"
How fast do you wish to go, which class are you interested in dominating, and how much money are you willing to dedicate to the journey.....
If you help me with these answers I'll be able to help you with the others..... Ed
Q: I want to race it in the quarter mile.
Please give me your opinion as to what the best possible set of pistons is good for my car.
I was planning on putting nitros in too, money is no object!
It's a 1998 1.6 liter sohc vtec engine.
Thank you
A: Save your money on the pistons thing, at least for now. These will get you much further ... faster ...
1. Low restriction exhaust system...
2. Ignition power booster to increase available spark to the spark plugs...
3. NOS nitros fogger system....
If you use the base jets that come in the system you don't even have to retard the timing....
You'll get about 75 to 100 horspower at the push of the button...
Reduce the timing about 2 degrees for every increase in jet size....good luck....Ed
Chassis / Suspension & Steering Making Noise When driving Always
Q: This sound began to occur after I brought it to the dealer for the 30K Tune-Up. After consulting my trusty mechanic, he felt it was a Wheel Bearing problem and suggested I get it replaced under warranty from the dealer. The dealer did so, but the problem was still there. In the 30K Tune-Up, they rotate the tires. The left front tire is the only one that makes the noise. I suspect that the tire has a problem in its design or is defective compared to the other four. Is my suspicion correct?
A: If you rotate the tire back to the rear again and the noise moves with it, yes. Ed
Q: I wanna make my Civic alot faster and have more horses...what exact parts could i put in it to make it have more horsepower and better acceleration?
A: Pick up the magazine "HONDA TUNING". It'll provide you with prices, how to's, and projects that they have worked on... An EXCELLENT source for what your lookng for.
Electrical / Lighting Systems Won't Start When starting Always
Q: I have a Civic thats imported from Japan.
When I took the tape deck out I cut the wires and it made some sparks and I blew a fuse.
After I changed the fuse, I fitted the new tape deck in and now the light at the back won't switch on and also the dimmers at the front won't switch on either.
There is a wire at the back of the tape deck that says "light" and when I put that to a live wire, the tape deck works.
But it does not work from the main switch on the dash.
Now when the car is running, the lights are on (dimmers and the back light and the "in dash" lights).
I have checked the fuses and they are fine.
What is wrong?
A: If you can undo that which you have done and see if what needs to work does work, you can start on the tape deck thing again. Ed
Q: A vandal inserted broken-off toothpicks in my Civic's door locks (both sides) and the trunk lock. My car keys are useless. Thankfully, I have an alarm system, and its remote control still works. However, if the remote ever stops working, or its battery dies, then I would be locked out of my car.
Whats the best (and cheapest) way to fix this problem?
A: Take the door locks out and go to a locksmith for tooth pick removal. Ed
Q: I would like to suit up my civic to make it way more powerful and faster, What kind of parts do i need to do so??
A: If you want to make your civic faster i recommend you go to your honda dealer ship and order a accura engine , since honda makes accura to get you an engine with transmission it will run you about 3,000 excluding labor but that will make your car faster than any civic out there.
Chassis / Suspension & Steering Vibration Happens sometimes Not applicable
Q: While going down the road the steering wheel shakes but when I go into a curve it quits. And sometimes when I hit a bump I can hear a noise that sounds like a tire rod is loose or worn out but I've checked it and had a mechanic check it and still can't seemto figure it out.
Electrical / Lighting Systems Won't Start When starting Not applicable
Q: The car just shut off on me as I was driving, this was a few days after I did tuneup and put car in a dyno test for a state inspection. I am using NGK standard cooper core plugs with Magnecore 8.5 mm wires. Changed cap and rotor. When car shutooff, I lost all power , the car just died and turned off. The car had no smell or smoke coming out. When the car shut off the engine oil light came on. My mechanci had mentioned to me that the engine oil was kind of low but not dangerously low. The car attempts to start but will not. I assume it is the distributor, but have no way of checking. Your help is apprecaited. donbergon@hotmail.com
A: There is some simple tests in Chilton repair manuals for the distributor but this sounds like you may have broken a timing belt.
Q: Lately, it's seem that my car has been overheating. It's a '94 Honda Civic Ex with the 1.6l v-tec engine. I just had my water pump replace because it was leaking. Also the thermostat was replaced.
Everything runs well when it is driven in the city (less then 100mi straight). However, when I take it out from LA to Fresno, it overheats on me.
The car runs fine when cruising around 70-80 mph, but as soon as I slow down, the temp gauge in the dashboard sky rockets all the way near the red.
So I just took my car to the dealer and had them check it out...they couldn't find anything wrong with it.
I got my car back... took it home and on the way home I notice that the temp gauge goes up to half way then goes down.
Is this normal? I thought that the car temp usually stay at a certain level unless it is in stop and go traffic.
I'm thinking about changing the car temp sensing unit that is mounted onto the engine.
If you could posibly tell me what the problem is it would be greatly appreciated. Thankyou.
A: I would check at the connection from top rad hose to engine.... there should be a small air bleed valve to remove the last air pocket that causes this problem.... Ed
Drive Train / Driveline Malfunction When accelerating Always
Q: My Cars Clutch Begain Slipping about a week and a half ago, It went out on me on the way home from work, the car will not start unless i hold my foot on the clutch like normal but the car will not accellrate in any gear, What part of my clutch is malfunctioning or do i need to replace the whole thing?
A: i can almost gaurantee that the clutch disk in fried.i recomend getting a clutch kit with disk,pressure plate and throwout bearing.i also recomend having the flywheel resurfaced when changing the clutch
Electrical / Lighting Systems Malfunction When driving When warm
Q: Replacing original radio with aftermarket radio. Where do I start?
A: First, make sure the radio will fit in the car without a lot of trouble (ask a local car audio store). You will have to get a wiring kit and harness, so the radio will fit in the dash and look good. That is just about all that is needed. Unhook the negative cable from your car battery to be safe.
Ignition System Other Not applicable Not applicable
Q: When is it required or recommended to change the timing belt and how expensive is it to replace the timing belt in a 1993 Honda Civic and is this best performed through a dealership's service department?
A: It is required every 50 thousand miles. Do not take it to the dealer, because the timing belt cost is between $15-20. The rest is all labor. find a good machinic that will do it on the side. Dealership labor prices are a lot higher than small garages(machanic are machanics)I worked at a dealership for 5 years.
Q: My 93 civic hatchback with a 1.5l engine goes nearly to 0 rpm when I stop.
This normally happens when I stop after driving about 3/4 a mile at about 50-60 miles/hour.
I stop at the light and then the rpms drops, some times it just shut down.
Can you tell me what the problem could be?
A: I have seen problems from the coil on those before.
Q: About 4 months ago i replaced the head on my 1.6l motor... i am in fear that oil got into the coolant, because the coolant appeared to be contaminated showing a dark brown / green color...
what kind of reaction would oil and coolant have..? blockage capabilities..?
is there anyway to relieve my coolant of the oil without tearing down the block..?
recently my car has been overheating could this be linked..?
A: there would be no real reactions ecxept your car may run hotter than normal. The only way to relieve the coolant is to get your radiatior flushed and put new coolant in (there should be a tiny valve on the bottom of the radiator). So my suggestion would be to just take your car into a mechanic and get a coolant flush for around $80, Jordan
Drive Train / Driveline Malfunction Happens always When cold
Q: Hey great site!
My problem is getting into 3rd gear in the morning. I have a 1993 Honda CIVIC with an automatic transmission. I can drive about 2 miles before it finally decides to shift and when it does a sound like a zipper next to a microphone happens. (a very painful sound to hear happen everyday) Then for the rest of the day everything is fine.
When the weather starts to get colder, like now, my car decides it wants to wait even longer to shift in the morning not to mention now reverse seems to be a thing of the past. If it does decide to get into reverse it will slam into gear, sometimes making a similar sound but of course slower since the car isn't moving.(sounds like shifting a manual transmission without pushing in the clutch) It is only reverse and third gear, no others.
What makes the gears kick into place, and why are they not working like they should, and why only those two gears? I am guessing it something to do with the clutching mechanism but it's only those two gears, so it is kind of throwing me for a loop.
Thanks a bunch Brian Gendron
A: get your 3rd gear synchro meshing fixed, very pricey. tourque converter? maybe
This is what, I think, because I had a car doing the same thing, change the Transmission Filter, It is a fairly is project. And if you do that and it is still the problem, change the whole transmission. But the filter should be the problem. Good Luck. ALM
Electrical / Lighting Systems Malfunction Happens always Always
Q: The clock and the radio on my car always reset after I turn off the ignition.
It sounds to me like the constant power wire is not connected correctly. How do I diagnose this problem? Thank you.
A: With the key on and the engine NOT running, pull the fuses one at a time until the clock quits and the radio quits......
That's the circuit that they are currently wired to....
Now locate the connection wire for these two devices and with the key off....
Test the other fuses... especially the fuse spaces that are not yet used for other things, and re-attach to one of these spaces..... good luck.....
Q: When testing the parking brake to stop, it hardly does anything, it's like it doesn't even work.
A: Okay....... and you thought they meant driving brake instead of parking as in stopped brake?????......
The parking brake works only on the rear wheels and without power assist of any kind..... usually it's cable operated....
The real brakes are fluid transfer of leg effort multiplied by a power brake assist unit that increases your leg muscle effort more than 200 times.....
This will hopefully stop you before you crash into the guy in front of you who stopped for no reason in the middle of nowhere..... Ed..... *grin*
Fuel System Won't Start Not applicable Not applicable
Q: I have a 1992 Honda civic that Will not start.I checked for spark, it does have spark.
I changed the fuel filter. When I turn it on I don't hear the fuel pump. It does turn over, but when I do turn it over no gas comes out of the fuel hose.
It was running fine, but I let it set for about 3 weeks, when I came back it didn't start. About 5 or 6 weeks ago I forgot to put my oil cap back on and oil went all over,
I don't know if that has anything to do with it. Please help if you can. If it is the fuel pump, where is it located?
Fuel System Won't Start When starting Not applicable
Q: When left in the sun with the windows closed on hot days, my car cranks but does not start.
After sitting with the doors open for 5-10 minutes, it finally starts. A friend of mine thinks it is because the fuel relay is malfunctioning when the interior temperature gets high.
I'd like to buy a new fuel relay and install it myself. My question is, exactly where is the fuel relay?
My Chilton's manual says only that it is "behind the fuse box". Can you give me an accurate description of what and where to look for the fuel relay, and how to change it? Thanks a million!
A: It's probably the same as the main relay which should be located on the wall of the car near the drivers foot well. behind the hood release...
Fuel System Won't Start Happens sometimes When warm
Q: Needs to sit for 10-15 minutes when hot; acts like its starved for fuel.
A: It could be a distributor pick up coil. If you have a multimeter, unplug the electrical connector from the distributor (should only be 2 wires) and check the ohms when cranking the engine (when you have the no-start condition). If you don't get any readings at all (i.e. the needle stays at infinity) you have a bad pickup coil. This problem will give the same appearence as a no-fuel situation.
Q: I had to replace the old distributor sub housing because the set screw would work loose and the rotor button would slide forward causing the car to cut off.
After replacing the sub housing the car would not start.
I checked for spark at plug there was none. I swapped out the old coil because i new it worked fine. I still have the same problem. Also installed new plug wires. Still the same problem.
Checked the main fuses... still cranks but no spark. Could it possibly be the ignitior or pickup? This ia a brand new distributor from Advance Auto Parts and I don't think it is defective, but anything is possible.
Any help would be appricated. thanks.
A: Yes it is possible to be defective.......
Also check that the ignitor wires and colors are the same in location and coloor...
A few different types were supplied for the same car and will not interchange....... Ed
Chassis / Suspension & Steering Making Noise Not applicable Always
Q: When the steering is turned in standing position (its manual steering), there is a cound coming from below in the steering shaft. Also the steering is not in the center positon when the car is driving straight, and the suspensions also feel hard on road, i.e. the ride is not smooth. Could it all be because iof rack-and-pinion ?
Thanks
A: Most likely. How much play in the steering wheel do you have?
Electrical / Lighting Systems Malfunction When driving Always
Q: daytime running lights fail to come on
A: Unless you have aftermarket daytime running lights, I wouldn't worry about it because a 91 civic did not have factory installed daytime running lights in the united states.
Q: We just finish putting on a timing belt. Now everytime we drive the car the engine i guess decides to shut off when we come to a stop. and when we go up a hill it will not make it. it will drive for awhile then the engine lights comes on. we think its because of the timing belt. it is off. is there a way to fix the timing on it or is it someother problem?
A: Get the engine at top dead center and recheck the belt,sounds like the timing belt is off,setting the dist timing will not make up for this.
Electrical / Lighting Systems Other Not applicable Not applicable
Q: I'm looking for a wiring diagram for the 3 ECU plugs. Colors and what they go to. I'm swapping a ZC motor into my 91 H-back. I've seen other swaps but to make my situation worse...I've converted the car from AUTO to stick. I think the wiring order is different for Auto?!
Thanks!
Q: About a week ago I put some no-name brand stuff into my fuel system b/c I was trying to clean my fuel system and conserve my fuel. It is fuel injected.
I tried to put some more powerful gas into my tank trying to flush it out but it didn't work.
My father seems to think it is my ignition switch b/c everytime we start it, it won't stay on unless I leave my hand on the key in the ignition about halfway.
Please tell me what could it be and how could I fix it.
Thank You,
Chelle' Warren
A: I agree with Dad based on your description...... Sounds like the ignition switch.... Ed
Electrical / Lighting Systems Malfunction Happens always Always
Q: The "Door Open" indicator light in the instrument cluster stays on and the warning signal sounds continuously. (which is slowly driving me nuts!}.
I have disconnected the door light switches and the hatchback light switch, but the instrument light remains on and the beeper sounds. Any suggestions?
David
A: The switches on the door need to be closed not disconnected. Disconnecting leaves them open, just as if the door was open.
All Part Groups Other Not applicable Not applicable
Q: My civic was stolen and the took a bunch of parts from the engine. Where can I get a VERY detailed diagram of the engine and its parts so I can figure out what is missing and how to repair it?
A: My suggestion to u is to get a Haynes repair manual. These books give a detailed description of a teardown and complete rebuild of your entire car.
Q: Idle speed low, 550-600, with terrible vibration and knocking. Loss of engine power with vibration (less knocking at higher speeds) after warm-up. stalls (or almost) and idles really rough at stop after warm. Replaced plugs, wires, computer through code 1, replaced oxygen sensor, no codes, but same symptoms, what now?
Q: It happens only sometimes. I'll drive for a while and it starts to smell like a "Sharpie" permanent marker. I'm wondering what it is. Usually happens when I drive short distances going fast in a stop & go situation.
A: Sounds like sulphur burn off from your catalytic convertor. Usually the cheaper gasolines. Ed
Q: Hi, My Honda smells like sulphur after driving for a while...
For example, after a good run, if I open the window, it smells reeaall baaaad.
I had the fuel pump replaced, and a scan done. No luck with those. It's got 80,000 miles.
Someone said it might be the computer, or might it be the fuel mixture?
As a new computer is around $500 bucks, I'd like a second opinion, first. Thank you.
Jan
A: Hi Jan..... the problem is actually because of the catalytic convertor...
With poor quality fuel and the higher sulpher content in it, a rotton egg smell happens, especially after a short run on the highway increasing the heat of the cat convertor.....
Spend no money on this until the convertor needs replacing... Ed
Electrical / Lighting Systems Other When driving When warm
Q: When I stopped today at a red light and released the brake pedal for the gas pedal, I saw a glimpse of spark from the bottom of the dashboard. Should I be alarmed with this? Please forward answer to the following e-mail: laisheung56@yahoo.com Thank you
A: Was probably the brake light switch under the dash... not a problem.... Ed
Q: My honda civic has trouble starting and i have just put a new altenator and water pump in it.
When i turn the the key it sounds like it wants to start but it never does. Thanks alot, anthony
A: When you put the water pump in, did you adjust the timing? Very important on those engines...
Q: My car will not reverse when I put it in R.
Do I need a motor or a transmission?
Someone told me if I got a motor I wouldn't need to buy a transmission, is this true?
A: The problem is in the transmission..... not the engine........ Ed
Q: I need to replace the clutch in my 1986 Honda Civic. What do I need to do in order to get all the parts needed to replace this? I don't know what all needs to be replaced.
A: You will need a clutch disk, pressure plate, throw out bearing, get fly wheel re-surfaced.
Q: don't here fuel pump when key is on has external pump, getting no fuel tried test light at pump don't get any power there checked fuses car cranks good . is there a relay or safty cut off that supply power to pump? HAS 1.5 PROGRAMED FUEL INJ. ENGINE .
A: You need to check for spark.
If spark is present, test for fuel pump voltage with engine cranking.
If no spark, look at pick-up coil and control module.
Remember, the fuel pump needs to be told to turn on. The 'On Signal' is the starting point, not the relay.
Electrical / Lighting Systems Malfunction Happens always Always
Q: Rear right lights including break lights do not function
A: There should be a plug in the wire harness that goes to that light fixture. Check by following the wire harness backwards from the light, until you find a plug. Pull the plug apart and clean the inside up and plug it back together. Also check the ground wire for that side to see if it making a good contact.
Q: I would like to know if I can put a bigger engine in my car. It has a 1300cc engine in it right now. Would a bigger one fit? Are they interchangeable?
A: I think the 1500 is a fit..... exhaust is a problem if I remember correctly though..... Ed
Q: The car keeps running after the key has been removed from the ignition switch. On the dashboard, the door, battery, and oil lights are on. We've tried disconnecting the battery after the key was removed and the car keeps running.
A: Something is powering up the ignition circuit. Same as hot wiring the car. Ed
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