Father's 97 Civic starting problems

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aaronwarce4

New Member
So I just got out of the military and my dad said that i could use his civic but its having starting problems so i start looking and notice the firing order is F'd up and they drove it from NY to VA that way so i fix the firing order no joy. So i take a spark plug put it in the wire hold it to the chassis and nothing so i figure the distributor is bad buy that get spark still no joy and sounded like a squealing from the timing belt area. My mom takes it to her mechanic friend he says the main crank bearing is shot, and we need a new engine.

So i do all the work for the engine change non-vtec engine so same engine. go to crank it and hear a ticking coming from the glove box check on here and find out it my be a ground loose i tighten the ground that were loose and no ticking sound but engine still wont start. can someone please help me.
 
Ticking from glove box....right side of glove box? May be a Main Relay. With passenger door open, You can take that piece of plastic off the dash (between dash and passenger door). Once the plastic is removed.....youll see the main relay. It's attached with a 10mm nut and the electrical connection. Mine went out and the clicking sound went away...car wouldn't start.

92-00 Civics all use the same Main Relay. Maybe you got a friend who will let you try theirs.
 
CEL on?

Have you checked for fuel and spark on this new engine?

Was it the same exact engine? In terms of OBD
 
frog nah i didnt even pay attention to the CEL light. where is the port for the 1997 LX sedan. should have spark but have not checked for sure if it is firing fuel is there i can smell the fuel. distributor is band new. but well check it tomorrow.
 
Yes....but 00/01 is OBD2B.....1999 might be too. It's got an immobilizer.

Scanner port....isn't it under the dash on the driver's side?

If you're using the same ECU and got another OBD2 motor......that's stuff should be good to go.
 
I think they are maybe i year difference i think he said 97 but i know for sure the tranny is 98. but should make a difference. i will look up the scanner port.
 
Is it turning over?

Check your grounds. You should have 2-3 grounds off motor/trans to chassis and the engine harness has a ground to the block.

Year of trans dont really matter. As long as its a D-Series and is hydraulic. It's more about the motor/senors/ECU but you're seems good to go.
 
Frog i got it to turn over but now its throwing codes. P0135, P0141, P0301, P1399 The last 2 are misfiring code and last one says cylinder number 1. that was the problem from the beginning. before they drove the car from car from NY to VA. do you know the correct firing order?
 
Let's see if this old pic of mine can shed some light.

DSC00261.jpg
 
Looks like this......On the distributor

3 4

1. 2

Number one cylinder is closest to the timing belt. Then it goes 2-3-4 towards the distributor
 
Frog thanks mine is non-vtec but firing order is the same tho. Frog for real thanks for your help your the only one answering my post So Mahalos for real.
 
idle is going from 800-1500 dropping to 800 and rising to 1500. this is after i put some Lucus fuel injector cleaner and charged the A/C system. i googled it seems to be a common problem some ppl say the EGR valve cleaning helped, Idle cont valve, fuel injectors, the mis firing one cylinder one is what gets me today i am going to check timing. my dad his limited tools so i have to borrow from his mechanic neighbor who is retired and 77yo but has a garage full of tools.

i might change the fuel rail off the one engine but i think he was missing on cylinder one when he drove it down here i have to check wiring too. i hate electrical sh@t
 
So it runs now?? Was it the firing order? That pic is my last swap. My new swap don't even have a distributor. I'm the nOOb with K-Series. Check my sig if you want to see the K-Swap thread I made.

Take the IACV off the intake manifold (IACV is near firewall) and see how dirty it looks inside. If it is dirty....soak it in carb cleaner for a few hours.

EGR could be clogged too. Simple unclogging though. Just get it out of the car.

And no worries. I enjoy helping others....especially when they're not trying to ask stupid question on how $350 can make their civic beat a Vette :D I hate young enthusiasts that got delusions of grandeur and think knowledge can be past on with a few Internet posts.

Edit: is it hunting (800-1500rpm fluctuation) right when it starts (aka cold cold Motor) or once it hits operating temps? (aka rad fan come on)
 
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And FYI....I never put additives in my Civics (except Sea Foam once to pass California Smog)

Not to say you can't....but I had several Honda Techs tell me they are not good for Hondas. Although that was the 1990's lol
 
Firs two codes you posted.....those are O2 sensor codes. Your car has two O2 sensors. One before the catalytic converter and one after it.

P0301 could be a few things. I copy/stole and pasted. Could go away when it fix the O2 sensor codes :shrug2:


Faulty spark plug or wire
Faulty coil (pack)
Faulty oxygen sensor(s)
Faulty fuel injector
Burned exhaust valve
Faulty catalytic converter(s)
Running out of fuel
Poor compression
Defective computer
 
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