I have a d15z1 (vtec-e) swap into a 1989 civic sedan LX.

I was cruising today and decided I wanted to see how vtec felt, even though it's only "vtec-e," I'm sure the power difference was noticable.

So i revved to 3000rpm while driving and I noticed a sudden boost in power. Very cool.

Then as I came to a stop at the stoplight my engine died. Tried restarting it, nada.

I pushed myself to the side of the road and it appeared that my oil light was on. I checked my oil level and the oil was below the lowest mark on the dipstick.

I walked to the closest gas station, got a few quarts of gas an then walked back.

When I got back I checked the oil level again and it was back to normal. The car also started right up at this point.

Can anyone tell me what might cause this to happen? Hopefully it's an easy fix.

 

maybe your car was saying "quit driving me without oil and pretending im not a vtec-e engine"

 

your gas saver is adding to the vtec-e power

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by SiMateoAko &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I have a d15z1 (vtec-e) swap into a 1989 civic sedan LX.

I was cruising today and decided I wanted to see how vtec felt, even though it's only "vtec-e," I'm sure the power difference was noticable.

So i revved to 3000rpm while driving and I noticed a sudden boost in power. Very cool.

Then as I came to a stop at the stoplight my engine died. Tried restarting it, nada.

I pushed myself to the side of the road and it appeared that my oil light was on. I checked my oil level and the oil was below the lowest mark on the dipstick.

I walked to the closest gas station, got a few quarts of gas an then walked back.

When I got back I checked the oil level again and it was back to normal. The car also started right up at this point.

Can anyone tell me what might cause this to happen? Hopefully it's an easy fix.</TD></TR></TABLE>

vtec drinks oil

 

well the reason for your oil level, if you check it with the engine warm the oil is suppose to be between the 2 dots, by the time you walked to the gas station and back the oil all drained back to the oil pan making the level seem higher

Checking it with the engine warm = between the 2 dots
Checking with the engine cool = above the 2 dots

Most likely however your engine killed it self to prevent damage from having no oil?

 

I don't think honda engines have self shut offs due to oil. The reason I say this is because I know people who have run the engine with no oil.

 

good point, just an idea

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Pee Wee &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">maybe your car was saying "quit driving me without oil and pretending im not a vtec-e engine" </TD></TR></TABLE>

Car has been sitting for a few hours now. Plenty of oil. I know that vtec uses oil to work, but is it possible that something is wrong with the vtec system that is making it not return the oil quickly?

I've seen Honda engines run for 30+ minutes with no oil and have no problems.

 

actually, i'm pretty sure your oil level is ok. the vtec holds oil, and it must have drained out. i wonder if it jammed the valves open or something, keeping it from running.

i would almost try it again where it won't bother anybody, see if i can replicate it. but then again, i dunno.

probably not a wiring problem?

anyway, good luck.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bagpipe goatee &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">actually, i'm pretty sure your oil level is ok. the vtec holds oil, and it must have drained out. i wonder if it jammed the valves open or something, keeping it from running.

i would almost try it again where it won't bother anybody, see if i can replicate it. but then again, i dunno.

probably not a wiring problem?

anyway, good luck.</TD></TR></TABLE>

NOrmally I wouldn't be concerned about this, but I cna't have a car out of commission for a few days at a time any more. I'm starting to drive more for work and soon we're going to have a foster kid living with us. I'm going to need a running car in a while, and if this car continues to be a problem, i might as well sell it to someone who can fix it and then just buy a Civic VX.

 

used to have similar problem.
it was in my old hf with stock motor, had a oil leak wasnt to bad, got worse and didnt notice til one day i went to dtart my car and it would only run for about 1-4 seconds before it would die. added 4 quarts and problem solved. that motor was junk anyway! haha anyways i check my oil everytime i get gas

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by philkehn &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
Checking it with the engine warm = between the 2 dots
Checking with the engine cool = above the 2 dots</TD></TR></TABLE>

Where do you get this reasoning?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Mr_CRX &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Where do you get this reasoning?</TD></TR></TABLE>

When the car is warm and running it takes the oil from the pan where the end of the dip stick sits and it flushes most of the oil through the head and block, where when the engine is cool all the oil runs down the bottom of the oil pan where the dip stick sits because the rest of the engine isnt pushing it around when the car is cool and off

So when the car is running it is pushing all the oil through the entire engine
When the car is off and cool all the oil drains to the bottom of the engine where the dip stick is set

 

Was the oil light on when the engine was not running or was it on when the engine was running? Because the oil light will always come on when the engine is off. Maybe this is a stupid question/comment but it sounded like you saw the light with the engine off. Your problem might not be oil related at all.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by philkehn &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">When the car is warm and running it takes the oil from the pan where the end of the dip stick sits and it flushes most of the oil through the head and block, where when the engine is cool all the oil runs down the bottom of the oil pan where the dip stick sits because the rest of the engine isnt pushing it around when the car is cool and off

So when the car is running it is pushing all the oil through the entire engine
When the car is off and cool all the oil drains to the bottom of the engine where the dip stick is set</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, I know that. I was mainly wondering where you got the idea that the oil line is supposed to be over the top dot when the car is cold. If that was the case, how would you know how much over the dot your oil level was supposed to be? That dot is the max oil fill (when the oil has all drained back to the pan). It does you no good to check the oil immediately after you shut the car off, or when it's running.

If you do an oil change and add the quantity of oil that Honda states you should, based on the Factory Service Manual, assuming you don't have a huge dent in your oil pan or anything, it should be filled to the top dot on the dipstick.

 

wht is the milage u get fromt his engine.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 89EF_Sleeper Si &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Was the oil light on when the engine was not running or was it on when the engine was running? Because the oil light will always come on when the engine is off. Maybe this is a stupid question/comment but it sounded like you saw the light with the engine off. Your problem might not be oil related at all.</TD></TR></TABLE>

When the engine died the battery light and the oil light came on, but I could also be confusing it with then turning on after trying to crank and the car not starting.

It's entirely possible that the problem has to do with the wiring and not the engine itself.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by salman &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">wht is the milage u get fromt his engine. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Right now: 0

 

When the engine dies or stalls the oil and battery lights will always come on. You probably just had a random stumble, car died, and you were a little low on oil. I wouldn't think too much of it, as it seems your low oil light was a false one. It's always on if the key is in the ignition and the motor isn't running.

 

check for ur charging system, if its working perfectly or not,

 

Might be a bad ground on the engine itself. Check the ECU for codes.

 

This isn't a mini-me is it? just a full stock d15z1 motor correct?

Just curious because if it was a mini me and you left the oil squirter in the block i could see that could possibly cause a similar problem...

If not then you got a mad tyte jdm 20 stage vtec motor and you probably jumped from stage 1 vtec right to stage 15, I've seen it happen a billion times

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ludesrv &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Might be a bad ground on the engine itself. Check the ECU for codes.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Oh good call, dosen't the vtec solinoid have its own ground? That would be a good place to start

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Loserkidwac &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">This isn't a mini-me is it? just a full stock d15z1 motor correct?

Just curious because if it was a mini me and you left the oil squirter in the block i could see that could possibly cause a similar problem...

If not then you got a mad tyte jdm 20 stage vtec motor and you probably jumped from stage 1 vtec right to stage 15, I've seen it happen a billion times</TD></TR></TABLE>

It's a full d15z1, so no mini-me here.

I believe I grounded the vtec solenoid to the thermostat. Perhaps I need to double check that ground, or maybe ground it elsewhere.

 

Damm i have to check my Grounds again, but i dont think this will be the cause