sshiny007

I have a 1994 Honda Civic DX with a B16A swap. I bought this car a while back and now it is leaking oil ;[

See my picture attached. Since I am new to the wonderful auto world I am a little lost. I'll admit that.

I'm interested in getting some guidance since I'm not even sure where to start my route of troubleshooting.

This week I'm planning on checking all fluids (coolant, oil) to see if anything is mixed. I'm also going to clean off the engine to try to see where it is leaking from exactly.

Also, I'd like to do any repairs on my own. Since it is a B16A, what edition of Helm's book should I order? Thanks in advance.

xxstuntin4life

looks like it could either be

-the O ring on the distributer (10min fix and only cost like $4)
-Leaking vtec solenoid (only 3 bolts to fix and the gasket is only $10)
-Leaking cam seal (about 15-20min fix and only cost about $10-$15)

worst case it could be the corner of the headgasket.. i would put my money on a leaking cam seal.. it happens to A LOT of b series..

Matt93eg

I would start by looking in these areas as well. The Head Plug on the passenger side of the exhaust cam(also called cam seal sometimes)will leak. You can get a OEM replacement or I think aftermarket companies such as Golden Eagle make a Billet replacment that utilizes 3 orings to keep it from leaking and generally last longer than the OEM plugs.

As said above could also be the Dizzy oring or VTEC solonoid gasket. I wouldn't worry to much with it being a Headgasket, I would place my bet on the front corner of the Valve Cover gasket rather than the Headgasket.

Corksil

i had a similar oil leak and i just changed the distributor o-ring. i have yet to see if it fixed the problem though... degrease the motor and drive it hard - see where the oil is coming from.

that looks like a b16a3 from a del sol vtec. look at the stamp on the block to the left of the exhaust on the front, it'll say what motor it is. then look up the motor and find what cars it was in.

jkalex05

werd... I had these same leaks and had these changed aswell and added a skunk2 cam seal to make sure it doesn't happen again. 5 seals vs 2...

JasonYo

I have the exact same oil leak. I really hope it's not the head gasket, but I don't think it is.

jkalex05

read my above post. its just the vtec seals.

sshiny007

Here is a blown up image of the B16A marked on the engine. Does the ID number below the 'B16A' reflect what car this engine is out of?

jkalex05

looks like a jdm b16a motor.

sshiny007

So what HELMS manual should I get then? 94-97 Del Sol?

xxstuntin4life

ya get it for the del sol.. since that have a model with a obd1 b16..

Laz's EP

iTrader: (1)

I had the same leak, it was the distibutor oil seal and the Vtec solenoid seals

trrbl1bmx

If oil is leaking like that on an old JDM b16a your best bet is to buy a :
-Distributor O-ring
-Vtec Solenoid upper and lower gaskets
-Cam Plug for exhaust camshaft
-Valvecover gasket and some honda-bond for the corners of the VC gasket!
-Sparkplug tube seals
Reason Being you will learn alot about the top end of your engine parts are fairly inexpensive and you won't have to worry about any oil leaks ( considering it was done right) for a while! Your welcome!

sshiny007

Thanks for all of the advice.

hannslebo

c'mon. take better care of her.

2wheelhunter

i got my money on valve cover gasket, buy the replacement for 10 bucks and replace it. be careful re-torquing all the 10mm nuts for the valve cover.

sshiny007

2wheelhunter: I don't have an air compressor so all tools used will be by hand. Is this ok?

Matt93eg

Hand tools will be just fine. I use hand tools on about everything except things like the 32mm axle nut, and alot of the suspension stuff.

sshiny007

As far as gaskets go...

This car is and always will be my daily driver. I'm not looking to go show or even boost it. I'm looking for something that will run strong and hard and deliver power. What type of gaskets should I go with? OEM or others? I know they have a ton on Ebay but I'm not so sure I want to go that route.

2wheelhunter

yes hand tools are recommended for the valve cover gasket replacement. if you have a torque wrench then torque them all to spec and in order to prevent leaks in the future.

2wheelhunter

for a valve cover gasket you can just use one from your local auto parts dealer. OEM honda is recomended but i've used plent of gaskets from autozone/advance etc. and havent had any problems.

theBEST

This guy nailed it as he's absolutely correct because considering its a jdm motor the gasket & seals are all probably hardened and brittle and have probably never been replaced.

I would only buy OEM honda parts as u wont regret it and yes there will be a price difference but there is always a price for quality and the only exception as i can see would be the exhaust camshaft cap seal as the oem ones only have one rubber o-ring sealing it over aftermarket ones which have multiple o-rings sealing them .

and about a haynes or helms service manual go with the 1994-1997 honda del sol versions as the VTEC model came stock with a b16

DCRB

i've used several ebay gasket sets, never had a problem with them. cheaper to buy an entire top end gasket too from ebay than it is to buy a kit from auto zone or something.

John M

go degrease and clean all that oil off there and look to see where it is coming from. it will be the dizzy o ring or cam seal or vtec solenoid gasket

shotenITR

Use all oem gaskets and HONDABOND! Best stuff ever...