D16A6 into 1990 STD Civic engine problems

[drnenappes]

Well, this car has been sitting for about 2 weeks cause I havnt had time to work on it, I did the DPFI to MPFI wiring, and had some dizzy trouble that I got figured out, my problem is the car lags alot at low RPM, it starts up fine, Idles perfect, but when you try to drive it below 3000 rpm it has no power at all, there is no misfire it just has no power, and above 3000 its not as laggy, but it still doesnt have the power it should. The car has a brand new Dizzy, spark plugs, and wires, and it isnt throwing any ECU codes, I checked the compression and it came out to 90 PSI in cylinders 1 and 2, I didnt check the other 2 because I didnt think 90 could be a correct number, first of all Im wondering if 90 could be correct or if I should find another tester, also Im wondering if this could be a wiring problem. Any help would be greatly appreciated, sorry for the long post, Im stumped

thanks
Ian

 

[bitchasscracker]

90=bad

 

[drnenappes]

I ran the engine up to norm operating temp (fan came on), I shut it off, I pulled no 1 spark plug, I screwed in the tester and I cranked the engine, it came up with 90 PSI, and it should be 150 ish, anything below 120 should be a dead cylinder, it idles too well to have 90PSI comp, or so I think.

 

[drnenappes]

you shouldnt have to, I checked the compression with my tester from work and it came out to 145 150 150 145 so its good, but I decided to check electrical timing again and its about ten degrees retarded, and the dizzy is maxed out, but im not sure this is a good reading, I know on a normal DX or SI there is a plug you have to put a jumper wire into to check timing, but the STD does not have the plug, Im wondering now if I need to find the plug for the STD, I know that on my SR20DET I have to unplug the TPS to time it correctly, Im wondering if this would also work on the civic. On a second note I checked the timing belt again and it is timed correctly. Is there any possibility that my brand new dizzy was assembled incorrectly, sorry for the long post im just confused

 

[phunky.buddha]

It's very possible to have a bad distributor. Quite a few of the "new" distributors from auto parts shops aren't rebuilt that well. I'm having problems with the one I got from AutoZone even though it's a new "rebuilt" distributor. Lifetime warranties are good.

 

[drnenappes]

According to the Factory Service Manual, you perform the compression test at full operating temp and WOT. Having the throttle closed will give you a low reading.

And to what Cal said. Something sounds off if you're 10 degrees retarded with the distributor at full advance, though..

interesting, well I now know my old compression tester is bad, I tested my SR and came up with 100, and then I checked it with my new one and its 155, now that thats settled, do you guys have any idea about this plug, or do I even need to jump the system, im leaning more twards bad Dizzy now, good thing I kept the reciept.
thanks for all your help

Ian

 

[drnenappes]

ahh, now I get it, they are differant between 87-88 and 89-91, come to think of it, ive never timed anything but 87s and 88s,

does anyone know if there is a way to check the dizzy to see if the internals are clocked right, I had to order this one and it took a week to come so I would like to be sure that this is the prob befor I go returning it.

 

[drnenappes]

well I found the plug, AllData was wrong, I called Honda and asked them, I jumped it and checked the timing again, its still off at full advance, Im bringing the dizzy back tomorow, and getting a new one, hopefully the last one.

 

[drnenappes]

The distributor is controlled by where the cam is. If you're still off a full advance it's most likely not the distributor.

yes but if the internals of the distributor are clocked incorrectly then the rotor may be off from where the cam pickup is then it would be firing at the wrong time.

 

[klyph]

 

[drnenappes]

well Distributor # 6 has the same problem, when the car is cold timing is perfect, but when it warms up it slowly moves off where it should be, so it is the timing belt, the only problem is, Ive checked the timing belt about 8 times now, the timing marks all line up, its not my first D series timing belt and Ive never seen or heard of this happening befor.

 

[klyph]

Yeah something is wrong with your electronically advanced ignition. I believe the ECU uses the signal from the CPS to advance the timing so I would check that (someone correct me if I'm wrong)

 

[drnenappes]

Here's a question. Did you pull the jumper wire out of the timing connector?

hahaha, yes, well I got the new dizzy, installed it, and timed it, it timed out perfect, I pulled the jumper wire and took it for a spin, she is running good, everything feels better, no more lag, thank you guys for all your help.