Sorry to bother you all with another one of these wierd idle issues but I'm having an issue with my EM1.

The EM1 is running stock CDN spec ecu (it's a 00 SIR here) got full i/h/e but that doesn't matter. The issue is that when I drove the car today it sometimes surged while cruising at various speeds regardless of what gear I was in. It's not like a typical bad IAC surge where it's constant. I would describe it best as a TPS type of surging. (if that makes any sense) It peaked when it started stalling out on me repeatedly, and in the end I could only start her up with my gas pedal fully down and even then it would stall out on it's own afterwards. I would get a typical quick ingition turnover sound then then it would catch and start but immediatly stall out or if I stayed on gas it would stay on a bit then die out while my foot was on the pedal as though the gas pedal wasn't doing anything.

I got no CEL's and the only lights i see on are the oil and bat lights. (but those always turn on when key is in n turned to aux when car is off)

I'm guessing it may be a pooched dizzy or alternator but I don't have a volt meter to check it. I'm going to get my local shop to check it tomorrow to see if the bat has a charge and to check the wiring out to the alt.

Am I on the right track here? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your time.

 

Alt could be dying. Hook up a timing light also, to confirm consistent spark to eliminate distributor issues.

Let us know how the shop visit goes.

-XLR8

 

Roger that, I'll get em to hook up a timing light while I'm there.
I just changed the plugs, cap and rotor approx 3 weeks ago as well but it's been working fine for 3 weeks so I doubt those are the culprits.

Honda cap and rotor and NGK iridium plugs. I kept my old wires cause they still looked in good shape.

Edit:

Took it to the shop, they said it was a loose ground and loose positive bat wire. I thought it was odd but they said it was running fine now. I took it out for a boot and 20 mins out once the engine was warm it started surging and acting up again. Funny thing though, I noticed if I down shift into a low enough gear for VTEC to engage and keep it up high it runs without bogging so I pretty much kept her screaming back to the shop. also, maybe not related but my friend was following me and he said my car is running extremely rich. (he's also a mechanic but for GM & dodge not honda's) We'll see what the shop finds tomorrow... I wonder if the fact that I got I/H/E with a race cat and am still running stock tune would cause it to run rich? I don't see how since I kept my o2 sensors and it's the stock tune so it should read and compensate where need be. Anyway I doubt the two are related unless it's my ignition or distributor that are toast. The saga continues...

 

When the key is turned to ON(II), does the CEL illuminate for 2 seconds and then turn OFF?

Do the battery or oil pressure light ever light up while the engine is running?

 

x2

Bad grounds would cause it to run rough but that's been fixed. The alternator won't cause it to run poorly. However if you are running catless you would definitely appear to be running rich even if you aren't. The extra emissions passing through not getting caught by the cat can clog the O2 sensors. That would be where I would check first. But if its at a shop then we'll just have to see what they come up with.

 

sounds sort of like the time my ignition control module went... first it would bog randomly in lower RPMS then after a week or so it went to stalling while driving.. then a few days later went to not starting after it would stall. I got it to start every now and then but it wouldnt be drivable really, switched out the ignition control module and everything has been butter since. hope this helps

 

Thanks for the input everyone.

RonJ: No the Bat and OPL don't blink when I put it in the on setting and I get no lights when it's started.

Lasky's comment about the ignition control module seems very plausible as the symptoms he described are pretty much exactly what my car was doing. The sugring was pretty heavy and felt like hard sputtering. It was also very random no real pattern to it at all.

If only I had a cel or something to help indicate the general area of the issue.

I have a cat but it's a vibrant race cat (the guts are honey comb but no clue what material) so for sure it takes a while to get hot and even then it flows alot so that would explain the richness. I will eventually get the car tuned but am waiting till I have all the parts in the motor done before I pay for someone to tune it for me.

With a wife and a 1yr old it's a slow process lol.

 

When you turn the key to ON(II), the battery and OPL should remain ON steady, whereas the CEL should illuminate for 2 seconds and then turn OFF. Are all of these normal events occurring or not?

 

Yes, when I turn the key to the on position (aux). So the stereo turns on but the car is not started, the CEL light does not remain on, the only lights that remain on are the bat, oil, and hand brake lights.(aka e-brake) When I start the car, if it starts, they all go away save for the hand brake light which of course goes away when I put down the h-brake.

 

Does spraying starter fluid into the throttle body help the engine start and keep it running longer?

As mentioned, check for bright white bluish spark at the plugs. You might have a bad coil or ICM in the distributor.

 

Got word from the mechanic today, timing is fine, compression test was good, the plugs need to be changed cause the engine flooded...

When he starts it there is blue smoke that comes out from the muffler but that could be because the the plugs were all wet dirty with oil. So, he's gunna give her an oil change (gas may have mixed into the oil) new plugs and double check the distributor as it is the most likely suspect at this poont. The blue smoke scares me, I hope my rings are still good.

 

Its the dizzy, its the ignition timing for the engine anyways, also how many miles on that b16? The honda dizzys always konk out after/around 100k, its the one part they skimped on imo.

 

Have you had the valve cover off recently? The little o rings could have gone bad which would allow oil to seep in therefore covering the plugs with oil and giving you blue smoke. Wouldn't hurt to check. Even the smallest things will really mess things up.

 

i'm @ 97,000 (KMS). I haven't removed the valve cover in over 2 years.
I am also due for a timing belt / waterpump change since the car is now 9 yrs old.

 

Hi all.
Just got the car back.
Turns out the distributor was toast. It had corrosion on the aliuminum inside as well as white burn marks where it had been arcing. For good measure my tech changed my valve cover gasket, tube seals, and PCV valve as well.

Took it out last night andthere was no bogging / surging, the idle was good and not bouncing around at all, and there was a noticeable improvement in "pep" and throttle response. *knocks on wood* hopefully we got it and the issue doesn't come back.

Thanks for your help RonJ and everyone else who weighed in.