Did a search for this and none of the 418 results under the acronym "VTEC" provided me an answer. I only read the topics of the results. If you know of an existing thread that answers my question in the post body, please post--i apologize and thank you in advance.

I have a JDM b18c. An 2" HKS exhaust is the only possibly relevant modification I have on my EJ1. I read about people who have VTEC being able to "feel" it or "hear" it...I don't feel or hear a damned thing. The tach needle doesn't seem to climb any faster after 4800 than it did to that mark, but then at that point I'd rather be looking at the road.

No CELs, oil level is right (5w30), motor is warm, new spool valve gasket, no leaks.....VTEC should be working no? Not sure about the wiring, but I've been assured it's all in and correct...what do I check for that? (please be specific...I'm not that mechanically inclined).

So how do I know if it's working or not? What am I supposed to feel? or hear?

Thanks all.

 

Check the wiring, it could be loose or disconnected. Did you do the swap or have someone do it for you? Maybe they didnt put it back in.

 

had it installed...i really need to learn how to do this **** myself.

where is this wiring that you speak of? is it a specific color?

thanks for the help.

 

back to the original question though...ASSuming VTEC is working...what do you hear or feel? what are the signs it's actually working?

thanks.

 

You should hear a considerable splosh sounding click when the VTEC kicks in. Esp if you have an exhaust, it will change the sound a lot. I think it would be very hard or strange feeling to rev the car up in the 5k+ range with just the low cams.

Sometimes the wire on the VTEC solenoid just breaks. It's the little cylinder looking thing on the front bottom left of your valve cover (end of the exhaust cam), right in front of the distributor. The wire is thick and tucked at an angle so too much movement will snap it off. You can't replace it so get ready for a new solenoid if that's it.

You can also try to remove the solenoid and use some carb cleaner. There is a filter inside that can become clogged.

As for the wiring, do a search for VTEC swap wiring or something. You need to look at the blue and green wires coming off the passenger side harness.



Check your grounds too.

 

wwaaaAAAAAAbbBaaaaAAAAAA

or for the GSR:

wwwaaAAAbbbbBAAA-A-A-A-A-A(dual intake plenum)

 

you can definately hear the vtec. It sounds like your engine (after about 6000rpms) will hit super mode. It is considerably louder. vrrrroooooooooOWAAAAAAAAAAA

 

I don't know about these guys, but my room mates GSR doesn't change in tone THAT much from VTEC kicking in. The biggest change in note is the butterfly in the intake manifold opening. You can slightly hear it when VTEC engages. It's not nearly as dramatic as the butterfly opening, though.

Just my 2 cents...it's probably working. Maybe they forgot to hook up the solenoid for the secondary runners. That would kill your upper end power, VTEC or no VTEC.

 

HAHA. nice sound effects, guys. maybe I can get that dwarf portable transcriber from the dave chapelle show and see if the letters match.

OK. it seems like if VTEC's working, I should hear something. I've been really keeping my ears open though. And I'm going to try and look at the wiring (BZZZT) as suggested by Boofster.

Either way, top end is still (relatively) strong...mainly I just want VTEC to work the way it's supposed to becauses it's there, otherwise, what's the point of having it?

Thanks a lot fellas, I appreciate the input.

 

you're beating every car you see

 

yeah....the real reason why i'm asking about my VTEC is because i don't see any lightning bolts shooting out from my dome light to the front of the car like a delorean's flux capacitor....

 

i think it sounds more like vrrrrrrrrrrrvvvvvrrrrrrrwhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaablaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaavroooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooom wwwooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!! and then squeak cause of my super ssq bov...

 

right now, mine sounds like this, " "

 

find someone who knows, if you don't know what it sounds like its deff not working. check oil pressure and oil level. what ecu are you using? what year car compared to year of motor?

 

oil pressure? not sure...how do you check pressure?
oil level is correct-4qts.
ecu? whatever came with the motor (supposedly from the same clip...damn i feel stupid)
motor is 95 b18c (JDM)
car is 94 EJ1

 

You wanna know what's funny. I heard from my friend that someone got a ticket for kicking VTEC. B/C here is Hawaii, cops are jackasses and pull almost anyone with an exhaust including me (stupid resonators don't do jack **** at WOT). Anyways, there is a difference in tone when VTEC kicks in. My Si was louder than my GSR up until the butterflies open up. No VTEC sounds better than a B-series (sorry K-series, but you don't cut it with crossover at 5800 instead of 4400).

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by MDRV300 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">right now, mine sounds like this, " "</TD></TR></TABLE>


hahahaha, mine too.. man this sux, now im depressed.. i want vtec.. bump for some more help on this topic cuz i wanna learn about this

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BlueIntegraBoy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">...someone got a ticket for kicking VTEC. B/C here is Hawaii, cops are jackasses...</TD></TR></TABLE>

(high-pitched) WHAAAA????!!!! DAT'S REDIGGERUS.

 

This will method will let you know if your vtec solenoid in operating and if you have oil pressure (and no vtec oil pressure sensor code-22?) vtec will be working. Get a test light (or use a multimeter set on DC voltage) and hook up (splice) the positive lead to your vtec solenoid lead. Ground the other end. As you drive and your rpms approach the vtec point you should see your test light go off or multimeter show 12V. Make sure you have a good ground. Also, I'm not trying to be hard on you, but a search would have answered you question as I've seen this question more times than I can remember and have answered it quite a few times as well. I hope you vtec is working.

 

Thanks for the info. I'll try to get my hands on a voltage meter or test light and try....

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bruthaboost &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">As you drive and your rpms approach the vtec point you should see your test light go off....</TD></TR></TABLE>

Does the car need to be actually moving? Can't I just rev up to the cross over point to engage VTEC? I'm only asking to be sure....

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bruthaboost &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Also, I'm not trying to be hard on you, but a search would have answered you question.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I hear ya, and I did search, but I wasn't about to read the entirety of 418 threads regarding "VTEC". If the result's topic wasn't even remotely a prospect in answering my question of "How do you know if VTEC is working?", I didn't bother to crack it open.

Thanks for your help.

 

I have a short ram, and you can sure as hell tell when VTEC gets all giddy up at 5800.

It's been nicknamed "The Loudener"

 

do you think that maybe I can't "hear" the VTEC because i'm running a Civic air box?
the would make some sense because more air is drawn in when VTEC is engaged....is this right?

Thanks.

 

Not sure, When I bought my car it had a short ram on it, so that's all I really know.

With the SRI it is blatantly obvious, so i'm assuming it's atleast noticeable no matter what intake is applied.

 

If you have a digital camera that has video recording, and sound, try leaving that in your car or have a friend hold it while you drive. Punch it in first, second, and third then put that up here. I'm sure from the sounds that the people on H-T hear they can tell you if it's working or not, it's a really distinctive sound.

 

with a a stock intake, you won't hear much. the VTEC / secondary butterfly system is made to give a more smooth transition, which is why you usually can't tell very much.

There is a CEL if the VTEC doesn't work, it's code 22.