Another_Si_Guy

I've got a 99 Si with second gen b16a swap. Three inch catback exhaust and a 4-2-1 header. There are three relatively small exhaust leaks. One where the header connects to the cat, one at the back of the cat and one right behind the bank 2 o2 sensor. I have a decent number of engine codes. All having to do with either the cat, the o2 sensors or the exhaust leaks. Now, I'm positive the o2 and cat codes were there since I bought the car. The exhaust leaks formed after I put the header on about a month ago, and they've been there since. I hit vtec last night on my way home from work with no issues whatsoever. Today I turned my car on and let it warm up and it was running just fine. I merged into the highway (the car was at operating temperature by this time) and the car kinda fell flat on its face. My vtec usually engages pretty hard and today it seemed almost like it was engaging. I notice a sound difference when I got to the crossover point like usual but, it sounds different. It sounds kind of muffled and it doesn't seem to be pulling any harder. All of my fluids are fine, including my oil with the exception of my clutch fluid which was a tad bit low. I put a new vtec solenoid gasket on earlier this year, and the plugs and wires and everything are good. One more detail, inside my muffler canister there seems to be some type of metal fragments. They re shiny and bronze colored and seemed fluid like. They're really small I'll try to post a picture. I am boggled and clueless. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Another_Si_Guy

This was inside the muffler canister. It's kind of pooled on the bottom of the can.

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

Pull all of your codes. Post all of them. We'll start diagnosing them one by one until your car is squared away.

The CEL exists for a reason. When it's on, there's a problem. That problem needs to be solved as soon as possible, because if a new code gets thrown, you won't know until it causes a major problem. It's time for you to get back in the habit of taking care of your car.

Another_Si_Guy

o2 sensor bank one and bank 2, catalytic converter running below threshold, and one for an exhaust leak. The guy at AutoZone said there was 8 of them and they all had to do with exhaust or emissions. I didn't have him write them down because I was aware of all of them.

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

"The guy at AutoZone" told you you had a code for O2 sensor 1 bank 2? See, this is why you can't trust the minimum wage employees at parts stores to pull codes. Your car doesn't even have a bank 2.

Instead of going off memory, and ignoring the possibility of new codes, jumper the service connector and pull the blink codes yourself. Post all of the blink codes, or if you aren't sure how to read them, use your smartphone to record it, upload the video to Youtube, then post the video here so we can help you go through the codes. You can find a how-to for pulling blink codes here.

Another_Si_Guy

By bank 2 I mean the secondary one after the cat. There's one right before the cat and one right after. And you're right I should've written them down. I'll do that tomorrow and post the codes as soon as possible. I appreciate the input.

Another_Si_Guy

I've also talked to a few friends who know a fair share about older Honda's. One said to clean and reinstall the Vtec solenoid And the other said that the stuff in my muffler looks like the packing in the cat blew out and the cat is going to/already failing. He also said that the first o2 sensor being bad could also trip the second. I've already purchased a brand new o2 sensor and I'm going to put it in the first position then the second position and see if there's any resolution. Also I'm going to reset my ecu once I clean the solenoid And put the new sensor in and see if that changes anything because if it does nothing that means there's something mechanical physically inhibiting vtec from engaging and if it "fixes" it that just means it corresponds with one of my codes and the ecu is telling vtec not to engage? If the cat ends up being the problem, I already have a test pipe ready to install and an obd1 ecu with a map. If Thats not the problem nor one of my 8 engine codes that all have to do with exhaust or emissions then I'm clueless. I will post the codes as soon as possible.

Former User

Post the actual CEL codes.

Another_Si_Guy

They'll be up tomorrow.

Former User

After you pull and write down the codes, reset ECU and drive car to see which codes repeat.

Another_Si_Guy

Update: codes are as followed: p0133, p0420, p1457, p0430, p0153. Also I tried to hit vtec once again and it seems like it's engaging but it doesn't seem to be pulling as hard, and it sounds different. There also seems to be a fair bit of ticking at idle. Could I need a valve adjustment?

Another_Si_Guy

Also this is the inside of my muffler canister. All that speckly stuff is what I was talking about. Could it be the element from inside the cat? Smells kinda sulfurous but could just be from having my face in the exhaust. My friend insists the cat is clogged.

tony_2018

Well the ecu did say your cat was toast...secondary o2 probably toast too.

Another_Si_Guy

I already have a new o2 ready to install. And until I can afford a tune I'm gonna delete the cat and run a defouler on the secondary o2. Have a test pipe ready to install. And the installation of the test pipe will hopefully remove my exhaust leaks.

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

How are you getting a P0430 and P0153? Your car doesn't have a bank 2. Your ECU wouldn't throw those codes. That literally makes zero sense. Are you pulling those yourself, or are you still trusting the...let's say "special employee" at whatever parts store you're taking it to?

Pull blink codes. Reset ECU. Take a quick trip around the block. See what blink codes return. Stop trusting whoever or whatever tool keeps giving you bank 2 codes.

Yes, if you hear a valve tapping noise, it's time to do a valve lash adjustment. It's extremely simple - you can find a how-to in my build thread, here. Mine is an LS head, but the procedure is the same. I believe the specs are, too.

Another_Si_Guy

Okay as soon as I get a chance I will reset the ecu, and pull and post the blink codes. But I used three different scanners. The employee got the codes, plugged the scanner into the computer and gave me a printout. Don't really see how anything could be going wrong there.

Another_Si_Guy

Also I went to two different parts stores.

Another_Si_Guy

There is one o2 before the cat in the collector pipe of the header, and one right after the cat. Explain to me the difference between bank 1 and 2, and why my car doesn't have a bank 2. Possible explanations as to why my ecu is throwing a bank 2 code?

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

Your motor is an inline, four cylinder motor. Because of this, it only has one exhaust bank. To explain it a different way, when you look at your exhaust, how many exhaust flanges are there? For an I4 motor, there's only one. For D and B series motors, it's on the front of the motor. One flange, with four runners, that merge into one collector, into the cat, and through the rest of the exhaust. It doesn't matter if it goes 4-2-1, or 4-1, it's still just one bank.

Now imagine a V8 motor. For a standard RWD V8 layout, there is an exhaust flange on the left, and an exhaust flange on the right. Each one goes from 4 into 1 (again, doesn't matter if it's 4-2-1 or 4-1), and then those individual banks have their own cats, and then after the cat they either merge into 1, or have an X pipe, or an H pipe, or sometimes just two separate pipes straight back to mufflers. Point being, there are two banks of exhaust.

Inline motors have one bank. V or H (Subaru, and I think Porsche?) motors have two. It's just the nature of engines. Does that make sense?

Now, aside from banks 1 and 2, for OBD2 cars, you have a primary and a secondary O2 sensor. The primary is before the catalytic converter, and is used by the ECU to keep the engine running properly (I am grossly oversimplifying that, but the explanation is not particularly relevant, and is also readily available through Google if you're curious). The secondary O2 sensor is after the catalytic converter, and serves only one purpose - to make sure the cat is doing it's job. That's it. The ECU doesn't use it to adjust anything, or control anything. It compares the pre-cat exhaust gas to the post-cat exhaust gas, and if the cat is working, then you're fine. If the cat isn't working, you get P0420. If the secondary O2 sensor isn't working, you might get a code for the secondary sensor, or you might also get a P0420. It's a funny code that can sometimes be a pain in the *** to diagnose.

Does the difference between primary and secondary O2 sensors make sense now?

Your ECU should not be throwing codes for bank 2. It shouldn't even be capable of it. As it sits, you're throwing a code for a failed primary O2 sensor on bank 2 (which you don't have), and a failed cat on bank 2 (which again, you don't have). How two parts stores both told you this and didn't stop to think about it just reinforces what I said about trusting parts store employees to pull codes.

This is an extreme longshot, but before we dive into diagnosing things, tell us what code is on the sticker on your ECU. It should be a P2T. If it isn't, there's something else going on here causing a problem. If you aren't sure what code you're looking for, just tell us all of the numbers on any stickers on the outside of the ECU.

Another_Si_Guy

Okay I fully understand primary vs secondary. I will do more research on regards to the function of the primary o2 sensor since I am throwing a code for it (i think). Explain to me where I can find the sticker on the ecu and where the ecu is even located. I'll go outside right now and find it if it's easily accessible.

Another_Si_Guy

Assuming the ecu is the correct one, how could I be getting a bank 2 code?

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

But do you get bank 1 vs bank 2, and why it's impossible for you to be getting bank 2 codes?

The ECU should be behind a piece of plastic in the passenger footwell, to the right. Pry that sucker out, and it'll be the metal box right there. This thread will show you where it is, and will also show you how to pull blink codes. The sticker will be on one of the edges of the ECU. The only explanations I have for getting bank 2 codes on the correct ECU are either the programming in the ECU is somehow damaged, or the parts store people are idiots. I'm personally leaning towards option 2.

Another_Si_Guy

Yes I understand. Because v or boxer configuration engines have two headers, therefore each collector pipe has Its own cat. So there's two primary sensors and two secondary sensors. One set of primary and secondary, ie one collector pipe is bank 1 and the other is bank 2. Correct me if I'm wrong. I will go check the sticker on the ecu now.

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

Yep, it sounds like you get it now.

Another_Si_Guy

This is what I found.