Hello everyone. ...Thanks to all that can help. Mods Include:

CAI
AN-R Header (step down)
2.5" RSR Exhaust
Crane Cams (stage 3 rollers)
MSD Ignition wires w/coil
Hondata S100
B&M FPR
Mahle 11.5:1 Pistons
H Beam Rods
Auto Meter gauges
Bored TB
No PS/AC/Cruz
UR Crank Pulley

I have a '95 H22 Prelude that was rebuilt 2500 miles ago by the previous owner. Car goes through 1 qt oil/300 miles. Auto Meter oil guage reads 25psi at start up (cold) then drops to 0psi when warm. Upon heavy acceleration into VTEC, oil pressure jumps to 70psi. When cruising, pressure holds steady at 25psi @ 3k RPM and 30psi @ 4k RPM . I notice blue smoke upon reving motor in neutral. Car also smokes after hard driving and then coming to an idle. Normal cruising does not produce noticeable smoke.

When I bought the car, the owner had the fuel pressure regulator set to 95psi. Why would this be? I put 1000 miles on the car like this before being advised to turn it down to 36psi. The seller had a wet ZEX kit he gave me as a kind gesture, but insisted the car was never run with it. However, I found a screw in the end of a 1/4" hose that leads up to the top of the intake. Here it is attached to a nipple drilled into the intake. Is this a Nitrous hook up and is this why the fuel pressure was set sooooo high? ...Remember, this is N/A.

Now that the pressure is down, the car seems to run better. The rich smell and sooty rear bumper is mostly gone: however, I notice much more (blue) smoke now...when before, it was more black. Also, my RPM's fluctuate between 1600 and 2400 when holding the accelerator steady at approx. 2000 RPM and when driving at this engine speed (in 1st or 2nd gear) the car surges.

As far as my PCV system goes, I have two: one on the right rear and one on the left rear of my cam cover. Both PCV's have a breather attached - none run to the CAI.

I am very perplexed as to what is going on. I have a Honda dealer in my small town and when I took the car there they turned me away because the car has no O2 sensor and the ECU has been modified (so the seller says). Any help would be appreciated.




Modified by Speedjerk at 10:15 PM 10/9/2006

 

It's been three days guys. Please give me some feedback.

 

First off you need to find out why your going through so much oil. Burning? Next you should get it tuned. Get an O2 sensor hooked up and functioning.

Can you get some pics?

 

you mgiht wanna check your gaskets. specially your head gasket. make suer its not leaking oil. i had a 91 prelude that burned oil just as bad. the mechanic that i had look at it said it was my valve and that it would need to be replaced. you can look into that too. its hard to be sure what it is though.

 

Yes - I can get the pics. Why do you think an O2 sensor was not installed? It looks as though the AN-R header does not accept one.

First off you need to find out why your going through so much oil. Burning?

Thanks for your reply. I was hoping someone here on the forum could lead me in that direction. I assume it's rings that got washed, but I might have a spun bearing or two due to a crank case partially filled w/ gas. is a leak down going to tell me anything relevant? Or a compression test (wet/dry)? From what I've read here, it seems these test cannot prove or isolate oil consumption.

Please help. I need more feedback. I'm sure others can learn from this too. Thanks guys!!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Speedjerk &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> Auto Meter oil guage reads 25psi at start up (cold) then drops to 0psi when warm. Upon heavy acceleration into VTEC, oil pressure jumps to 70psi. When cruising, pressure holds steady at 25psi @ 3k RPM and 30psi @ 4k RPM .
</TD></TR></TABLE>

That sounds pretty bad. My H23 is at ~70 psi at startup and about 60-80 psi from 3K to 4K.

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

As far as my PCV system goes, I have two: one on the right rear and one on the left rear of my cam cover. Both PCV's have a breather attached - none run to the CAI.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

That doesn't make sense to me. How was another PCV valve attached...like a fitting welded on or what? How do they have a breather attached to them?? I don't get it......

Sounds like this guy really messed this car up and got rid of it. He had no clue what he was doing with the 95psi or any of these crazy ECU and PCV things.

I would try to get an O2 hooked up because that is how the car keeps the right air fuel mix, and I would also do a compression test just to know what's going on.

 

Yeah ..you know it ....This guy really was an Einstein - screwed up my motor but good. I think I'm looking at a complete rebuild. But, I still wanna find out what the problem is before going through all that. There's got to be a way to figure all this out. I cannot really give any better explanation as to what is going on. I think I am going to change the oil again, use a thicker viscosity...say 10W-30 (now that the fuel pressure is down) and degrease the whole motor. Then, throw in some dye, run it for a few hundred mile and check for leaks. If the leaks go away, it would be because the 5W-30 that's in there now is too light and/or contaminated with gas due to the previously high fuel pressure. If my burning slows or goes away, it's because the oil was too thin and slipping past the rings (because I'm still burning oil at 36psi of static fuel pressure). If this does not put an end to my misery, than the motors got bad ring lands, valve seals, gaskets or bearings -- or all of the above.

I have a couple more questions:

1. I am told H22's run at a much lower oil pressure. What is the oil pressure suppose to be at (warm) idle, 3k RPM, 4k RPM,and WOT?

2. Do you think that an external leak would be enough to cause low oil pressure?

3. Can improperly seated rings cause LOP?

4. What would be the tell tale sign my bearings are shot and a rebuild is inevitable?

A far as my PCV goes: I think the 1/4 fitting on the Left is suppose to be connected to the CAI and the one on the R is a PCV w/ breather attached, which is suppose to go to the TB housing of the IM. I am not sure of the effects a setup like he has will affect the running of the motor?

:<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Hawkze_2.3 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

That sounds pretty bad. My H23 is at ~70 psi at startup and about 60-80 psi from 3K to 4K.

[QUOTE=Hawkze_2.3]

That doesn't make sense to me. How was another PCV valve attached...like a fitting welded on or what? How do they have a breather attached to them?? I don't get it......

Sounds like this guy really messed this car up and got rid of it. He had no clue what he was doing with the 95psi or any of these crazy ECU and PCV things.

I would try to get an O2 hooked up because that is how the car keeps the right air fuel mix, and I would also do a compression test just to know what's going on.</TD></TR></TABLE>


Modified by Speedjerk at 9:49 PM 10/10/2006


Modified by Speedjerk at 9:53 PM 10/10/2006

 

Please help guys...I have a couple more questions:

1. I am told H22's run at a much lower oil pressure. What is the oil pressure suppose to be at (warm) idle, 3k RPM, 4k RPM,and WOT?

2. Do you think that an external leak would be enough to cause low oil pressure?

3. Can improperly seated rings cause LOP?

4. What would be the tell tale sign my bearings are shot and a rebuild is inevitable?

A far as my PCV goes: I think the 1/4 fitting on the Left is suppose to be connected to the CAI and the one on the R is a PCV w/ breather attached, which is suppose to go to the TB housing of the IM. I am not sure of the effects a setup like he has will affect the running of the motor?

Honda Tech is the best. Thank you to everyone who has helped so far!!!



Modified by Speedjerk at 10:15 PM 10/10/2006

 

Dude, go to http://www.preludeonline.com NOW. It's like $6 a YEAR so worth it. The feedback that you will get is MUCH more responsive and accurate than you will find on here for prelude problems In my experience. I remember searching for and finding the answers to this thread on preludeonline.com. I just can't remember them all off the top of my head.

1. I've been tuning my prelude for 7 years now and I've NEVER head that H22's are supposed to have "lower" oil pressure, definitely not that much lower. You're opg should never read and hold absolute zero, in my personal experience that's very bad news. Also your pressure reading will vary depending on where you are reading from (i.e. head block etc...)

2. I'm not sure if a leak alone is enough, but if there was a leak, i'm sure youd know about it since it'd be staining your garage/driveway. Just stick some cardboard down there. If you don't see anything coming down anywhere there's a good chance (but not absolutely certain) that you are not leaking oil.

3. Not sure if they can cause LOP but they are certainly causing the catastrophic oil burning problem you are experiencing.

4. If your rod/main bearings are shot you'll definitely know when a rod starts knocking. It may not sound like a big deal when it first starts, infact on my car, two experienced mechanics and a mechanical engineer mistook the sound for a valve/head problem. It will be intermittent at first, However the sound will get worse and louder and eventually your motor will die out.

Bottom line... You really need to do a compression check and a leakdown test, which will give you a good idea of what's going on with your gasket/ring situation. Most shops should have the instruments to perform this test. I'm definitely still learning alot, but that's my take on the situation. Good luck mang