VTechYo

I just took my car to pepboys for an oil change and got a free error code reading for CEL..

This is a recently purchased car, I noticed the following:
- Engine pressure not going above 4,000 RPM
- Engine heat indicator sometimes drops suddenly, then goes back up.
- Engine heat is normal 99% of the time (just below half)

After getting the codes from pepboys (P0128 & P1259) and reading around, I realized the RPM problem is because Vtech is not engaging.

What should I do? I have no experience with car problems whatsoever!

What should I replace first?

holmesnmanny

Your car will run in limp mode which will not allow it to rev higher than 4k rpms while the check engine code is being thrown for vtec malfunction.

First, check oil level. Second, check for any dents in the oil pan under the engine. If there are dents this will cause low oil pressure and the check engine code. If that checks out ok then take off the connector for the vtec pressure switch and look for any frays along the wire or the connector.

EE2bitsk

oil pan dents cause low oil pressure? lol.

holmesnmanny

Yep.

98ekb18c

If the pan is dented by the pickup, oil can't get into the oil pump, creating low oil pressure.

EE2bitsk

k

VTechYo

Could the thermostat stuck open be causing the Vtec not to engage?

I hope this is the case so I don't have to go through replacing the vtec solenoid thing..

Please advise,

HondaPartsHero

Sounds like you obviously have an issue with coolant. Change the thermostat and bleed the system properly. Clear the codes and see if they come back. If either does post here for further troubleshooting.

MacR6

The vtec solenoid is right above the thermostat housing. If you are going to change the stat and bleed the system you may want to take a closer look at the solenoid. Make sure it's not leaking oil. In order to take it off you have to remove the thermostat housing (not really, but it makes the job way easier)

So if your going to go through the trouble of pulling the stat and flushing the coolant you may want to inspect the solenoid and consider replacing gaskets or the solenoid itself if it's bad. Because if u go through a flush and then have to come back to the solenoid u will be doing a flush bleed over again.

holmesnmanny

Pull the vtec solenoid off and clean out the filter inside. It could be clogged.

And, again, check for dents in the oil pan.