dthurlow79

So I just got this 85 1.5 civic and it acts like it is firing only 1 maybe 2 cylinders. it is getting spark to all plugs, I pulled them all out, connected them to the plug wires, laid them on something metal and they all sparked as they should. I checked compression on all cylinders and they were 150, 150, 120, and 150. should be all well within the runnable range. I lined up the timing mark on the crankshaft and pulled the top timing belt cover and checked the timing marks on the cam and they are all lined up just fine. It appears to be getting fuel because the accelerator pump still pumps out fuel. The closest I can get it to run is when I crank it over and hold it to the floor. If i try and pump it while cranking it sounds like the one or two cylinders die out. After cranking it for a while the exhaust is getting hot like it is firing. I tried advancing the timing by turning the dist. and it sounded like it was firing on the up stroke. Retarding the timing by turning the dist the other way to no avail. My next guess is the carb needs rebuilt? This is the first Honda I have really got into so I'm not sure how well the rebuild will go. But i don't know why the carb could make it only fire on 1 or 2 cylinders. Please an input will be greatly appreciated.

Dave

lexrob

I would shoot some starting fluid in it and see if she starts right up. It should run for a few seconds even would and fuel at all. (don't use carb cleaner or brake clean) Must be starting fluid.

This would more or less eliminate everything but fuel.

If is does pur like a kitten for 2-4 seconds and cuts back off you know its just not getting the correct amount of fuel.

If it does not pur like a kitten play with the timing until it does.

If it still don't hit a lick your back to mechanical timing not strong enough spark or something just fishy....


If all else fails put jumper cables from engine and chasis to negative of battery. This is to beef up the grounds side ONLY***

Ive seen many many problems like yours run just not good enough grounds.

MANY MANY times cant even count how many hours I chased my tail from just a bad ground.

lexrob

About 2-3 solid seconds of spraying starting fluid. No more than that. Open throttle plate and spray it right into the manifold. Fire it up.

Fire exstiguisher or a big bucket of water handy is recommended just incase.

Its not really that dangerous of stuff. Spraying half a can in it is not such a good idea tho.

dthurlow79

I tried the starting fluid to no avail. If anything it made it worse. It seems to be getting to much fuel. I tried holding the choke plate open while turning it over with the throttle floored and I could see fuel kinda lightly spraying up out of the carb every once in a while. I just started a new job so I might have to wait till some money starts coming in and try the cap, rotor an coil if the ground thing ends up not working out.cap and rotor look fine, but I'm kinda at a loss.

lexrob

Id try a whole new dizzy. It could be the ignition control module. Its part of the distributor. Im pretty sure even that old diesnt have points...? Ive had the ignition module go bad before and it would just shut off out of nowhere and not start till it cooled off.

Shoot it with a timing light to verify your getting spark at right time at least on number 1.

Maybe check you mechanical timing one more time on distributor and belt.

lexrob

I found out today that the distributor on my 85 civic si which is fuel injected has a vacuum advance distributor.

Yours likely does too maybe check out that and make sure its not jammed up or the diaphragm leaking. That would probly result in a no start even with starting fluid*.

Anyways good luck!

dthurlow79

Sorry I haven't replied for a while, but I started working this week and haven't had time to work on it. I'll let you know when I get a chance. Thanks for your input.

Zaretta

So I have an 83 honda civic wagovan and have a similar problem.
It will start first thing in the morning fine, but if I stop somewhere for a few minutes, I have to floor it until it starts.
I am planning to change out the fuel filters and rebuild the carb.
But I have a few FREE odd easy tricks to try.
I have found that WHERE you buy your gas can make a HUGE difference.
I have had the most luck with SHELL. The reasoning behind this is because the car was built to respond to the way gas was made in the 80s.
The other trick is something my dad did with his 87 accord.
Put premium gas in it, then find a long straight road and red line it in each gear.
I call it a poor mans tune up.

AND if you haven't changed the battery cables (positive, negative, and ground), I would highly recommend doing that anyways to avoid future starting problems in the winter.

ej1995

If you have to floor it to get it to start then it is loading up with too much fuel. If you haven't figured that out, I would highly recommend finding a mechanic to work on your carburetor instead of rebuilding it yourself.

Also, adding premium fuel will not provide any difference that you will notice, especially since the car was designed to run on 87 octane.

I would not run your car to redline in every gear either. I would guess the engine probably hasn't been refreshed recently, maybe not at all, so being unnecessarily hard on it may cause other parts to fail.

Zaretta

Well the premium fuel thing only needs to be done for one tank. And what does "refreshed" mean? I have never heard of that in mechanical terms. Do you mean a tune up? Plugs, wire, distributor?

ej1995

I mean bearings, seals, rings, parts that are directly affected directly by engine RPMs

Zaretta

Ah yes... the things that are difficult to do on my daily driver when I don't have a second car, or money. But I will add those things to my to do list. Thx.