I have a 1991 Civic witn the SOHC engine. It cranks but won't start. When I pulled a plug wire to check for spark it was soaking with engine oil. The other plug wires were similarly oily. Can that cause failure to start? Thanks.

 

All USDM ED/EE cars were SOHC.

Oil is not an especially good conductor, so it absolutely will create issues with spark. "Failure to start" doesn't clearly describe your problem though- if it's turning over properly but not catching, then pull the plugs, clean the contact surfaces and tubes, put new plug wires in and try again. If it starts up then pull it back apart and put a valve cover gasket kit on it - the Fel-Pro set comes with the o-rings for the plug tubes.

 

Thanks scelestus, I should mention that these spark plug tubes had so much oil in them that the spark plugs were completely covered. And, this was pretty black and tarry oil, so maybe it was more conductive? Anyhow, did all of this oil collect by getting past those O-rings at the bottom of the tubes? There was no evidence of any elastomeric sealant, like silicone, between the O-rings and where they sit on the rocker arm assembly; should there be? Or are those O-rings supposed to seal just under clamping pressure? Was the valve cover simply not tightened down enough?

Here's two questions: can the plug wires be saved by washing the oil off of them with something like brake or carb cleaner? And, same question for the spark plugs. Both were new about 3,500 miles ago.

Thanks very mluch for the help.

 

I doubt the oil was any more conductive.

The head is under pressure - if the oil has some way to escape it will certainly go there.There are seals under the rocker assembly, but I have rarely seen those leak a significant amount (which isn't saying it can't happen, just that it's less likely). You'll get different answers on using a liquid gasket on the seals - I always apply some on the flat side that contacts the head.

The spark plugs should be fine. If there was as much oil as I'm guessing from your description, I am not sure I would trust the plug wires to work well long term. Check the resistance on your set at least. I have no idea how well the rubber material handles brake clean and the like, I would use something milder unless google says you'll be safe.

 

Thanks again scelestus, we will clean everything up real good and put in a new gasket set and use silicone with the O-rings. Thanks for the info about the plugs and wires.

 

Buy a complete valve cover gasket set - it will have the valve cover gasket and the upper and lower spark plug tube seals. I recommend using an appropriate sealant (I like Permatex Ultra Grey) on the corners of the new valve cover gasket - nowhere else. The upper seals are easy to replace...they just fit right into the valve cover. To get to the lower seals, you will need to pull the rocker assembly like was said above. If these have never been replaced, they are probably the culprit. They get hard, compressed, and eventually leak. You'll know when you got to pull them out if they were bad - if they break apart like a potato chip, they were likely the source of leaking oil.

I'd stay away from the FelPro brand too. The valve cover gasket stretches when exposed to heat and oil, and it will be nearly impossible to get back in again if you take the valve cover off in the future. For aftermarket, I've had better luck with Beck-Arnley.

If the rubber on your spark plug wires that was exposed to the oil hasn't started to swell and get soft yet, you'll be fine to reuse them.

Any CEL's related to the no-start?