98 Civic EX (D16Y8 M/T)

First I will give you a little info:
Recent inspections and replacements
* Vacuum Reading(from manifold) about 20 in/Hg - Steady needle
*No load IDLE(measured and set with multi-meter tach) - 650 RPMS - Suggested by Honda for specific model
*Getting 300 miles every fill up to the red line(Shell gas ALWAYS)
*NEW - IAC, TPS, Temp Switch, Temp Sensor, vacuum lines, Ignition coil, NGK plugs and wires.
*NEW - MAIN RELAY
*NEW - Motor Mounts
*Throttle body removed and thoroughly cleaned/Gasket replaced

PROBLEM:
When the car is at idle, is is somewhat rough. It idles normal and then periodically dips down like it wants to shut off and then raises to normal idle. The idle gets low and the car starts to vibrate a little because of the idle. It seems like it might be a slight misfire??? When I have the lights on the idle raises to about 750-800RPM's and idles fine, no problem. I have to drive with my lights on all the time because of this. I'm stumped and just can't figure it out.

PROBLEM 2:
I know you have to have a solid idle before setting timing. But here is the issue. My timing is way off. The 16 mark | | | is way right of the pointer on the timing belt cover(measured with timing light) Correct me if I'm wrong - TIMING IS RETARTED -
So, When I went to advance the timing from the distributor the line barely moved. I ended up MAXING out the distibutor until it could not be advanced anymore and the timing still did not reach the timing pointer(even when revving motor) All though got pretty close to the correct timing but still off.

PLEASE POST YOUR SUGGESTIONS! YOUR EXPERTISE IS APPRECIATED - THANKS

 

Your mileage sets a world record for our Civics.

Did you jump service connector while checking the timing? And the engine does need to idle to spec to get an accurate timing measurement.

Have you tried bleeding the cooling system and adjusting the idle speed?

 

Problem #1, Periodically? Like when the fan kicks on and off?

 

lol right!!! I wish I got 300 mpg!!!

 

Insure your mechanical timing is correct first.

Next, did you jump the connector before tryint to set the timing?

 

Ooops, I ment 300 Miles per fill up!

Yes, Service connector jumped. Cooling system bled.

its close to the timing belt cover pointer but still retarded.
The thing is when I did this timing adjustment with the lights on. When the lights are on it idles fine.

 

 

Ok, I will go outside and do that but its at 650 right now. Should I go over spec? When I turn the screw up to 700-750(i think closer to 750) the P0505 code is thrown and I get a surge. If I stay below 700(which is spec) its fine. I go outside and try and will post an update shortly.

 

Are you following the idle adjust procedure in the service manual?

 

Yes, following the service manual. Did it again anyways and also sucked some seafoam through a vacuum line and poured some into the gas tank seems to be idling better now but still feels like there is some excess vibration. When lights are on vibration disappears when idle is higher. Tried to check my timing now and the light wont flash. Got to go get a new timing light(its a cheap harbor freight one) OH, when I press the brake pedal idle drops slightly then raises to normal - Is this normal?

So idle is set to 650 with proper procedure(checked with multi-meter tach)
Now all is left is to get the timing right...If the timing is retarded can that cause idle issues?

 

Ok, its doing it again. Errrggghh!

 

I'll throw in my .02.

My 95 ex has the same problem for a long time. It's most correlated with high electricity draw i.e. hard braking. I'd guess what makes your turn-the-lights-on method works is that it ensures the kick-in of charging /discharging cycle, basically making your car charges at all time.

So for me, it turns out it was a dieing alternator, so I replaced it. The problem went away, but just for a year before the problem appearing again, and that's another dead alternator. So my mechanics figured there must be something shorting in the electric circuit. I've spent a large sum in checking what's going wrong, replacing spark plugs/ different wire sets, etc. The fix just took place recently. The problem is gone but I'm still crossing my fingers.

 

I have a feeling it might be my alternator also. Reason being, I Was rolling my window up this morning and once the window was completely up I noticed that the dash lights flickered and the idle jumped up and the dipped down. So with the window still completely up, I hit the window switch again as if I was rolling the window up and the dash lights quickly flickered. However, it does not do this while window is going up but only when I hit the switch to activate the relay.

Is it possible to have 14v coming out of the alternator and it still be bad?

 

Check the voltage car off and then running.

When you noted the change when lights on etc, the alternator could be compensating for a voltage draw.

Also, sometimes a bad set of wires, can translate electrical problems as well.

 

NOTE: I was driving a couple months ago and was going through a parking lot in 2nd gear moving at a fairly slow pace and the car completely shut off on me. I turned it back on and started miving again in 1st gear and then it shut off again. After that I started it up and it hasn't happened again. When this happened the lights did not dim or anything else out of the ordinary. The RPM's just dropped completely and the car shut off.