alright. my car has had abrupt/rougher starts (cold and hot), it seems to idle fine/normal though. it seems to be misfiring. my exhaust sounds like its putting... it feels very weak in performance as well. it seems to stumble on acceleration in the beginning of every gear. it also seems to progressively be getting worse.

i have done some research...
i have replaced:
the rotor
the ignition control module
spark plugs

my car is a imported jdm bb4 prelude. the distributer on the JDM h22 has a internal coil and the USDM dizzy has an external coil. i cant even find a distributer cap through honda that has a internal coil. what can i do? i have been told that the civic si cap will work... is this true?
any help is appreciated

_zac

 

Sounds more like your timing belt jumped a tooth. That would explain the bad idle and bottom end hesitation

 

if the timing belt did jump a tooth... how do i fix it.... do i need to replace the timing belt now? how/why would it do that?
i was hoping it wouldnt come to that...
what will happen if the car is driven with the timing off?
_zac

 

haha timing belts dont just randomly jump teeth lol

honestly i think your problem is electrical, check the vacuum line to your fpr, check the fuel filter, and if you need a new dizzy cap, you can use a civic one, they will work

 

SlimBB4----------------- I'm having a very similar problem with my jdm h22 except i dont notice any rough starts. I definitely have the stumbling/hesitation in the beginning of each gear with some exhaust putting and the idle could probably be smoother. I want to replace my cap and rotor as well but after reading this post I guess I need to use the cap off a civic si. Let me know if you find a fix and I'll do the same. So far, some people have said it's probably an O2 sensor issue. PS- my timing was just checked when I had my 90,000 mile service so I know its okay. I really think its an electrical issue.

 

thanks everyone for all your help. i have now changed the dizzy cap with a new civic si cap. the problem persists. i will check the vacuum lines tomorrow since i have a day off.
i didnt even think about the o2 sensor... i may replace that tomorrow too since it is easy and inexpensive. thanks
any more input is appreciated.
_zac

 

try swapping the whole dizzy out with a friend or something, just so you know whether thats the problem or not, also, how do your spark plug wires look

 

the spark plug wires look alright, they dont look beat up or torn up or worn down. i was planning on replacing them as well but noone seems to have h22 wires in stock. plus... can wires going bad cause the car to act this bad? i mean, it is running like ****.
_zac

 

if theyre not giving good spark then hell yes

 

alright... im going to go swap wires with my friend and see if it solves the problem. i will also check the vacuum lines to the fpr and if neither work i will go and get a o2 sensor and try that.
if all else fails i am paying $200 to replace the timing belt for parts and labor this weekend
ill let you know in a few minutes how it goes. thanks for the advice

_zac

 

alright... its not the spark plug wires

so far ive switched out:
ignition control module (from a running h22)
spark plugs (new)
spark plug wires (from a running h22)
distributer cap (new)
rotor (new)

i also looked at all the lines/tubes for the fpr and all that... everything seems to be intact and nothing seems to be lose, disconnected, or damaged.

i will hopefully be changing the o2 sensor in a moment. we will see if that helps.
_zac

 

try just swapping the whole distributor, theres more in there than the ICM

 

alright. i took my car to d2 motorsports here in sac. after they listened to it idle and saw how it was running they came to the conclusion that it couldnt be the timing. infact since it is popping and it seems to be running on 3 cylinders (i guess) they are saying that it is more then likely a burnt valve. which sucks for me because that will be a lot more money to fix then i have.

i am getting my hands on a compression tester tonight hopefully and i will see what i come up with.

_zac

 

new problems and solutions posted here, please help if possible:
https://honda-tech.com/zerothread/1747206

 

i had this problem with my old h22. bent vavle was the problem. my car was puting alot. during morning idle. i would hear the misfire. its not constant. it will just misfire randomly every 3-5 seconds. if you've done everything on the ignition side. i'd go to the timing belt and check if it jumped a tooth. if not. then its a bent vavle.

have u ever overrev'd your car or mis-shifted?





Modified by y0whuddupb at 12:44 AM 9/10/2006

 

do a leak down test....sometimes the compression test lies....it showed me good numbers too when i had bent valves....but when the leak down results came back it was all said and done......have u been over revving?

 

no i havent overrevved or miss shifted...
normal everyday honda driving and the occassional, completely neccessary jump into vtec.
it was a gradual thing... it happened over a coarse of about 3 days, progressively getting worse. i was thinking a burnt valve... but if the valve was stuck open or burnt the compression would be horrible in that cylinder.
timing belt didnt jump a tooth, had it inspected.
smog technician thinks its fuel related...
thanks for the comments... imma try some fuel related things tomorrow and see what i come up with.

_zac