I recently bought a 1993 DelSol, D15B7, The car ran fine for a few weeks... at least so I thought when all of a sudden one day while at idle the car started to miss. Revved the engine and it when it came back down it almost stalled. Tried to drive and it bucked like a bronco. Stopped the car pulled the plugs... all carbon fouled. Cleaned the plugs and tried again.... all fouled within minutes. Checked the CEL and got code 43, which from what I read states nothing more than the obvious, than I'm running either rich or lean... rich in this case.

So first I checked spark which was good. I even tried another coil because I thought maybe the spark might be weak... same results. Looked under the hood at night to try and catch a wire grounding itself... no results. I cleaned the IACV and FITS... no results.

This is when I noticed that my distributer looked funny. After some searching I found that I have a TD42U distributer from a D16Z6 when i should have a TD41U distributor for my D15B7. So I bought one on ebay, strapped it on and it won't spark.... nothing at all. Got a new coil and igniter sent from the seller and still no spark. WTF!!! The distributer that is MEANT for this engine won't work? Is it possible there is something else wrong with the distributer??

So finally I decided to machine the TD42U to bolt up somewhat to the engine and I set the timing to correct mark on the crank and STILL the car runs stupid rich. I'm at my wits end people. Please Please any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Try a compression test.

 

Any ideas on the TD41U distributer in the meantime? Really just unlucky enough to get a bad one or is there some other reason? Should both distributers be interchangeable?

Going to work on that compression test but I need to find a gauge first.

 

are you sure there isnt a d16z6 head on the d15? if so the dizzy is right and code 47 could that be o2 sensor?

 

Mounting flange is different where it bolts up to the head. coil, igniter, CYP/CKP/TDC sensors are the same. I believe the shaft has the holes drilled in the same places so there shouldn't be any timing issues.

 

Yes, I am positive the head is a D15B7 because of what 94EG8 said. The TD41U bolts up nicely and the TD42U does not. And the code is 43 which is a rich or lean condition which theoretically can be triggered by a bad O2 but it seems unlikely given the extent of my problems. I suppose it could be a last resort.

So I guess I just got really unlucky and got a dizzy that has a major problem other than the coil and igniter, F*** me. Just want to be sure that there isn't some crazy ECU compatibility issue before I try another. I really want the correct dizzy, the TD42U is just hanging on by a thread. I wish I could convince the guy who sold me the car to walk into my house so I could shoot him. Thanks for the help so far guys. Any other ideas are appreciated

 

^That compression test is a good idea

 

I should have asked this earlier, but what did you use for a replacement distributor? New aftermarket, new OEM honda or used honda? or used aftermarket (ugh!) I'd take a used honda distributor over new aftermarket junk any day.

 

Does battery voltage reach the coil and igniter unit of the TD41 distributor with the key in ON(II)? Any codes thrown when this distributor is installed? You may need to crank the engine for 20-30 seconds to set a code.

Regarding code 43 with the TD42 distributor, check the fuel pressure and whether the FPR is working properly.

 

Compression gauge is on the way buy I'll have to wait for it to arrive. The distributer was a used OEM Honda. I sent it back for a refund, although I'm slightly worried the previous owner made some stupid change that would require the TD42U but so far I can't find a single reason why the TD41U shouldn't work.

Any simple way of doing this check? I don't have a fuel pressure gauge handy.

 

There really isn't anything you could change, the only difference even is the actual distributor housing, everything in it is identical.

 

Ok compression test done, every cylinder is about 180 with almost no variation. I have another TD41U on the way, hopefully a working one this time. Any other ideas? How would I go about testing the FPR?

 

Anyone? I'm really at a loss.

 

borrow a friends o2 sensor. its going to run full rich especially with a bad 02 sensor... the ecu is assuming that it is running lean and dumping a ton of un needed fuel in. i had the same problem on my d15b8 and a new dizzy from Honda and plugs/ wires and an 02 solved my problem

 

Ok, got a working TD41U this time so now that's on and one problem solved. Still running stupid rich. Could it really be the O2 making it run that rich to foul plugs in a minute? The CEL doesn't stay on. Shouldn't I get a solid CEL with a bad sensor? I guess I'll try the sensor. Does anyone know how to check the fuel pressure regulator as Ron suggested?

 

Sensors can sometimes fool the CEL.

 

So I cleaned the spark plugs again and reset the CEL. Now there are no codes however the car still runs rich. I tried a new O2 sensor out of desperation and no difference. Car will idle with the clean plugs but if you rev it it will whine and when you let off the gas it boggs and almost stalls. I'm really sick of this. Why is this ****ing car running so rich!!!!

 

hi I know it says I'm newb but I've been working with this stuff for a while, I just usually read posts, instead of making them.

Going through all the sites, over time, I've read some extremely wrong stuff and some extremely interesting stuff. that said, one interesting thing I think which might help you see the mechanics of your distributor, would be this posting i saw.

http://www.d-series.org/forums/gener...th-busted.html

hope this helps you understand the differences between non vtec and vtec dist's, as far as a visual aid goes.

 

I've seen this post before, my biggest problem is at least some of it is flat out wrong. I'm going to have to double check the differences between a D15B7 and a D16Z6 distributor. But I can tell you for a fact that the D15B7, the D16Y7 and the D16Y8 all share essentially the same distributor, the D15B7 is OBD1 and has 2 plugs instead of one but is otherwise identical as far as timing, mounting flange etc goes. Y7 and Y8 distributors are absolutely identical right down to the part number, 30105-P2E-A02 for both.

 

Well, I can tell you guys from first hand experience that I have had both the TD41U and TD42U bolted to the motor with absolutely no noticeable difference, no CEL, and the only obvious difference being the bolt pattern. I was able to set timing with both

Regarding that link, I checked my ECU just to be sure I have the correct one and I believe I do: 37820-P06-A01

But back to the issue at hand...I doesn't seem to be related to either distributer, or FITV, or IACV, or plugs/wires, or Oxygen sensor, or compression. Is there a way to test the MAP sensor? Is there anything else I can look at? I can't drive the damn thing and It's been over a month!

 

Anybody??

 

Hey Delcarajo, did you ever figure out what was causing your excessively rich issue? I'm having the same issue with my '91 obd0 dpfi to obd1 mpfi d15b swap. I'm @ my wits end because it will runs great after a new set of plugs & foul out around the block. I've tried dizzy, map, hotter plugs, decarb, ign/crank timing, fuel, air leaks, etc...

 

How about checking the mechanical and ignition timing? Also your OBD0 91 belongs in another forum.

 

Thanx grumblemarc, but as I stated, I checked ign/crank timing & the car is now an obd1 d15b. I found this post when I did a search. Ign timing set @ 19 deg & cam/crank are on the money.

 

Is your car a 92-00 Civic?