Wil Beck

So I got the motor in my 98 civic ex and it was running alright, but yesterday morning I went to leave for work and when I turned the key it sputtered a little then died, then after I turn the key again, it turns over and sputters a little but I think at that point the engine is flooded, the weird part is the night before it's started right up with no problems, I've replaced plugs, wires, distributor, rotor, cap, and neg battery cable (clamp was stretched and a little loose), all the grounds are good. When it ran, I would get very little power until about 2500 rpms then back to normal so timing is probably slightly off but no detonation or anything, I've tried adjusting ignition timing too and it still won't start but correct me if I'm wrong but since it started and ran then timing shouldn't be the issue right? I honestly don't know what to do at this point, any help is greatly appreciated

Wil Beck

I am getting a P0325 code for the knock sensor, could a faulty one retard the ignition timing to the point where it won't start?

Wil Beck

Anyone?

mk378

Timing that disfavors low rpm operation would naturally make starting hard. So you really should check the cam timing. Also valve adjustment (at least a quick check that they are all slack) and compression.

Wil Beck

The cam timing is good, I adjusted my gear +/- 5 degrees as a trial and error type deal and tried adjusting the ignition timing each time I adjusted the cam gear it helped a little when it was advanced 5* but still no start and it got worse and didn't even sputter as much the further I retarded it, I checked the valve clearances and they were all good, I reset the ECU and use an obd2 scanner and got the code P1509, could this be causing my problems? I don't know too much about electrical stuff, I mainly just turn the wrenches and try to learn the technical stuff from my friend who's a mechanic but he's not real knowledgeable about hondas

Wil Beck

I also got a code 15 grime counting the CEL flashing and everything I've seen and the symptoms I'm getting are kinda pointing to a bad ECU, does it sound like that could be the problem?

tamboo

coil/plugs/wires/cap/rotor last replaced when?

TomCat39

Which D15B block do you have? Are the pistons flat or dished?

Wil Beck

I replaced the plugs, wires, cap, rotor, and distributor which came with a new coil earlier in the week, it's an obd2 jdm d15b non vtec block, the weirdest thing happened though, after everything I tried, the car did not start that day, but the next morning I went out and tried starting it just for the hell of it and it fired right up, got the ignition timing set, it's idling at about 700-800 rpm with no fluctuation, I want to think it's all good but I've had plenty of issues with this car, any ideas on what was happening? Ive put 150 miles on it since and got 2 codes, one for the knock sensor thats unplugged, and P0113 for the IAT sensor

mk378

Check that the plugs for the IAT and other two-wire devices around the intake are plugged in to the right wires on the harness. The plugs are physically the same, you will need to go by the wire colors.