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Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

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Old 02-25-2014, 01:25 PM
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Default Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

My engine starts and then stalls and rotates backwards (after the engine warms up).

I checked my timing and distributor and everything is tip top shape and the motor still has the same problem! My next option is an ecu, any help or suggestions would be awesome!

2 videos showing engine moving backwards. (Transmission is in 1st gear the whole time.)



Last edited by Former User; 03-01-2014 at 07:06 AM.
Old 03-01-2014, 05:35 AM
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Default Re: Civic 4 door gsr compression test and running issues

Op...that engine is not going backwards for anywhere near 1-3 seconds.

Anyway, I've seen that condition before. Your distributor is most likely 180° off. I'm guessing you used a little force to bolt it to the head?

Spin the engine COUNTERCLOCKWISE by hand (never turn it clockwise) so that it is at TDC on the crank and so that the cam gear marks line up to each other and the cams say UP facing up.

Does ALL of that line up?

If yes, then remove the distrubutor cap. Which cylinder post is the rotor pointing at? It SHOULD be pointing at the cylinder 1 post.

Is there moisture in the cap? Turn the motor by hand again...does the distributor rotor turn properly or is the rotor driver broken?

Auxillary question: are you SURE AS HELL that the plug wires are correctly located?

Have you tried swapping MAP and TPS plugs? This is almost for sure not the issue, but could compound it.

I'm almost sure that your firing order is wrong. Do you have a diagram of firing order for a B series distributor? Post a pic of how your wires are located. Use MS paint to label the wires' cylinder number.

**when I say COUNTERCLOCKWISE, I mean if you're looking at the motor directly from the cam gear side.

Last edited by B serious; 03-01-2014 at 07:39 AM.
Old 03-01-2014, 06:52 AM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts and then runs backwards and stalls

General thread comment --> Keep all responses here focused on the technical issue described in the first post and shown in the videos.
Old 03-01-2014, 07:52 AM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

What ecu are you currently running? More info on the cheesy swap?

Edit: Okay, first off why the hell are you in first gear? Second, why are you in gear in a small closed area? Third, jack up the car and put it on jack stands so the wheels can spin freely and than start the car and make another video.
Old 03-01-2014, 11:08 AM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Originally Posted by tony_2018
What ecu are you currently running? More info on the cheesy swap?

Edit: Okay, first off why the hell are you in first gear? Second, why are you in gear in a small closed area? Third, jack up the car and put it on jack stands so the wheels can spin freely and than start the car and make another video.
If you say my 1st thread nobody believed my motor was rotating backwards so I apparently had to prove it by leaving the car in 1st to show what's happening, and I was in the shop, and I'll make another bid soon then.
Old 03-01-2014, 11:10 AM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

I have a obd1 p72 ecu and the swap is all stock except header (last owner) b18c1 with a b16 transmission
Old 03-01-2014, 11:14 AM
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Default Re: Civic 4 door gsr compression test and running issues

Originally Posted by B serious
Op...that engine is not going backwards for anywhere near 1-3 seconds.

Anyway, I've seen that condition before. Your distributor is most likely 180° off. I'm guessing you used a little force to bolt it to the head?

Spin the engine COUNTERCLOCKWISE by hand (never turn it clockwise) so that it is at TDC on the crank and so that the cam gear marks line up to each other and the cams say UP facing up.

Does ALL of that line up?

If yes, then remove the distrubutor cap. Which cylinder post is the rotor pointing at? It SHOULD be pointing at the cylinder 1 post.

Is there moisture in the cap? Turn the motor by hand again...does the distributor rotor turn properly or is the rotor driver broken?

Auxillary question: are you SURE AS HELL that the plug wires are correctly located?

Have you tried swapping MAP and TPS plugs? This is almost for sure not the issue, but could compound it.

I'm almost sure that your firing order is wrong. Do you have a diagram of firing order for a B series distributor? Post a pic of how your wires are located. Use MS paint to label the wires' cylinder number.

**when I say COUNTERCLOCKWISE, I mean if you're looking at the motor directly from the cam gear side.
I'm about 99% positive my timing and plugs are all in the right places, and I had a few credible people check it as well, I tried to rotate the distributor 180° and it doesn't seem to go in any other way. Could my ecu be the culprit?
Old 03-01-2014, 11:54 AM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Crank it again and keep your foot on the gas pedal just a little bit, don't rev it high or else you'll end up suffocating yourself in a closed building...........thats why I ask why are you starting a car in a closed building.
Old 03-01-2014, 12:40 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Timing is off. '
Old 03-01-2014, 01:01 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

If u can post a pic of the timing marks lined up and spark plug order.
Old 03-01-2014, 01:02 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

I had my brothers Jdm gsr a tooth off timed and it sounded the same as the video u posted
Old 03-01-2014, 03:19 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

it definitley seems like timing is off i would recheck that and make sure firing order is correct also
Old 03-01-2014, 06:15 PM
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Default Re: Civic 4 door gsr compression test and running issues

Originally Posted by DylanGSR_eh9
I'm about 99% positive my timing and plugs are all in the right places, and I had a few credible people check it as well, I tried to rotate the distributor 180° and it doesn't seem to go in any other way. Could my ecu be the culprit?

Did you try or check any of the stuff I bothered to type out?
Old 03-01-2014, 08:13 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Fix link
Old 03-01-2014, 08:19 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Old 03-01-2014, 08:20 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Old 03-01-2014, 08:21 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

http://youtu.be/(null)
Old 03-01-2014, 08:21 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Old 03-01-2014, 08:24 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

I'll ask my question in a different way since you never got back to me, if you give it gas does it stay running?


edit: Alright, is the check engine light working? Also make sure you didn't swap the map and tps sensors. Another test to try is keep the car on all jackstands, e-brake cable up, and shift through all gears as if you were driving. Keep in mind that the car is on jackstands so it will accelerate pretty fast.
Old 03-01-2014, 08:33 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

If it's cold it runs fine even if you give it gas or not. Once it warms up it usually idles ok but when you give it gas it stalls. When that happens it doesn't want to start again. But if you leave it overnight and it's cold it will start right up. That's why I wonder if the ecu is causing problems when it's warm.
Old 03-01-2014, 08:36 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

When the engine is warm and idling, have you jumped the service connector, hooked up a timing light, and checked the ignition timing?
Old 03-01-2014, 08:37 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Hmm....Sounds like the knock sensors trying to compensate?
Old 03-01-2014, 08:38 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Originally Posted by DylanGSR_eh9
If it's cold it runs fine even if you give it gas or not. Once it warms up it usually idles ok but when you give it gas it stalls. When that happens it doesn't want to start again. But if you leave it overnight and it's cold it will start right up. That's why I wonder if the ecu is causing problems when it's warm.
If the car idles than it shouldn't be an ecu issue. Does the check engine light work?
Old 03-01-2014, 08:39 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

Yes it was at 14 degrees btdc for the videos
Old 03-01-2014, 08:44 PM
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Default Re: Civic with gsr swap - engine starts, then stalls and rotates backwards

The check engine light is on, but the only codes are oxygen sensor and vss. The oxygen sensor hasn't been hooked up since we got the car, and it ran fine for years that way.


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