VTEC NOT WORKING
Thread Starter
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 196
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From: Denver, Co
VTEC NOT WORKING
ok so i recently bought a 2000 honda civic ex (d16y8) engine. The vtec doesn't want to work. no check engine lights are on, not low oil pressure, all the wiring is good, and the ecu is a p2p. I just took off my vtec solenoid and cleaned the screen, and it still doesnt work. Thanks you guys for the help.
P.S. i was just wondering is there any way i can check if my solenoid is bad??
P.S. i was just wondering is there any way i can check if my solenoid is bad??
Technical Hero
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 9,875
Likes: 35
From: Charlotte, NC, 28227
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
How do you know it doesn't work? What RPM does it rev up to? If it goes all the way to at least 6800 RPMs your VTEC is working. Otherwise:
https://honda-tech.com/forums/hybrid-engine-swaps-18/%5Bfaq%5D-%22my-vtec-doesnt-work%22-1812135/
https://honda-tech.com/forums/hybrid-engine-swaps-18/%5Bfaq%5D-%22my-vtec-doesnt-work%22-1812135/
Thread Starter
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 196
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From: Denver, Co
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
i go all the way to red line. So like 7 sometimes 7.5 but i am not feeling nothing and there is no "extra power" or what ever you wanna call it when i go that high, its supposed to kick in at like 5.5 right?? Because my friend had an ej8 also and when his vtec kicked in it hit hard.
Technical Hero
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 9,875
Likes: 35
From: Charlotte, NC, 28227
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
i go all the way to red line. So like 7 sometimes 7.5 but i am not feeling nothing and there is no "extra power" or what ever you wanna call it when i go that high, its supposed to kick in at like 5.5 right?? Because my friend had an ej8 also and when his vtec kicked in it hit hard.
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 212
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From: IL, west of chicago
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
You can hear a faint exhaust tone change at vtec crossover in a dseries, usually you can hear it better with a cold air intake and stock exhaust. Otherwise if your expecting a b series crossover sound you need to upgrade some components, like a cam and valvetrain for starters. But I never heard of anyone upgrading their engine just to hear vtec kick in.
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Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Apr 2007
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From: IL, west of chicago
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
I guess I just dont see the point, modding an engine is about performance not sound, vtec cross over could sound like a wet fart and I wouldnt care, as long as what ever i spent my hard earned money on made my car faster.
Honda-Tech Member
iTrader: (1)
Joined: Nov 2008
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From: san diego, ca, united states
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
i go all the way to red line. So like 7 sometimes 7.5 but i am not feeling nothing and there is no "extra power" or what ever you wanna call it when i go that high, its supposed to kick in at like 5.5 right?? Because my friend had an ej8 also and when his vtec kicked in it hit hard.
..................... uh ... vtec isnt a power booster. it is just a smoother transistion from low cam to high cam lobe profile. its just there for fuel economy and mid range. its not supposed to crack snapple & pop on any car.
Thread Starter
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 196
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From: Denver, Co
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
ok, well then it sounds like my vtec is working from what you all are saying. But my friend had a y8 and it kicked in good, but i was always in the passenger seat....not driving.Now im driving so maybe i cant really feel it that well. No i wish it was like a turbo boost tho, then that would be awesome. when is the vtec supposed to really kick in?? at what rpm?
Thread Starter
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 196
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From: Denver, Co
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
ok, i have another questions. Not about vtec, but another thing. There are a few people telling me that if i put a throttle body spacer, new aftermarket spark plug wires, and spark plugs my car can be a little quicker. I was wondering if thats true, and if it is what kind of gain in hp am i looking at.??
Honda-Tech Member
iTrader: (1)
Joined: Nov 2008
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From: san diego, ca, united states
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
ok, i have another questions. Not about vtec, but another thing. There are a few people telling me that if i put a throttle body spacer, new aftermarket spark plug wires, and spark plugs my car can be a little quicker. I was wondering if thats true, and if it is what kind of gain in hp am i looking at.??
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 42
Likes: 0
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
ok, well then it sounds like my vtec is working from what you all are saying. But my friend had a y8 and it kicked in good, but i was always in the passenger seat....not driving.Now im driving so maybe i cant really feel it that well. No i wish it was like a turbo boost tho, then that would be awesome. when is the vtec supposed to really kick in?? at what rpm?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_D_engine#D16Y8
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 147
Likes: 0
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
ok, well then it sounds like my vtec is working from what you all are saying. But my friend had a y8 and it kicked in good, but i was always in the passenger seat....not driving.Now im driving so maybe i cant really feel it that well. No i wish it was like a turbo boost tho, then that would be awesome. when is the vtec supposed to really kick in?? at what rpm?
Thread Starter
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 196
Likes: 0
From: Denver, Co
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
i put in the short ram intake, and now i can hear my vtec kick in......i guess its just i didnt hear or feel it at first. but never mind.......also i replaced my knocking sensor because the light was on and the sensor was broken in half.....no every other day my light turns on for the p0325 code....does anyone know why this is??? i think i might have left a crack in the knocking sensor and the block....because i couldnt get it screwed in all the way from the bottom so should i take the intake manifold off and give it another try so it gets screwed in all the way???
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 440
Likes: 1
From: Near the race track....
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
- Setting VTEC Crossover point -VTEC engagement on a stock car is OPTIMIZED. Do NOT mess with it because all you are really doing is taking away power, depsite what it "feels" like.
Now that we have that cleared up...YES, i know that bringing the VTEC crossover up or down around 500 or even 1000 rpm up or down may indeed improve your power curves. Again, this is something u can only really prove if you are on a dyno and u can see the immediate results.
So, why do you need a vtec controller? U don't, really. Unless you are using aftermarket cams, or have upped the compression, or some other internal modification that demands a shift in the VTEC x-over to again be optimized. AGAIN, something you should really be doing on the dyno, as every motor is different, not to mention weather conditions, grade of gasoline, general condition of the motor, etc....
So when you hear people say "I got a vtec controller and I set vtec to 3,000 rpm so im mad fast now", u know they're a not bright.
Why? This leads into my explanation on how vtec works but, basically on a vtec motor there is a vtec cam lobe and non vtec primary & secondary cam lobes. Those non vtec lobes are optimized for low end power delivery. However, @ upper RPM, the small lobes cannot deliver enough air nor keep the valves open long enough to continue to let the motor make power.
Hence, the VTEC crossover...where the VTEC cam lobe takes over duties in opening and closing the valves from the secondary and primary lobes. Since the vtec cam lobe is much taller, it can now provide more air and duration the motor needs to keep making power @ higher RPM.
Now think about it. What does setting VTEC at 3,000 rpm do? It makes a cam lobe designed to work well at HIGH rpm to work at LOW rpm. Conversely, setting VTEC too high will cause the motor to start dying out, then JUMP foward when the VTEC lobes take over.
If u have or do get a vtec controller, try it one day.
Set vtec to 3,000 and see how much of a pig the car is down low. Then set vtec to say 7,500 rpm or something. See how the car accelerates, slows down, then springs foward again at vtec x-over. You may think that is the car making more power, but if you were to look at dyno graphs, you would see the torque curve fall off, then rise back up @ your specified vtec cross over point. The above is also a good way to determine a starting point for an optimal vtec x-over when you have done some internal mods and u would like to set vtec @ a certain point. Take a dyno pull with vtec set low, then another pull with vtec set really high.
Now that we have that cleared up...YES, i know that bringing the VTEC crossover up or down around 500 or even 1000 rpm up or down may indeed improve your power curves. Again, this is something u can only really prove if you are on a dyno and u can see the immediate results.
So, why do you need a vtec controller? U don't, really. Unless you are using aftermarket cams, or have upped the compression, or some other internal modification that demands a shift in the VTEC x-over to again be optimized. AGAIN, something you should really be doing on the dyno, as every motor is different, not to mention weather conditions, grade of gasoline, general condition of the motor, etc....
So when you hear people say "I got a vtec controller and I set vtec to 3,000 rpm so im mad fast now", u know they're a not bright.
Why? This leads into my explanation on how vtec works but, basically on a vtec motor there is a vtec cam lobe and non vtec primary & secondary cam lobes. Those non vtec lobes are optimized for low end power delivery. However, @ upper RPM, the small lobes cannot deliver enough air nor keep the valves open long enough to continue to let the motor make power.
Hence, the VTEC crossover...where the VTEC cam lobe takes over duties in opening and closing the valves from the secondary and primary lobes. Since the vtec cam lobe is much taller, it can now provide more air and duration the motor needs to keep making power @ higher RPM.
Now think about it. What does setting VTEC at 3,000 rpm do? It makes a cam lobe designed to work well at HIGH rpm to work at LOW rpm. Conversely, setting VTEC too high will cause the motor to start dying out, then JUMP foward when the VTEC lobes take over.
If u have or do get a vtec controller, try it one day.
Set vtec to 3,000 and see how much of a pig the car is down low. Then set vtec to say 7,500 rpm or something. See how the car accelerates, slows down, then springs foward again at vtec x-over. You may think that is the car making more power, but if you were to look at dyno graphs, you would see the torque curve fall off, then rise back up @ your specified vtec cross over point. The above is also a good way to determine a starting point for an optimal vtec x-over when you have done some internal mods and u would like to set vtec @ a certain point. Take a dyno pull with vtec set low, then another pull with vtec set really high.
Trial User
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
Re: VTEC NOT WORKING
After doing some reading on different forums and such I discovered that if the check engine light is on in a car that vtec will not engage But as I just read in a post on this forum if the vtec didn't work I wouldn't be able to shift all the way at 7000 and I can do such even though my check engine light is on. I just wanted to know if this is normal or if this has been seen before
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