phelpsj2

i have a b16a2 and i just did a very extensive tune up valve cover gasket plugs wires cam seal blah blah blah well i check the plugs the other day and noticed the spark plug on the cylinder next to the timing belt the threads and plug was covered in oil. the plug wire that connects to the slug was dry. is it valve seals or a headgasket you think. ive not noticed any funky colore oil or coolant. i do get low on oil every often and i dont have any external leaks also when i floor it and pop vtec if i look in the mirror i can see a cloud of smoke at night but cant see the color but i can see smoke infront f cars headlights in the rearview. what could it be.

instructor74

I would pull the valve cover and replace the spark plug tube seals

phelpsj2

the seals are brand new plus there is no oil on the spark plug wire tubes so its not that seal oil is getting in the cylinder somehow and only that one all the other cylinders are dry

phelpsj2

bump

90_EX_Civic

if it's coming from the bottom then most likely it's your valve seal. or you piston ring in that cylinder is shot.

apexi_rsx

compression test the motor then when u fall low on that cylinder ur getting oil on ur spark plug put alil oil in the cylinder and redo the test if the compression goes up. its most likely its your rings if not then its probably your valve seals.

hondaOchibi7

Highly doubt its ur piston ring. Do a compression test. Way more likely its ur valve guide seal for that cylinder in which case replace em all. Do u hav a CEL? Having oil on ur plugs ur probably misfiring which will throw a code.

civicsirebuild

i had the exact same problem, and when i tore into it i had about 3 burned valves, and all the seals were fused to the head... i can only assume it ran too lean due to the bolt-ons and no tuning. My bet is the valves

strategy400

I second a burnt valve. When you lose compression things don't seal well and oil sloshes right in past the rings and stuff. I would think you would notice the loss of performance/rough running though...

Do a compression test.

Sonia's Driver

I don't think there is enough information from the OP to jump to burnt valves just yet.

First when you say that there was "oil" on it, please describe the oil. Have you compared the spark plugs to the characteristic photographs of spark plugs from engines with various problems? My Hynes manual has this in color on the last page.

Did you properly torque the sparkplugs in?
What does the engine sound like? Is there a lot of tapping from the valve train? How often has the valve clearance been adjusted? When is the last time they were adjusted, and how well were they done? (Were they adjusted with a cold block?)

You could be leaking oil into your cylinder, but I think that it could also be other thing(s).

Lets start with comparing the plugs to the diagnostic photographs, then with a compression test and a check of the valve clearance.

Also, I think staying away from high RPMs until we get this sorted is in order.

civicsirebuild

if the valves were out of adj. then it would be throwing a cel. imo valve adjustment being even way off wouldnt allow oil into the cylinder. really leans to valves seals/guides when it smokes on vtec because the burned part of the valve that isnt normally sliding past the seals does go past it and lets in the oil from the valvetrain. also, if the plugs werent torqued properly there would be a loss of compression, and there shouldnt be oil on top of the plug anyway.

hondaOchibi7

Piston Rings, Valve Guide Seals, and Tube Seals are the only things that can leak oil into the combustion chamber. Burned valves while a problem, wont cause an oil leak into the combustion chamber.

Even so Tube Seals are unlikely cuz even if ur tube seals are leaking the oil tends to just pool kuz its sealed out by the spark plugs, rarely does the oil leak past the spark plugs.

Sonia's Driver

I like that leaky valve seal/guide explanation. It explains the symptoms pretty well, except that the OP seems to imply that the plug is covered in unburned liquid oil. How would the unburned oil get from the valve to the spark plug? If it only leaked in high cam profile mode, it would have burned all of the oil before the engine stopped. If it leaked in low cam profile mode, the engine would smoke blue all of the time, right?

Phelpsj2 - can you please post more information about how the plugs look?
Did any other plugs have oil on them?

One troubleshooting idea that comes to mind is to buy a few plugs. Bring the engine up to temperature. Install a new plug. Run the engine at low idle for a long while. Stop the engine, remove and examine a plug. Install a new plug. Run the engine at High Idle (VTEC) for a while. Stop the engine, remove the new plug and examine. If the VTEC plug shows evidence of burned oil, but not the low idle plug, it could confirm that a valve is indeed leaking oil under VTEC.

90_EX_Civic

O M G!!! a '10 that actually knows what they are talking about? susptise

phelpsj2

the spark plug is coated in liquid oil not just oil residue. like if you too the spark plug dipped it in a cup of oil shook off the excess then thats how it looks

phelpsj2

ok i did a compression test today and also looked at the plug. i have not popped vtec lately and also my oil level is on th elow end of the dipstick hole so i noticed that the spark plug was not covered in wet unburned oil....so that means it was to happen during vtec like mentioned above. the compression test results were starting from the timing belt cylinder and working towards the dizzy...210 210 220 210....

phelpsj2

bump

hondaOchibi7

Ill def say valve guide seals. Ur valves are affected directly by vtec so yea...