aphex23

Hey guys, i need help on this one, as the title says, my car is running rich, when i start it in the garage, the smell of gas is quite noticable.. second.. when shifting, i get a slight pop, its random.. but usually in 2-3 gear.. and i also lost about 60 mpg.. since i bought the car..

Now, i am sure all of those things are related to running rich.. (i think?) but i dont know what is causing it.. I first noticed the problem when i switched the o2 sensor to a generic one.. so, I bought an OEM Honda one.. that helped a little on the gas, but not much.. I dont know what else to do? please help me out!

EG8 Dimitri

Check timing/plugs/ignition wires. Move from there. Any CELs?

aphex23

plugs, and wires are less than a year old..

fakemike

how about the fuel filter? its cheap to replace ~$10

aphex23

really? i thought they were $40 something... can i take the casing apart and replace the filter inside?? ive never messed with the thing.. so i have no idea..

fakemike

No you just replace the whole fuel filter. But if the fuel filter was clogged I don't think you would run rich. It would hurt your mpg. Fuel filters should be replaced every ~15k.

AutoXer

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by aphex23 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">really? i thought they were $40 something... can i take the casing apart and replace the filter inside?? ive never messed with the thing.. so i have no idea..</TD></TR></TABLE>

They're about $20 from ricezone or napa, cap whatever. I think it's about $30 from honda. It's not a cure-all like some think, and probably won't do anything for running rich, but it should be done anyway if it hasn't been in the last 30K.

The smell of fumes is a fairly normal thing with hondas when starting cold. The cat isn't warm, and there's a distinct smell from every civic I've ever been in when starting cold. Even my girls new civic. Is it actually gas you're smelling on startup, or is it just non-cat emissions?

By backfiring, do you mean there is a loud bang when you shift, or does it just 'pop' a little out the tailpipe when you're off the gas? Does it do it while you're engine breaking / coasting as well? Do you have an aftermarket exhaust or piping? Sometimes they can cause some popping from the exhuast that some mistake as a misfire.

Not saying that what you're experiencing isn't all related, but it might be a combination of issues.

Edit: Do you mean you're loosing 60 miles to the tank? If you're loosing 60mpg, I'd like to know what you were getting for milage before

nonsense

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by aphex23 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Hey guys, i need help on this one, as the title says, my car is running rich, when i start it in the garage, the smell of gas is quite noticable.. second.. when shifting, i get a slight pop, its random.. but usually in 2-3 gear.. and i also lost about 60 mpg.. since i bought the car..

Now, i am sure all of those things are related to running rich.. (i think?) but i dont know what is causing it.. I first noticed the problem when i switched the o2 sensor to a generic one.. so, I bought an OEM Honda one.. that helped a little on the gas, but not much.. I dont know what else to do? please help me out!</TD></TR></TABLE>

what mods do you have done to this car? Like EX_AutoXer said, the 'pop' sound when shifting is normal for Hondas you just can't hear it when it has a stock exhaust.

How long was the generic O2 on there? Aer you getting an CEL's? Is your car converter still good?

HUBB

same **** happens to me....smell, popping, and bad gas milage.....i aint trippin tho cus the poppin is from my exhaust and the smell is normal...gas milage sucking is from always bein in vtec so thats on me

aphex23

no, its not a loud backfire i guess, just kinda a pop you can hear, yeah, I have a magna flow 2.5 catback on there.. um, an injen intake, msd sci ignition... 10.2 mm plug wires.. iridium plugs.. guess thats it for mods.. Oh, and yeah, sorry, i did mean 60 miles to the tank

"How long was the generic O2 on there?"
Oh, i dunno, maybe 6 months or so? maybe longer.. and whats a car converter? do you mean cat? if so.. i think so?

nonsense

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by aphex23 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">no, its not a loud backfire i guess, just kinda a pop you can hear, yeah, I have a magna flow 2.5 catback on there.. um, an injen intake, msd sci ignition... 10.2 mm plug wires.. iridium plugs.. guess thats it for mods.. Oh, and yeah, sorry, i did mean 60 miles to the tank

"How long was the generic O2 on there?"
Oh, i dunno, maybe 6 months or so? maybe longer.. and whats a car converter? do you mean cat? if so.. i think so?</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah typo. I meant cat ('t' and 'r' are right next door on a keyboard )

I'd check to make sure your timing is set properly. Maybe even uninstall the MSD and run it like stock to see if that eliminates the problems??

aphex23

i dont see how it could be my msd stuff.. i mean, if anything, that is supposed to increase your gas mileage.. errg, i hate cars some time!

aphex23

ok, so NM about the pop sound then... what are some other causes of running rich?

AutoXer

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by aphex23 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ok, so NM about the pop sound then... what are some other causes of running rich?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Does your intake have all the locations for the stock sensors? The only thing I can think of running rich would be the sensors or the O2.

Are you sure it's even running rich though? Have you checked the condition of your plugs? Are they wet, oily, wite powder coating, or brownish tint?

After re-reading your first post, it seems like you thought it was running rich based on your exhaust and the cat not being warm. I know I dropped anywhere from 50 - 100 miles per tank on my car since I've owned it from my mods and driving style. I drive my buggy much harder now than when I owned it, so I stopped keeping track of my milage.