Running on 3 cylinders

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Justin66

The Hondaswap Canadian
Ok so had a rough night last night. I went for a drive cause i has bored and ended up farther from home than i thought, when i started to hear the car struggle and then i started to remember what that sound was. Pull over and pop the hood and just my luck the number 1 and 2 spark plug wires are loose (going into plug not cap).

On further inspection i noticed that the metal piece inside the rubber jacket was still connected to the top of the spark plug, but the rubber part was no longer attached to the metal piece. I managed to get the #2 back on but the #1 was a lost cause. This being 8:30 pm on a dark country road, with nothing open. Phoned my mechanic buddy and asked if it was ok to drive on 3 cylinders for a bit, he said it was fine as long as i go easy on it and avoid engine breaking.

So i hobbled my way back home which luckily was only 50km away, going well under the speed limit and parked it for the night until i go fix it today.

My question (yes its a long story) is that could any damage have occurred? Would anything be weakened by the extra load and vibration? Is my cat screwed now lol? (e-test due this month)
 
^agreed...cat might be fucked though..i know when my plug wire died and it was on 3 cyl. all the unburnt gas went through the exhaust and was on fire all the way until the cat.
 
Change your oil now.. Just a precaution. Alot of the fuel sent to that cylinder probably seeped past the rings and into your oil, thinning it a bunch. And the rest of it got burned up in your cat.. 30ish miles of driving like that shouldn't have just totally fried your cat, you are more than likely fine. The oil thing is just a precaution.

Go now and buy a set of NGK plug wires and kiss your worries goodbye. They don't fall apart like that. They just dont. Very high quality plug wires. Available all over the intardnet, just got a new set off of ebay for $47 shipped. Worth every penny.
 
I just had an oil change like 2 weeks ago lol, ill check it out. But yes NGK wires from now on. Ive had nothing but bad luck with spark plug wires. The set that came with the car was great, actually fit ove the lips on the valve cover, but they kept blowing off the cap for some reason, the second set started to go to crap after a few months and this third set that i got used from a friend didnt fit so well and came apart (as we all found out).

Anyway to tell if the oil is ok? Smell? Look?
 
They're dead on, mang. I wouldn't beat around the bush if I were you, just get some new plug wires and change your oil. Way better safe than sorry and you're always extremely fortunate to have precautions laid out in front of you. If only it was always this easy.
 
yea just pull the dipstick and instead of wiping it on a rag or whatever use your fingers..smell it..and also see how lubricating it is between your fingers(im being dead serious)
 
The oil seems ok, smells normal and feels like oil lol. Well we switched the plug wires on the first day and it still was doing it on only 3 cylinders?????? So we left it for the night, and in the morning it all of a sudden works fine. I have no doubt that the wires were messed but it was strange that it didnt work right away. Im thinking the ECU is messed too, so i switched for the stock one and it works just fine.

Sadly thought i think im about done with this car. The not so good compression im getting suggests valve work and the head gasket is getting there too. I love the car to death but its age is starting to show, also it not being a winter driven car is now really starting to make it hard on me. Not to mention im sick of dealing with someone elses bad swap job that they did (bad wiring mostly).

Im trying to get a loan and looking for a newer GSR or a prelude. I will not buy another swapped car lol, ill do it myself if i really want one, but thats why im going for a GSR or Prelude, i needs my VTEC!

I go for an e-test tomorrow, lets hope it passes. I only need it to pass to renew my plate stickers lol. Wish me luck.
 
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Put in new NGK G power plugs and she runs better now too, hopefully it will pass even more now.

Its been a hell of a car, my first Honda (now addicted), ive had it for 3 summers and ive beaten the crap out of that B16a, if it were anything less it would have blown up by now. She still runs really strong and aside from some seals it should last for a lot longer. I dont wanna let go of this car, but we will see how things go.
 
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