2-2 in my civic used to pull like an animal until the distributor coil (to the msd box) popped out, possibly due to stiff urethane mounts and heavy vibration. car shut off. i cranked the car while the wire was out which could have caused the smoke that appeared (and no i didnt crank it with the knowledge that the wire was out). plugged it back in, car started, everything seemed fine but didn't pull nearly as much in all rpm ranges, v-tec sputters sometimes and even when it engages it feels like there is a governor slowing me down as oppose to propelling me forward. spark plugs and wires were pretty shotty so i replaced those. im getting full voltage from my battery which suggests that the alternator, battery and wiring isnt a problem. msd was changed out and the ignitor in the distributor was swapped out...no change in anything. HELP HELP HELP.

 

what color smoke appeared and where did it come from? the tailpipe, the engine compartment?

 

smoke came from under the hood...not too sure about the colour. i think it was light...greyish. the smoke cleared a couple seconds after the hood was popped. i think it came from around the intake manifold general area.

 

do a compression test and see what you get.

 

i have a strong feeling that it is an electrical problem. i guess it wouldn't hurt to do a compression test but a compression test was done the day before it happened and it read roughly 195 in each cylinder.

 

i dont think its an electrical problem. i dont know of an electrical problem that could make your car sluggish, that doesnt show a CEL.

 

k we're thinking it could be a jammed cat. unburnt fuel from the two or three cranks without burn might have blocked up the cat nicely. im gonna run it from the headers and see what happens.

 

cat was checked this weekend. nothing wrong. next im gonna swap my knock sensor and see if there is a malfunction there that could be retarding my timing.

 

the knock sensor was deemed not the problem without swapping it because since im using a p28 (obd1), the knock sensor should not be recognized regardless of if it is malfunctioning or not so this should not be the issue....stumped at this point...

 

a new fuel filter was installed for regular maintenance more than anything...and yes problem persists.

 

have u checked your compression yet?

 

try re-setting ecu. doesn't sound like something electrical though. good luck.

 

k heres the update. car has basically been losing 5% of power a day steadily for a couple weeks since the problem first arose. monday morning, radio shuts off, as well as speedo, rpm guages, indicators, emergency lights, basically everything electrical is killed. CEL comes on. made it to work. luckily same day i was taking the car in for a new shaft. i jumped the car to a start and made it to the shop. turns out my alternator is fried. was sent out to be rebuilt and is being put back on today. so my alternator was definitely part if not all of the problem. im hoping it was all of the problem. i'll update when i get it back tonight. no compression test has been done yet.

 

ok. the regulator in my alternator was mashed so it was swapped. Alternator is mint now. Car is running again but not pulling still at this point. We re-checked teh cat from the other end and sure enough we found mounds of solidified fuel and other toxins. Clumps and clumps of it. Car is pulling like a beast again. Faster than before. I guess we should have been more thorough when checking the cat originally. I would have been a lot less stressed for the past two weeks. Thx to Mikey and BB6 for all the help.