My CEL sometimes goes on while I'm driving. I'm getting an EGR code on my CEL which might explain why my car stinks. eight short flashes.... upon cursory inspection I see no hoses off et... any suggestions? are there any known issues with the 95, 1.5 engine? could this be why my exhaust stinks? Can i just remove and clean the EGR valve or should I buy a new one? Where is that little sucker located, above the throttle body?
THANKS

 

Eight short flashes is a distributor sensor code... TDC or CKP, I can't remember which one. Old man brain here, but I believe that the EGR code is twelve, and I don't believe you even have an EGR valve on the Del Sol 1.5L.

 

It's a TDC code... so what do I do to correct the problem? do i need a new distributor?

 

You'll likely need to replace the distributor, since the TDC sensor is one of 3 sensors inside of it.

 

there's no way to just replace the sensor? what ebay distributor do you recommend?

 

ok, for better or worse I bought this pos. I bought a cardone distributor for my 86 Trans Am long ago and it worked great so I'll give this one a go. it was reduced greatly in price so here goes.
Is there a trick to installing this ****? I know how to do it on American iron but this is totally different.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/25576149920...Bk9SR66W6JafYQ

 

I would have personally gone with a Duralast Gold one from AutoZone, because you would have at least gotten a warranty. Some folks have bad luck with the cheap eBay distributors right out of the box.

And no, I don't think anyone sells jsell the TDC sensor by itself.

 

Put engine at TDC on #1 cylinder before removing the old one. Before installing new one, line rotor up to point at #1 tower on the cap. This will ensure you don't install it 180 out and break the ears off the piece that meshes with the cam. jump the service connector and use a timing light to set the timing, then tighten the 3 bolts down.

 

the problem is that all of these distributers are made in China and then rebranded so you never really know what you're getting unless you buy a super high priced OEM from Honda. I'll let you know how it goes... OH... I quit shopping at Auto Zone because they stole my money from a rewards card that had a return on it. scum scum scum...they just decided not to honor it. can't remember how much $$$ was on it but it really made me mad.

 

I found this video on finding TDC with a balloon.

 

ok... I saw a Scotty Kilmer video on replacing the distributor on my engine. all you have to do is make sure you know which way the rotor was pointing before you remove the old distributor and install the new one in the same direction. is there anything wrong with doing it this way. short video:

 

Cardone means "Car Done"... do NOT buy that piece of ****. Find a junkyard OE Honda housing, and if you have to replace either the coil or ICM... do that. There are WAY too many people who have a distributor coil failure and junk the OE dizzy and replace it with a steaming pile of **** from a local auto parts store because they are cheap... HUGE MISTAKE !!!

DaX's suggestion might be slightly better than what you found on EBay... but not much... and a Lifetime Warranty doesn't help you when it fails at midnight on the Interstate. Buy once... Cry once. Get a quality OE dizzy.

P.S. The OE dizzy housing part number is 30105-P06-A02 and it can be purchased for less than $217.00 (many online sources are less than $160)... and you can move your coil, ICM, cap and rotor button over to it if you wish. The only really expensive part is the ICM... you could get a new housing, cap, rotor button, dust cover and coil for less than $400. THIS is what you should do.

 

bro stop watching that guy hes a hack

 

 

my OEM Honda distributor is BAD so why get another high milage one from a junk yard that could also be bad or go bad soon? for the price of these cheap distributors I can keep one in the car in case I break-down. Like I mentioned, I had an 86 TA, WS6 that I got CHEAP. I parked it in the garage for a couple years and NO SPARK. I bought a cardone distributor on ebay and it fired right up and ran great. someone bought that car and drove it home to 150 miles back to Miami. That's why I got the Cardone and yes i know what it stands for. the part that causes us to get stranded is the ICU which I've replaced with OEM. I keep a spare in the glove box... and I can't afford to pay $200+ for an OEM distributor so i'll give this a go and see. If it breaks-down, i'll post here. If it's still going strong after a few years I'll also post. but I appreciate your reply. Time will tell. THANKS ! OH, and I'm not sure how long I'm going to keep this del sol S. I've got a nice Si in the garage that I'm painting. It runs great! got it for $200, the price of a new OEM distributor. lol....

 

I like, Kilmer. His vids are mainly for mom & pops with no tools but he sometimes gets political and takes a big chance. He's got guts. He HATES EV's and encourages people NOT to buy them. This particular video on installing a new honda distributor is great. no need to find TDC just mark where the rotor is pointing and put the new distributor back the way the old one came out. that's what I did with my Trans Am but I didn't know if it would also work with my Honda. Now I know....

 

It's always a good to check your ignition timing with a timing gun after you swap your distributor, if you didn't mark a line on top of the bracket to line it back up then most likely you will need to adjust the timing.

 

This only works when you remove a distributor and then re install the SAME distributor. One cannot mark the top of the distributor tab/mounting point and then install a "New to the Engine" distributor and expect it to be in time. In fact, I can't tell you how many aftermarket junk dizzy's I have installed and even after advancing them all of the way to the end of the slot toward the firewall, you cannot get them to reach 16' advance. 13 - 14' is pretty common.

 

Yes, very true! Those aftermarket dizzys are a pain sometimes!

I was going to add it's always a good idea to check it anyway even if it's the same distributor! It's a very simple process and gives you piece of mind its set to spec!

 

agreed... I marked my distributor long ago and I'm just going to use it as a reference to get it started then check the timing with a light.

 

yes, but it's not easy to line-up those marks even with a light because there's a belt in the way and I can't get exactly over the marks. on my old American muscle cars it was easy but with these front wheel drive ****-pots everything is difficult. .

 

UPDATE: The Cardone distributor finally arrived and I slapped it in in record time. It totally cured my hard start problem. It started as fast as I can say "start". I was so relieved... this distributor was complete. I didn't even have to take any wires off of anything. Just install and plug-in to the stock wiring harness. it's only necessary to get the engine to TDC if you remove the distributor then crank the engine. I just marked the rotor position which was easy because you have to get it to where you can see the attaching screw pointing up. It was a breeze. for $45.00 I might buy another as a B/U. and YES, i'm going to check the timing with a light as soon as I get another timing light. my cool vintage light broke after 45 years. but the timing is very close as is. amazing....

 

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