Damn Tax Returns has to be one of the greatest things, cause that means moar projects!!

My daily driver ( '96 Accord LX ) is about to die on me from a horrible headgasket issue. So i just pulled out my f22b1 from the corner of my garage to start getting ready to rebuild next week, to find this!!!

there is a small crack on the cam gear side of the cam cap assembly! has anyone had this happen?? most importantly, is it fixable? ( aluminium welder, quicken-steel ect ) the crack is about 6mm long and just stops, it doesnt look severe but thats just what i want to believe.

i have my rebuild parts comming in the mail sometime early next week so i need to get this figured out incase if i need togo hunting for a cam cap assembly!

 

Don't weld on it or use any putty. Take a trip to your local junk yard and get a cap


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i figured id end up needing todo that. thanks for the input, its much appreciated!

P.S- if anyone reading this has an obd1 p0a ecu (f22b1 ecu) or obd1 h22 injectors PM me please!

 

That's actually bad, you let .gov borrow your money interest free.

Take the amount you got back in taxes, divide by 12 and that's how much money you let .gov borrow every month tax free.

 

Curious to see pictures of the rebuild!

 

Good Luck on ur build bro! cant wait to see it

 

i took the cam cap assembly off the head lastnight to check how bad the crack really was aaannnddd...its bad. but the cam bearings didnt look all chewed up which is a plus!
im taking my head to school today to disassemble it, clean it up, regrind the valve faces and stems, 3-angle valve seat grind and after that hopefully some grinding and polishing the ports alittle
im still working on finding some place that could resurface my head


more to come!!

 

so, the one part honda doesnt sell is cam caps huh? dissapointing

 

No they come as a complete set with the head.

Have to try a JY or for sale thread/ebay.

If you can't just buy the one cap that you are looking for. You may have to buy a complete rocker assembly from a JY. No matter what, I would suggest that you have a machine shop align hone the cam journals or at least have them all measured for proper clearance. Wouldn't want uneven journal clearances.

 

i have abandoned rebuilding my old head ( cam cap bearing clearances were all off ) so i purchased a rebuilt head that will be ariving late this week or early next week. so in the mean time i might keep this head laying around and practice porting and polishing it for a future project

of course the least important parts of the rebuild have to arive first
XTD stage#2 pressure plate w/ stage#1 disc


looks like i have a full set of rocker arms to sell since the bearings are all wack!


my gasket kits/piston rings/bearings and timing belt/water pump kit will be here sometime in the middle of the week, so hopefully i can start assembling the bottom end

 

Did you measure your main and rod journals or order a set of generic main and con rod bearings? If it is a generic rebuild kit. I would suggest that you measure each of them carefully before running the engine.

 

i measured them yes! i may be building this ona budget but im atleast using common sense i went with some standard sized Cleavite main/rod bearings (they claimed to have some sort of coating) and i ordered the thrust bearing from Honda.


got my full gasket kit, timing belt/water pump kit, rings, bearings, and my bosch o2 sensor! while i wait for my new head to arrive, im going to start assembling the block this friday and saturday and hopefully have it fully assembled sometime next week. Im hoping everything goes smoothly since my current f22b2 in my daily is about to give out on me

 

Just a heads up in case you weren't aware. The Bosch O2 sensors can cause ECU error code issues. They have been known to have response differences compared to the OEM NTK/Denso units.

Patience, proper clearances, quality tools and a super clean work area are keys to a reliable engine build!

Happy building!

 

Seconding on that Bosch sensor, may as well return it from whoever you bought it from. NGK sensors are definitely the only way to go with our Honda's. This coming from a Honda ASE cert. master tech. lol

 

i did some research and agree with both of you guys^^, Bosch sensors>Denso/NTK
so i sent the Bosch sensor back this morning and im about to order a Denso o2 sensor, which ended up saving me acouple $$ since i spent almost $100 on my Bosch sensor!

Cant wait to start on my block tomorrow! measuring clearances with plasti-gauge then things will start coming together

 

Cam caps are generally not sold separately because they are line bored with the head. Since it is not a absolutely perfect world, tolerances vary from one to the next ever so slightly. Essentially making matched parts. A random cam cap from another head may or may not being in spec for the proper cam journal clearance.

On that topic but not a Honda Accord. Recently seen someone with a broken cam cap on a brand new 5.0 motor/ heads... cost the owner a set of heads as a result. Not a cheap problem, be glad ours are a fairly inexpensive head to replace.

NGK is far superior to Bosch for o2 sensors.

 

There is a possibility that you could have your cam journals line honed vs having to buy a new head. That is as long as the machine shop can do it and they aren't badly out of spec. I am having mine done..... due to some secret squirrel mods.

 

^cant wait to see whats next to come in your on-going project Ghost!

i got a nice big package in the mail last friday!! so it was time to start getting to work


The head i got came with new exhaust valves (intake valves were reused on this head), guides, vitton valve stem seals, 3 angle cut valve seats, retainers and keepers, resurfaced and a new cam. definatly worth the money!


got the cylinders all cleaned up, and my non-running CD7 in the back that despreatly needs moar low!!


i didnt get pictures of the clearances on the mains since it was a long process for me...my 'not so trusty' torque wrench must not have been working right, since i snapped off main bolt #8 during the plasti-gauge process. THANK GOD that the main bearing bolt holes in the f22 blocks have a small chamfer so getting the broken piece out was simple. i ordered a new bolt and a tap so i can chase all the mains to clean them up before final tightening, and i also went out and bought a new torque wrench since you can never have enough tools!

measuring the ring end gaps was a breeze since i was reusing the old pistons/rods.


i reused my old oil pump housing (only has ~35k on it), installed my water pump and new head bolts! i have the balance shafts and gears on, but im not going to be running the belt


on sunday- i installed the head and torqued it down, also lined everything up and installed my timing belt!!


currently im looking for a buisness that does powder coating, id like to get my valve cover painted wrinkle red (kinda like the ITR/CTR) but i cant find too many places that wont charge me under $100!! the lowest offer i got was $130 and that was just to get it painted (no polished lettering ect) but before i get it painted, i was debating on using a grinder and grinding off the H emblem off the cover so it just said vtec, thought it'd look unique and abit diffrent from other accords.

since im trying to do this on a budget i wasnt able to get ahold of a f23a1 intake manifold, so im going to polish up the runners and plenium so it flows alittle better (i doubt it but hey its just something todo ) and im still looking for h22 injecters!!

more updates to come...once the mailman comes

 

one of the last times i get to see the old engine still in the car, dissapointed that i didnt get togo beat on it one last time since it refused to start yesterday, so i started the disassembly process! while im taking the old engine out, ill also be removing the entire a/c system, power steering system (looping the lines the correct way!), and i also am going to try wire tucking for the first time. im already one step closer to a tucked engine bay since my accord has no ugly abs stuff in the corner


have no idea what todo with the old f22b2 since it has a bad headgasket and water pump, id like to keep it and eventually send the block off to get sleeved, but since im relocating sometime this summer ill possibly sell it as a full swap!

moar updates later!

 

got alot taken apart lastnight! ill post pictures later tonight of how empty the engine bay is becoming.

just comming to think of it, my F22b1 is obd1 and so the harness for it. would there be any problems using the obd1 engine harness in my '96 accord lx?? i never cared to check the harness plugs, but i hope i dont have to reuse my F22b2's harness since i already started trimming and tucking my f22b1's harness.


speaking of 'just my luck'...just got a letter in the mail about my car accident i was involved in almost a year ago. other driver is trying to sue me for personal injuries he claims to still have, and im still fighting it off because they havent even written me down for the correct ticket! and its been almost a year!! so i have a court date which hopefully wont upset the completion of this current accord project ive already started

picture taken May 20th 2012


picture taken June 10th 2012, the day after the accident


my car was so low i got stuck in the middle of the on-comming lane in a construction zone (it was all gravel that was very washed out and very uneven) when the person hit me doing 45mph (speeding) and tossed my accord across the intersection, and almost a year later hes trying to tell me he has health problems from the accident.

 

That happened to me when I was in high school. The only accident I've ever been involved in. It was way past the statute of limitations, though, so it fell through.

 

its been awhile since ive updated my progress since i was in the hospital for a week after st patricks day (tore ligaments in my right knee cap) but since ive been out, ive been putting in work!

Attachment 316599
after snapping a main bearing cap bolt off in the block, i had to make a run to the dealership and thankfully they had one on hand! also grabbed new vtec soleniod gaskets while i was there


heres after getting the old engine out! i wish i got a pictures of what i did to tuck things away and how i looped my p/s lines


my finished wireharness (trimmed, deleted some sensors not being used then taped it all up)


i hate how my phone takes such small photos, but here i was splicing into my 0bd2-obd1 converter to add the vtec signal wire, vtec oil pressure switch and the FIA. my obd2-obd1 conversion harness didnt have anything in the FIA pin (must not have FIA on obd2 f22b1's i guess?) so i swapped the pin out of the a/c control and put it in the FIA pin and spliced into that. i hate wiring but i guess i did acceptable


with the help of some friends, i got my new motor in the following sunday after st patricks day, it was alot easier with 3 people than just me!


got my obd1 h22 injectors and installed them with all new oem honda o-rings (think i spent $40 on all the injector o-rings/seals alone!) also finished polishing the intake runners so it looked like a mirror finish


heres my finished intake manifold. didnt get to paint it black-wrinkle since i had limited time near the end of my build. but i got all the vacuum lines mostly hidden, installed my egr block off plate and the upper plenium that i finished polishing and cleaning inside


this is how my engine bay currently sits, got my valve cover painted a dark gunmetal grey and finished installing my transmission, which was a nightmare!! i somehow must have banged up one of the dowel pins that lines up the engine with the trans, so i had to make another trip to honda for $6 dowel pins

it runs strong!! pulls pretty hard considering im running a really tall trans (p2a5) only concern currently is my idle problem. when the engine is dead cold and i start it, it holds the revs at 2500rpm and doesnt come down to 750rpm until it finally warms up, and once its hot (driving on the freeways ect) it idles at around 1250-1500rpm, then when i try going into vtec it sometimes doesnt kick in and aslo feels very slugish. my alternator is making racket too (can hear the bearings start to hum) so im thinking it might be the alternator not outputting enough power, since my newer battery is almost dead when i went to start it today. im going todo an alternator load test tomorrow in class to test it, but i believe its the alternator.

More updates to come! next is rebuilding the whole front suspension and hopefully coilovers, if i didnt spend too much on buying seats from NRG

parts list after completing the build-
- Evergreen Automotive bottom end gasket kit
- Evergreen Automotive top end gasket kit (didnt use their stupid flimsy headgasket)
- DNJ timing belt/water pump kit
- OEM head gasket, front motor mount, vtec solenoid gaskets, fuel injector o-ring kits and 1x main bear cap bolt
- NPR standard rings (top-chrome sec-steel)
- Cleavite coated main/rod bearings
- XTD stage #2 pressure plate w/stage #1 disc
- Findanza 10lb flywheel
- Denso o2 sensor
- 0bd1 H22a1 injectors
- Rebuilt head w/new exhaust valves (intake valves were reused on this head), guides, vitton valve stem seals, 3 angle cut valve seats, retainers and keepers (valve springs were reused), resurfaced and a new cam
- Mahle fuel filter
- VMS magnetic oil drain bolt
- Airtex cap/rotor kit
- Bosch platinum plugs
- Prothane front/rear motor mount inserts
- poa ecu

extras-
- not running balance shaft belt
- no a/c
- no p/s
- no abs
- no emissions system

 

Yeah, if I recall correctly, 2500 is a little high for cold idle. Have you checked for vacuum leaks?

 

i was thinking it may be a slight vacuum leak, ill look into it. but right now, i need to solve the reason why vtec wont kick in like it should.

does anyone happen to know if alternators are diffrent from f22b2 to f22b1's? amperage wise ect. a friend told me that i shouldnt run the f22b2 alternator (which i currently am)

i started ordering parts to rebuild my suspension, front ball joints, inner and outer tie rods are in the mail! im still stuck on deciding on coilovers since theyre is quiet a few companies nowdays


got to drive my car to school for the first time in about a month, i love getting to wake up in the morning togo sit in my newly finished 'office' just need some harnesses!!

 

There are two alternators for the CD Accords. The 80amp is for the F22B2 and there is a 90amp for the F22B1.