invision

Ok, so earlier I posted this thread:

https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=2426225

Well I just did a compression test and it turned out to be 100-100-75-100....the numbers don't sound too good guys, what should i do from here? The car still cranks and everything just has that problem mentioned in the thread earlier....so a new headgasket i'm assuming?

edit: WATCH THIS VID:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3IWS9uxQEs


Modified by invision at 5:43 PM 11/12/2008

wrenchez81

those #'s are pretty low..... have you checked your wires??? take along screwdriver and put it to each injector body... you should hear a clicking noise on each one as the engine is running....... you could have washed the rings in that cyl with fuel hence the low reading...... try putting a teaspoon of oil in the cyl's and unplug all the injectors and do another compression test...especially on that cyl....... if not then you either hurt the rings, popped a head gasket,,, or the outside chance your timing belt slipped..... check your wires first tho!!! check for carbon tracking on the plug ends.... did you noticed a black line on any of the old plugs .... kinda like black lightning???? if you still have them checkem out!!! compare all 4 and post up what they look like....btw ur cel was blinking because you were having a catalst damaging misfire......

postman

run leakdown, aybe check valve lash, check timing, 100 is pretty low 75 is real low

invision

BUMP. guys I made a video of how its running at the moment, take a look at the exhaust. any suggestions? also listen hard at the engine towards the end of the video...sounds like its struggling to stay alive

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3IWS9uxQEs

wrenchez81

bump my ***!!!you can hear the ignition misfire in the exhaust!!! did you check the wires as i mentioned above??? cmon dood if your gonna bump on some help at least try and listen to what people are telling ya!!!

invision

Dude, seriously I am car illiterate...so are you suggesting that one of my plug wires is faulty? How would that explain my compression test results?

mortificationrock

How many times did you crank the car in each cylinder?? Ive heard that you should crank it atleast 3-5 times on each cylinder. But dont quote me on that thats what i read and im sure someone can chime in and confirm this. Since ive never done a compression test.

invision

Just once...my bud and I were kinda in a rush....but how would i go about checking my wires? what should I check for?

mortificationrock

Well just read thru your last thread and ......

DID YOU EVER CHECK THE DAMM CODE!

If you did tell us what its is. If you havent here is a HOW TO....

https://honda-tech.com/zerothread/1901557

Its pretty straight foward so do it and get back to us.

Help us ! Help You!

wrenchez81

ok..sorry for the hostility... but you can get a low compression reading if you wash that cyl with fuel.... crank the car over with the injectors unplugged ( to prevent washing the rings ) for about three revolutions... you should see the needle bump up as each compression stroke passes.... when you have an ignition misfire your lacking spark ie. bad wires and fuel isnt being burned.... and by listening to your little video i can hear the distinct sound of it... take each wire out and look for what looks like lightning bolts at the plug end of the wire... do you still have the old plugs??? if you do look for the same on the insulators on them aswell.... new wires are like 30 bucks and are a part of basic vehicle maintainence.... and yes i am saying i think the wires are at fault..... and you did say that everything was fine and this just popped up outta the clear blue sky??? what exactly are your driving habits????

wrenchez81

lol!! BTW.......... next time quote yourself... youre right!

invision

Lol, My driving habits are pretty normal. I am a 17 year old kid, this is my first car, I baby this thing. It's just my daily driver, I need it to take me to school and back. The car is a stock 1998 Honda Civic EX automatic, 131k miles, and a one owner vehicle, bought it brand new with 14 miles on it from the dealership.


Modified by invision at 5:05 PM 11/12/2008

wrenchez81

... i have a 98 ej8 aswell... mine is a 5 sp. tho.... CHECK THE WIRES!!!!!!

The_Honda_Guy

Does nobody here know how to run a compression test or what?

The idea is to remove all the spark plugs, unplug each of the injectors, and block the throttle wide open. Also, make sure the car has been warmed up to operating temperature, otherwise you'll get lower results.

100 PSI is an excellent number for the first compression stroke. The idea is the crank the car over for approximately 4-5 compression strokes and then record the first and last readings. Your first compression stroke should be roughly half of what the final compression should be. Also, you want to watch how fast the car builds compression. If it starts low and slowly builds up, usually that will indicate a piston ring problem, i.e. compression leaking passed the rings. Usually if it's just plain low it's usually a valve problem, i.e. incorrect valve timing, bent valve, bad valve stem seals, etc. If you get low numbers across all 4 cylinders put a tablespoon of oil in each cylinder and crank it again. If the numbers increase drastically it usually means you've got bad rings. If the compression is low on two adjacent cylinders, i.e. 1 and 2, 2 and 3, etc. it usually indicates the head gasket is blown between those two cylinders. If you know how to read the compression gauge accurately it can give you a very good indication of the health of the motor.

Also, a good thing to go along with the compression test is a cooling system test. These two together will give you a very good idea of the overall condition of the engine without performing a much more intricate leak down test.

1993-eg1

right on i heir a miss fire to

mikehawk

GREAT INFO .. I agree with what was posted before .. if he has a missfire .. he isnt buring all the fuel that is being passed ... i would go ahead and replace your plugs and wires with oem parts and see where that leaves you ...

teg_95

have you figured out what the code is yet?

invision

Nah I haven't....I don't really want to drive the car, and I don't understand the whole ECU thing....I might just buy some wires tomorrow and check it out.

gsrhatch2356

any more post post on this would only beat the dead horse even more then it already is. Since I have already jumped on the band wagon I will go ahead and say it again just like everybody else. 1. try really hard to understand the instructions givin by H-T to get the codes off the vehicle, this could tell you so much and point you in the right direction. 2. redo your compression test like honda- guy said but and this is always debatable but letting it warm up will give you better numbers but will also make the threads expand on plugs and you could strip them out then all you can do is get a new head cause I have never seen a good thread repair on spark plugs that held up. I think that what he meant by "block the throttle wide open" is just hold it wide open that way when the motor is turning over it has plenty of available air to compress. I would hope if you cant complete this then maybe you should just take it to a shop, but good luck anyway.

mortificationrock

Can I get an amen. Seriously you asked for help we give it, and yet seem to not do it. So do it or stop asking for help. Cuz if you can't follow our help the your **** should blow up or pay someone to fix it since you can't

invision

UPDATE...Well today my friend came over we used this tool to check the wires:

http://www.harborfreight.com/c...=4424

And they call came out with orange spark....is that the correct color for spark or is it blue? I guess all I can narrow it down to now is the sensors, but i have to get the CEL looked at.

mortificationrock

invision

Yeah, well I don't have a code reader...and for the ECU thing can anyone clarify what a 2 pin connector clip is? and what kind of wire can i use?

jdmkidd23

i hate to jump in but i have some what of the same problem but my car died on me today! my wires are 2 months old and my dizzy is advanced timed! my timming is still good i checked it when it wouldn't start the other day after sitting for 3 weeks. anything u guys think i should do to get this thing running?

Sr420Det

A paper clip or speaker wire. Not sure if you can do this on a obdII car but you can get it scanned at autozone for FREEEEEEEE. I dont see this happening without advanced timing or Reallly bad gas or some sort of forced induction. Did you redo the comp test while holding the throttle open, also unplug your dizzy and take out the ecu fuse to prevent spark and fuel from entering the cylinders while comp testing. The scan tool is probably just going to say misfire it sounds like to me. I dont believe your comp is that low, how often do you change your oil, did it over heat? You better hope its a head gasket, is there any water in the oil or vice versa.