Ok first off I now I am going to sound like a complete idiot but plain and simple I have never had to work on a honda before and all the work that was done to my car was done before I got it. My father-in-law gave me a 1989 Honda CRX with a 1991 Integra motor (see picture).



The motor was swapped 3 years ago by The Swap Shop in So. Cal. The vehicle was driven a total of 3 times afterwards, but being in the desert on a dirt road, it just wasn't convenient and was stored for 3 years. Now with my family and financial situation I needed a commuter vehicle for work and the car was passed on to me. Checked all the fluids and everything when I picked up the car, put a battery in and it fired up like a champ. I've been driving it for the past 4 months with absolutely no problems whatsoever and has been making my 150mile commute to work perfectly. The only problem I've had is a minor oil leak at the oil pan gasket so I check my oil everyday. Now for my problem.

Yesterday I got an oil change and filled up my tank. I was driving home from work, I made it 65 miles from my job and I noticed the engine started to bog down, being a tow truck driver as soon as something appears wrong I killed the engine and let it coast to a safe location off the highway. I popped the hood and checked all my fluids, oil was good, coolant was good and engine temperature was in acceptable range. I tried to crank the engine, it started but immediately started backfiring and after a couple seconds if I didnt apply the gas it died. I also noticed that a small amount of white smoke was coming from around the catalytic converter. Called the tow, and got it back to my house. Today I have been reading over all the forums I can find on the internet and have been checking things as I go. My current financial situation is preventing me from taking it to a shop, so I am trying to assess it as best I can for the moment.

At my house I had the tow truck drop the car so that the front tires are on my car ramps. When I try and start it, the engine turns over and backfires slightly but wont start.

I took off the oil cap, and shining a flashlight into the engine, I can see everything turning when the engine cranks. I was told if nothing moves then the timing belt is gone.

I have a fuel pump cutoff switch, so I killed the pump and did a check for spark from the distributor and I am getting a spark from each plug, however in the 1st hole I noticed a small amount of oil around the thread when I pulled the plug out. I've since replaced all the spark plugs since they needed it.

Next I enabled the pump again and checked if the engine was getting fuel. I pulled the return line from the fuel regulator and tried cranking the engine and got no fuel from the line. However when I turn the key to the on position I do hear the fuel pump whine.

So now I am stuck and don't know what to do next. My final option is gonna be to call AAA and have it towed down to my yard and try and deal with it when I can so at least I am not missing work. I've noticed that when I try and crank it without the fuel pump on, it turns over just fine, sounds the same as it always did when I had the fuel pump off, but when I turn the fuel pump on it cranks over, backfires, but wont start.

Any suggestions, advice, or anything would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. -Steve.

 

Maybe fuel filter?

 

Any CEL codes? Since you're getting a backfire, at least some fuel is getting to the injectors.

 

You said you can hear the fuel pump prime??? If so Loosen the banjo bolt on th fuel filter and see if gas comes out there. if no gas come out then its cloged. Or the fuel lines are cloged or pinched some where...

 

Check the rotor in the dizzy, the bolt backs out and the rotor slips has happened

to me twice. Still shows spark but not at the right time. good luck

 

Thanks everyone for taking the time to read this post.
I've always had access to mechanics at my old shops and never had to work on my own cars in detail, only the simple tune up stuff. So if I sound stupid with some of these questions, please bear with me.

I can hear the fuel pump prime when I turn the car on, but like I said no fuel coming out at the regulator. Where is the fuel filter located so I can check the banjo bolt like mentioned above? I am thinking more a clog than a pinch seeing as how I was just cruising on the highway when this happened, wasnt pushing it, racing it, or anything, just doin the speedlimit behind traffic.

The engine light never came on, still isn't on except for when you first turn the ignition to the on position, but even then it goes off after about 3 seconds without starting the car. And as far as I can tell it isnt throwing any codes.

As far as the dizzy, I pulled the cap off, everything inside looks dry and no visible debris or damage. There is a white discoloration to the inside of the cap on one side. I've never had to pull one apart before so I don't want to risk breaking anything that isnt already broke. What would I be looking for in regards to the rotor?

Thanks again. -Steve

 

Fuel filter is on the firewall a black disk looking thing with the fuel lines running to it

 

CHECK TO SEE IF THE ROTOR IS LOOSE.... THIS HAPPENED TO MY TRUCK....

 

X100


This happened to me also. Spark, and fuel was there but the spark was not timed to cylinder TDC and hard to see this when cranking the engine. My screw was mia even with the gasket there!!! With the cover off, it is the circular part in the middle. If the screw is tight, the rotor will not move as it is tied to the cam. part number 3 and 11. My FSM for the CRX shows the rotor to be not round but some funky hour glass shape like a plane propeller.

tow discount to honda-tech members?

 

Same thing happened to me, I changed my spark plugs and spark plug wires which were all corroded and fouled with carbon, my plugs were also slightly covered in oil but that didn't seem to be the problem, turned out that the distributor was ****ed or something, either the distributor or the fuel pump.

 

check for spark. its likely the ignitor took a dump.

 

Ok, so today I went out and checked out the dizzy, the rotor looks ok, I tried to move it and there is maybe 1mm of movement in it either way if that. Pulled the line from the top of the fuel filter, cranked it and got nothing from it. There is a big *** line on the bottom of the filter, should I check that one next?

Also, I found out that when the engine was swapped out, that the timing belt and alot of the engine components were replaced at that time. Need to find out exactly what, but the dizzy doesnt look too old, so I am gonna ask him about that today also.

Someone mentioned the Main Engine Relay, located under the dash. Could that be a possible cause? It was mentioned that it controlled the fuel pump as well as the injectors.

Thanks again everyone. -Steve

 

If your not getting fuel could be the relay or the pump, I would

try the relay first since there cheap.

 

You're doing fine. It's sometimes hard to read other posts here that don't provide enough detail or typre like a 2nd graded in special ed class.

You mentioned not detecting fuel 100%. I usually place a rag at the hose after the fuel return of the fuel pressure regulator. It is the last component of the system. I cycle the key on/off several times to get the rag wet. If no fuel is there, start back-tracking.

If you have a voltmeter (Radio-shack has some decent ones for under $30) measure voltage at the fuel pump connector. Positive voltage is at the yel/blk wire and ground is blk or chassis.

Other possibilities:

1. Main relay. Usually get's problematic in hot days. Cheap to replace.

2. Your timing belt jumped. 1-2 teeth and the engine will still start but not idle well. Anymore than that, I have no experience with. Verify this:

 

Thanks. I checked at the regulator, return line, and the top of the filter. Only place to check when I get off work is the bottom of the fuel filter. But so far, no fuel from any of those locations.

The fuel pump was also replaced about 5000 miles along with the timing belt. Then it was parked for 3 years like I said. I'm gonna try and check the voltage as well. I can easily check it at the fuel pump itself since the rear carpeting in the hatch area was removed and hasnt been reinstalled yet so I can see the wires I need to check.

I saw online a video of someone re-soldering all the connection points on the main relay themselves since the connectors wear out in time. If anything I am just going to pull it out first and do a visible inspection on it. Is it suppose to make any noise when you first turn the key on? Again I saw another video on youtube with a guy showing the fuel pump noise and the main relay noise when you turn the ignition on, but there is so much background noise on the video you can't hear anything.

Thanks - Steve

 

If you hear the fuel pump priming when you turn the key i believe the relay is working.

Is there gas in the tank?

 

Igniter I am thinking as well, happened to me. Order one fromlocal auto store, replace and see if that works, if not just return it.

 

^^^. also check the ground on the t-stat housing

 

Ok, havent been able to work on it due to family issues. The guy who built the car came over today and thankfully confirmed that it wasnt the timing belt. Still unsure as to exactly what the problem is. He just told me what it wasnt and that it sounds like an electrical issue because the car tries to start, but just wont. He has another engine sitting at his house, so I am gonna scavenge some parts tomorrow and try a couple other things.

Yes there is fuel in the tank, I filled the tank up and drove 65 miles before it died on me, so unless my crx went from 30mpg to 5mpg it's not going to be from a lack of fuel. On a full tank I can usually get around 300miles.

Where is the igniter located at? Tomorrow being a day off I am going to devote it to gettin my car back on the road.

Thanks again everyone.

 

Ok everyone, thank you all again for all your help, you definitely aided me along the way in finally diagnosing the problem. As of 15 minutes ago, the CRX is once again ready to tear up the highways.

Problem: Distributor completely seized up. Once we pulled the whole assemble apart we realized it was frozen. Thankfully with the spare b18 engine sitting at my father in laws house we were able to swap em out and get my ride roadworthy again.

So again, thank you everyone for pointing me in the right direction.

 

Good to hear! After owning a EF for many years, I have found 90% of the time issues are with the Dist, actually almost all my issues I have ever had are due to the POS Dist!!

 

cool! you must give back to the collective

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