lv6l

94 Civic CX with D16 VTEC. I notice I have a leak a few months back but it's getting pretty bad where it's causing a big mess under the car and on my driveway. It looks like the leak is coming from my distributor, upper radiator hose, motor ID stamp area. It looks like a head gasket leak but I'm not sure because there is no oil leaking all around the other parts of the head. Probably a dumb question but is it possible for head gasket to just leak in one area? Also I notice there is a few plugs that plug into the head located right beneath the distributor, can my leak be coming from there? Or is there a seal on the distributor itself that could go bad? The motor has about 80k mileage on it. How often should I change the head gasket? Thanks.

instructor74

its your distributor o ring that is leaking. Its quite common and a cheep fix

lv6l

Oh I see. I'll further check that out. How can you tell if the o ring in the distributor is bad?

arrocha87

and i believe u mean ur valve cover gasket? and yea ur dizzy does have an o-ring that can go bad. look at the FAQs. i know theres a oring replacement thread in there.

batallic

VC gasket, diizzy o ring, or more time consuming rear main seal (gotta drop the trans)

lv6l

No, I am not talking about my valve cover gasket. I was talking about my head gasket. I'll look for the FAQs. Thanks.

lv6l

I was searching around and was wondering is the o-ring seal on the distributor or on the head of the motor, or both?

arrocha87

here... https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-civic-del-sol-1992-2000-1/%5Bfaq%5D-how-removal-installation-distributor-o-ring-1065831/
and ur head gasket is what mates the block and head together, if that was bad ud have coolant in ur oil and smoking white, and thats way different than leaking oil... ur valve cover gasket is what mates ur valve cover to ur head and that is usually the cause of most common leaks.

lv6l

I saw that link, the picture is broken so I was unsure weather it's on the head or the distributor. The link you provided seems like he's changing the ring on the head, but I got another link from another site that describe how to change it on the distributor. So I was just wondering if there is 2 rings I would go and change both so I don't have to do the same job twice. Let me know someone, Thanks.

lv6l

I just re-read the link and it seems like the ring is on the distributor. I'll drop by Honda today and get the part. Can someone in the meantime confirm where the ring is located. Thanks again.

arrocha87

yes o-ring is on the dizzy. make sure u mark it when u pull it out so u dont throw ur timing off.

lv6l

I will change it and let you guys know how it went. I have a timing gun so just in case I did something wrong to throw off timing I have a way to readjust it. Thanks for all the help.

lv6l

Sorry it took me this long to get back to you guys. I did end up changing the o ring in the distributor. I've been driving it since. I regret to say I still have a leak. Though, the leak is less now there is still oil under the distributor in the "motor stamp" area. I see there is two sensor plugged into the head, they look like coolant temp sensors, could they leak oil? Any inputs is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

honda.lioness

Is there oil in the dizzy cap? If so, this points to a leaky oil seal. See the top drawing at http://honda.lioness.googlepages.com/distributorbearing and then the discussion there.

If this does not work, replace the valve cover gasket. Use only an OEM Honda gasket; other makes do not last as long. Torque the four nuts on the valve cover in criss-cross fashion, and only to 7 ft-lbs. autozone.com has perfectly good directions for this maintenance/repair. It is easy to overtighten; many do, producing leaks. (If by "motor stamp" area you mean the numbers IDing the engine stamped on the engine block near the dizzy, then definitely change the valve cover gasket.)

Consider changing the four rubber/metal washers underneath the four valve cover nuts, too. They harden after say 100k miles/7 years and will no longer seal.

Those two sensors are indeed for coolant temperature (one sends a signal to the ECU; the other to the temp gage on the instrument cluster). They would leak only coolant. Generally I do not read of their seals failing, anyway.

Head gaskets should last the life of the car as long as it never overheats from, say, a failed thermostat or failed coolant hose.

lv6l

Oh I see. Thanks for the input, I will take your suggestions and further check the surroundings of my car. I'll get back to you guys when I check them.