I just changed the distributor on my engine and now the car wont start. With the old dizzy installed you would hear the fuel pump whirring and building pressure. With the new one you dont hear the fuel pump at all and the pressure regulator shows 0 pressure. I have a 99 si with a 97 b20 and GSR tranny installed and this is the dizzy I bought

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281561452034?_trksid=p2060778.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
There is spark coming from dizzy but the engine wont turn over.

 

Would it start with the old one? Is your firing order correct?

 

Yes it starts with old one and yes that's the order

 

Just curious what was wrong with the old one? Most aftermarket distributors are crap.

 

I was getting misfire with the one. The car at times would run as if one of the cylinders wasn't firing. Everyone said it was ignition coil and a replacement coil was more or less same price as new dizzy so I bought new instead of rebuilding

 

Add car information to your first post. This is required for all tech threads - no exceptions.

It's a separate problem if the fuel pump doesn't prime.

 

the thing is the fuel problem only appears with the new dizzy installed. once the old one goes back in it starts normally.

 

The distributor has no effect on the fuel pump priming

 

So next question is how do i go about diagnosing the problem. Fuses and relays are all good

 

Do you know how to use a multi meter?

 

Does the fuel pump prime with the distributor unplugged?

What wire harness and ECU?

 

I don't know how to use multimeter and I haven't tried with it unplugged yet. I have the original 99 si harness with a PR4 ecu and jumper harness.

 

If the fuel pump primes with the distributor completely unplugged, drop the replacement distributor off a bridge.

 

Lol, will do

 

Ok so I tried it and the fuel pump primed with dizzy unplugged.

 

The bridge

 

Considering the fuel pump runs when the new distributor is disconnected, there has got to be some type of wiring issue with the new distributor.

Seen as you got it on eBay, you're pretty much sol when it comes to rerurning it. If I was you, I would open the new distributor and compare the wiring to the old one. Look for any misplaced wires.

Other than that, fight with the company for a replacement or go to rockauto and get an aftermarket from a reputable seller.

 

If you bought it on ebay and/or used paypal you'll be covered, the buyer usually ALWAYS wins the case. So if that is the case return it and get your money back.

 

So true, the system is rigged against sellers, even the great ones.

 

Find out what part of the original distributor is causing your problem and replace it. You can buy the coil and igniter separately from Honda. The bearing is available from seal and bearing supply stores. Aftermarket distributors are just flat out junk for the most part.

 

I had a distributor off of a 99 civic but it was the y8 motor and had the 8 pin instead of the 10 pin distributor plug. If you remove the cap rotor, and cover plate you should be able to to see the ignition coil. Mine had 2 screws holding it in, and 2 wires connecting it. Even though the distributors were different the coils and internals were the same so i was able to remove the ignition coil from the good one and just pop it in to the old one.

If the ignition coils are the same in both dizzy's you may be able to use the stock dizzy with the eBay ignition coil. It may solve the wiring issue you're having since the coil should only have 2 wires.

I'm not sure whether or not this will work for you but it helped me out in a pinch.

 

Well yesterday I had the same problem happen to me and this time with the old dizzy hooked up and I was driving like normal. As soon as u pulled into parking spot car died on me with no power. The negative terminal on battery came lose somehow and after connecting it back the fuel did not prime. It didn't work for nearly 2 hours and then it worked. It worked fine this morning as well befor work so now I believe it's a fuel issue.

 

When the fuel pump is acting up, check for power and see of you're getting the correct voltage.

You could be having a pump going out on you.