Ever since I changed my timing belt, water pump, and tensioner all together my DA has been running rough. I've done my timing so many times and even if its aligned prefectly it still runs rough. I also did my valve adjustment and replaced my distributor. Is it possible tightening it to tight will make it run rough. I tried messing with the idle screw but nothing change.. Right now its idling at 500 and it lags badly until it hits the 2000rpm mark and then i feel a power jump. Also, it runs even rougher when I turn on the a/c and it bogs out to the point it almost stalls....when i set my distributor all the way to advance it runs better doesn't lag as much but still lags a lot with a/c on...any suggestions????

 

adjust your throttle

 

what do you mean adjust my throttle? the throttle cable?

 

Don't adjust the throttle. If it was running fine before, 99% of the time it has to do with the parts you replaced. Are you sure that installed the timing belt correctly? maybe you're a tooth off on the cam gears.

 

double check all electrical connections that you might have disconnected or damaged by accident

 

did you match up the new belt with the old belt to make sure you have the right one?

 

i checked it over and over... the last time i did it i made sure it was dead on on the cam gears.... the notches all lined up......

 

no i didnt match up the old belt to the new belt but it had the right part # on it...

 

are there any electrical connectors near the timing belt that can be accidently damaged that'll effect it with the same symptoms that i'm having?

 

Are you sure you got the right firing order of the plug wires, you might have mixed them up. check that the wires are in the right order on the distributor. check for vacuum leaks.

 

do you have a pic of the firing order i can double check on the again but i'm 99% sure the firing order is right... as for vaccum leaks i didn't find any

 

also what about the distro? did you try adjusting the timing on it ?

 

the only way it wont lag as much if i put the dizzy all the way to advance but then it still hella lag when the a/c is on.. when i press the gas the rpm rises very very slowly till it hits around the 1500 to 2000 rpm then i feel it finally kickin in...

 

My money bets you did the valve adjustment incorrectly. Valves opening and closeing not how they should will cause the car to run rough.

 

i'm sure its not good if i have to put the dizzy all the way to advance

 

maybe... i'll check the valve adjustment again when i get time... i'm at work and should be working instead of researching my car problems :-) .... can someone tell me how to do the valve adjustment correctly..

 

when i first did the timing belt it ran rough still so i figured i should do my valve adjustment also maybe itll fix it... unless the timing was already off then when i did my adjustment it wasnt correct...

 

not sure about the DA, but the B18C has the crankshaft speed sensor that you might have done something to. other than that, you really need to doucle check the installation of the timing belt. If it started running rough after the belt replacement, then it has to be related to the timing belt. Don't start adjusting other things causeyou might make it harder to find the problem. go back through all the things you did before it started running rough. Maybe try doing a compression test and see if that tells you anything.

 

true..i gotta find someone to test the compression...

 

That someone to test the compression should be....you

 

Note: While all valve adjustments must be as accurate as possible, it is better to have the valve adjustment slightly loose rather than too tight. Burned valves may result from overly tight adjustments. Perform the valve adjustment for each cylinder in the same sequence as the firing order: 1-3-4-2.

1) Be sure the engine is cold; cylinder head temperature must be below 100° F (38° C). Overnight cold is best.

2) Remove the cylinder head cover and the upper timing belt cover.

3) Set the No. 1 cylinder to Top Dead Center (TDC). The word UP should appear at the top and the TDC grooves on the pulley should align with the cylinder head surface or the mark on the rear belt cover.

4) Valve clearances are:
B18B1 engine: Intake—0.003-0.005 in. (0.08-0.12mm), Exhaust—0.006-0.008 in. (0.16-0.20mm)
B18C1 and B18C5 Variable Valve Timing and Electronic Lift Control (VTEC) engine: Intake—0.006-0.007 in. (0.15-0.19mm), Exhaust—0.007-0.008 in. (0.17-0.20mm)

5) With the No. 1 cylinder at TDC, adjust the valves of the No. 1 cylinder by performing the following procedures:
Hold the rocker arm against the valve and place the feeler gauge between the rocker arm and the camshaft lobe. There should be a slight drag on the feeler gauge.
If adjustment is required, loosen the valve adjusting the screw locknut.
Turn the adjusting screw to obtain the proper clearance.
Hold the adjusting screw and tighten the locknut(s) to 18 ft. lbs. (25 Nm).
Recheck the clearance.

6) Turn the crankshaft 180 degrees counterclockwise; the cam pulley will turn 90 degrees. With the No. 3 cylinder at TDC, the UP marks should be at the exhaust side. Adjust the valves on the No. 3 cylinder.

7) Turn the crankshaft 180 degrees counterclockwise; the cam pulley will turn 90 degrees. With the No. 4 cylinder at TDC, both UP marks should be at the bottom. Adjust the valves on the No. 4 cylinder.

8) Turn the crankshaft 180 degrees counterclockwise. The No. 2 cylinder will now be on TDC and the UP marks should be at the intake side. Adjust the valves on the No. 2 cylinder.

9) Install the cylinder head cover and upper timing belt cover.


Good luck!

 

well the things i did b4 for it started to run like crap were: timing belt then it ran rough thinking that my valves needing adjustment so i adjusted them... didn't feel any difference.. maybe the timing couldve been off so i kept redoing the timing belt...still ran rough... so i checked distributor cap it was red powder all over (i read it was the bearings going bad so time to replace) so i bought a new distributor...installed it and honestly it ran even worse rpm dropped to 100-200 almost stalling... so i redid the timing the last time i realigned the timing the best and the straightest that i can at TDC it i must say its pretty dead on unless told otherwise and now its at 500rpm and its rough and when the gas is pressed it slowly rise feeling now power at all till 2000rpm like stated on first post.... so i advanced the distributor all the way thinking itll change it only changed a little bit still not lags like crazy and low rpm... one only think is left to double check are my valves that i did... so thats the whole story... wires and plugs are new too...

 

Have you ever looked at the actual ignition timing with a proper timing light?

I still vote your mechanical timing is out. I find it odd that its something else and it started right after the belt was replaced. You can't half *** diagnosis. By that I meant you have to check everything properly and thoroughly to find the problem.