combustion check, compression check,

Ask mechanic how did he verify a/c leak

How did he verify rear pads and rotors needed to be replaced?

Do you yourself see the vtec actuator leaking? Get some brake cleaner and clean up the engine to verify leaks.

Ignition system might just need some love

 

When i buy a more valuable car, i spend the $150 for a detailed inspection. Rarely is a used car perfect, so i use the inspection cost as a bargining chip against the purchase, It's always a win win! If the car needs nothing, you are good to good, knowing you have a great car. If it needs a couple things, use it against the car, if is a piece of "you know what", walk away and be glad you don't buy it.

Thant being said, if you have the car now, you have a couple choices:

- resell the car, and get as much for your car back as you can.
- do and engine swap, look for a deal

Just today, i'm actually buying a donar car for extra parts, for my own project, Full running car with 75k for $500

 

Thanks for the reply. Im not even sure where the vtec actuator actually is.

Im hoping the head gasket is fine..and Im not sure about the odd pulling/tugging im getting while accelerating/decelerating. Maybe the car just needs a tune up.



If the clutch was going bad..wouldn't i only feel it slipping while the clutch is engaged? Or will ot affect the acceleration even after the clutch was disengaged?

 

When a clutch is disengaged (your foot is pressing the clutch pedal down), the car will not accelerate.

 

Thanks everyone..I may have been panicking a little bit because this was a big purchase for me.

Im not getting any typical signs of a blown head gasket- white smoke from exhaust, milky oil etc.

Hopefully the coolant was low for some other reason and will keep an eye on its level. I will also check my oil frequently.

I do think the compliance bushings are bad however, because of how thw car handles and the front buckling noises im hearing.

I do plan on changing out thw spark plugs myself and hopefully will help with the tugging of the engine.

 

Sounds like the hesitation needs to be addressed ASAP. You can easily cause more damage if you ignore it and keep driving the car.

 

Thanks. In your opinion what do you think is causing the tuggging/jerking im talking about? I know its hard to diagnose over the internet.

Any hters in Orange County who could drive my car?

Ill buy us an 18 pack and we can take the car off some sweet jumps.

 

Can you take a video of the car jerking and post it here?

 

Ill see if it shows up..its nor really in the rpms tho. Its more like the entire car shakes.

 

Just by reading the recommendations, I'd say it's probably time for a new mechanic.

 

Why is that?

 

If he diagnoses a blown head gasket by checking to see if the coolant is low then he might not know what he is doing. If he thinks there is a blown head gasket and he charges you for this diagnoses you just had then he should have down compression test and/or a hydrocarbon test. If the coolant is low and he thinks that means the head gasket is bad there is a tester that checks to see if there is hydrocarbons in the coolant to see if the head gasket is in fact leaking. Instead he puts down that the head gasket is possibly bad causing you undue stress worrying whether or not the motor needs replacement. As someone said earlier a compression test and/or leakdown would be a great place to start. The hydrocarbon test wouldn't be bad either >>> https://www.amazon.com/Lisle-75500-C.../dp/B0007ZDRUI . I don't know if that would be my first check though he could pressurize your coolant system and see if there is leaks for starters.

I know if this was me, I would look around for a Honda specialist and take my car there for a new diagnoses. The guy that you took this too seems to be going worst case scenario on all his diagnoses and he may have given you more information on each item when you picked the car that you haven't told us about but it seems like he trying to get a trip to Hawaii out of you.

 

Low coolant - Says head gasket
A/C leaks - I would get a second opinion. Compressor can leak, but more often than not it's a $1.00 O-Ring at fault.
Black tail pipe - Must mean it's burning oil, right? Cause no other possibility exists?


This guy reminds me of those tire places (Les Schwab, Big O, etc.) that recommend replacing brakes/calipers/rotors every time they see a rotor damaged.

 

Take it to Project Import in Orange. That's where I took my 1990 EF hatch. They do good work and are all Honda nerds.

 

If a rotor is damaged, you should definitely replace it.

 

Okay. I went to get the car smogged and it passed.

After that I drove to a small shop a few cities over and the owner checked my car out for free.

He simply poured my coolant into my car while it was idling..and the radiator started bubbling like lava. He said the head gasket is blown because of this.

Im going to order one of those kits that test for exhaust in the coolant just to be sure.

 

Ummm...your coolant bubbling didnt' cause the headgasket issue. The headgasket issue is causing your coolant to bubble. But yes it needs to have the head checked for warpage and the short block as well. Might as well get the valve stem seals replaced and the valves clean and lapped.

 

I would ust buy a K20A and LSD trans from a wholesaler at this point.

 

I found a place locally that will put in a k20a ( he said its the japanese equivalent of the 160hp k20a3) for 1k. $399.00 for the engine and $600.00 for labor.

The engines supposedly have 60k miles and are all conpression tested. 90 day warranty.

They also have k24a that would be about $300 more total for the swap, but they said it might not pass ca smog.

I might try this as my last resort to save the black dragon.

 

That's a crappy low compression motor with fake VTEC.

Park the car and save up for the real thing.

 

Isn't the jdm k20a similar to the usdm k20a3 that came with the ep3? Sure I could use faster, but Im on a budget and 160hp is enough for me to have fun.

 

No. One is an anemic, low compression, dissapointment with VTEC on one cam only.

The other is a high revving, high compression, screamer that cracks VTEC properly.

Night and day difference.

 

I think Slow was talking about k20a as in CTR motor since he mentioned the lsd transmission. The k20's in Japan are not differentiated by an additional number like the us market i.e. k20a2(type s) and K20a3(ep3) they all are k20a, but the real k20a is the 220 horsepower out of the civic or integra type r that also comes along with a LSD 6 speed transmission. If you are on a budget though this is not the way to go as the swaps are 4 to 5 grand plus installation and possible Kpro installation to make the thing run right. 11.5 to 1 compression will most likely run like crap on US fuel, but with tuning they could be streetable on pump gas.

 

I mentioned more than once the jdm k20a im talking about is the Japanese equivalent of the k20a3 which both have 160hp. Maybe its a simple misunderstanding.