Ask Me Help Desk - 1990 Honda CRX won't start, but has compression, spark, and fuel

I have a 1990 honda crx with 1.5ltr. Someone tried stealing it a couple years ago and ruined the ignition. So ia got a civic column and installed it. I also had to re connect some wires that were cut and melted during their attempt to steal it. After that I loaned the car to a friend and she used it a couple of days until the battery went dead. I towed it home and parked it for a year or so. Now I'm trying to get it running again. It started right up with a new battery and idled for half hour. Pulled out of my driveway for a test drive and when I gave it gas it sputtered and choked and blew white? Smoke. Then I tried to give it more gas to maybe clear something up then I heard something fall out from under the car? No idea what that was. The car stalled and it hasn't run since. I re soldered my main relay. I have spark fuel and 175 lbs of compression. My rotor turns during cranking so I know my timing belt is intact although I guess it could have jumped a tooth. I also replaced fuel filter, dizzy cap, and draind the fuel and put new fuel in. any thoughts would be appreciated.

White smoke often indicates coolant is being burned. Remove the spark plugs and check the compression in adjacent cylinders--it may indicate a blown head gasket. Did the engine ever overheat?

No the engine did not overheat and I have checked all four cylinders and all read 175 lbs of compression. I went through the list of checking my dizzy and I'm not gettining continuity through either of the two wires to ground that I should be getting from the ignitor. Also when I turn ignition to on my tach goes right to 1000 rpm?

I would change the igniter. The BLU wire on the igniter goes directly to the tach. Since the tach gives a bogus reading, I suspect the igniter is bad. Be sure to apply silicone heat transfer compound to the back of the new igniter.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TxGreaseMonkey

I would change the igniter. The BLU wire on the igniter goes directly to the tach. Since the tach gives a bogus reading, I suspect the igniter is bad. Be sure to apply silicone heat transfer compound to the back of the new igniter.

Thank you for the response and your time. I will replace the igniter and let you know what happens. What is really confusing me is that the car idled for half an hour fine until the road test and now it won't even attempt to start. However it did have old fuel in it at that point but I have since changed it and the fuel filter.

Quote:

Originally Posted by elk4266

thank you for the response and your time. i will replace the igniter and let you know what happens. what is really confusing me is that the car idled for half an hour fine until the road test and now it wont even attempt to start. however it did have old fuel in it at that point but i have since changed it and the fuel filter.

Just an update. I am trying to locate a used dizzy as the parts store wants 110 for an igniter and 80 for the coil. So I went home and went through the tests on the coil. I have .8 ohms between a and be on the primary which in the manual says its not within the specs? And about 11450 ohms on the seconday terminals which is within the specs. I also checked the ingniter wires and I have the appropriate batt voltage on the two wires that should have it. But I have no continuity on the other two wires to ground that I am supposed to have. I am starting to think that a whole new distributer is in order. Any thoughts would be great! I tried to follow the two wires one to the ecu and one I guess to the tach but they seem to change color after the plug from the dizzy? Confused

If you decide to replace the distributor, only buy a genuine Honda distributor housing--the others are garbage and unreliable. It's fine to install aftermarket igniters and coils, however, to save money--no problems with them.

Bench testing igniters and coils is pretty much a waste of time--it doesn't come close to simulating the conditions under load.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TxGreaseMonkey

If you decide to replace the distributor, only buy a genuine Honda distributor housing--the others are garbage and unreliable. It's fine to install aftermarket igniters and coils, however, to save money--no problems with them.

Bench testing igniters and coils is pretty much a waste of time--it doesn't come close to simulating the conditions under load.

OK rodger that. If I can't find one this weekend I will buy the igniter and coil. Thanks will keep posted

OK just an update. No local junk yards have any dizzys. So I decided to pull the valve cover and inspect the timing belt. The belt looks pretty good but it does seem to be "loose". I guess its possible it has jumped a tooth. Is this loosness a common issue due to the tensioner or is there a "quick" way to check my timing without pulling the wheel and everything else out of the way. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

The front side of the timing belt, between the camshaft and the crankshaft pulleys, needs to be "banjo" tight. It definitely sounds, to me, that you need to remove the crankshaft pulley bolt, pulley, and cover to check things out. I would install a new timing belt and tensioner, while you are at it.

Timing Belt Removal and Replacement

Replace timing belt every 90,000 miles or 6 years, whichever comes first. Honda will charge $700 to $750 to change the timing belt, alternator belt, A/C compressor belt, power steering belt, and water pump. Replacing the A/C compressor adjusting pulley and timing belt tensioner are extra.

1. Place car on jack stands. Insert a wood block between oil pan and jack, to support the engine.

2. Remove left front wheel and splash shield (10mm). Drain coolant, if replacing water pump.

3. Remove both power steering pump bolts (12mm, 17 lb.-ft.) and winged belt tension adjusting bolt.

4. Remove 4 bolts going to the exhaust manifold cover (12mm). Apply anti-seize compound to threads, prior to installation.

5. Remove 4 bolts going to the power steering bracket (14mm, 33 lb.-ft.); remove bracket.

6. Loosen alternator adjusting bolt (12mm) and pivot nut. Remove alternator belt.

7. Remove both engine support nuts (17mm, 54 lb.-ft.). Remove engine mount bolt (17mm) and lift the engine mount out.

8. Remove A/C compressor adjusting pulley (33 lb.-ft.), bracket (17 lb.-ft.), and belt. This is the ideal time to replace the pulley. Either buy a new pulley or press out the old bearing (NTN 6203 LU) and press in a new one. Better yet, use the temperature differential method for mounting the new bearing, where you place it in the freezer overnight and drop it into the pulley that has been heated with a hair dryer.

9. Remove cylinder head cover (10mm, 7 lb.-ft.).

10. Remove upper timing belt cover (10mm, 7 lb.-ft.).

11. Align timing marks by rotating crankshaft bolt counterclockwise (CCW). Set the crankshaft so that the No. 1 piston is at top dead center (TDC) on the compression stroke. Align TDC marks on camshaft pulley with cylinder head upper surface, for the D15B7 and D15B8 engines. Align the TDC mark on the camshaft pulley with pointer on the back cover, for the D16Z6 engine. Align the TDC marks on the camshaft pulley with pointers (triangle marks) on the back cover, for the D15Z1 engine. The "UP" Mark on the camshaft pulley must be at 12 o'clock. Align the groove on teeth side of the timing belt drive pulley to the pointer on the oil pump, for all of these engines.

TRICK: It's safest to place a mark (e.g. Wite-Out, white Sharpie, or white paint) on each pulley and corresponding point on the side of the old timing belt, before removing. Then, remove old belt, transfer marks exactly to new belt, and reinstall with confidence.

12. Remove right-hand pulley bolt (17mm), using a Honda Crankshaft Pulley Holding Tool (e.g. SIR-H060 or SIR-H070), 3/4-inch drive 40" breaker bar, 3/4"x1/2" adapter, 1/2-inch drive 16" extension, and jack stand, by rotating CCW. You can use a powerful 3/4-inch drive air impact wrench, if you have a first class compressor to properly drive it. Beefy 1/2-inch drive impact wrenches, with 625 lb.-ft. of torque in reverse, don't faze it. Without a quality crankshaft pulley holding tool, you will be hard pressed to remove the pulley bolt and the game will be over. Remove crankshaft pulley and key.

13. Remove lower timing belt cover (10mm) and outer belt guide.

14. Remove Crankshaft Position (CKP) Sensor, if any.

15. Remove timing belt tensioner (14mm) and spring--examine for wear. It's safest to replace it. Otherwise, just loosen the timing belt tensioner adjusting bolt 180 degrees.

16. Remove timing belt.

17. Remove and replace water pump (10mm, 9 lb.-ft.).

18. Loosely attach belt tensioner and spring. Place hole in tensioner's back plate over peg in block, reattach spring around peg on the left, and loosely tighten 14mm bolt. Tensioner must fit on peg to pivot properly.

19. Install new timing belt in this sequence: timing belt drive pulley, tensioner pulley, and water pump. Then, draw up on front side of timing belt and fit over camshaft pulley. The sequence matters.

20. Replace CKP Sensor, if any.

21. Replace outer belt guide (concave surface facing out) and lower timing belt cover (7 lb.-ft.).

22. Replace crankshaft pulley and key—apply oil to bolt threads, but not to the surface that contacts the washer. Hold pulley with the crankshaft pulley holding tool and torque pulley bolt 134 lb.-ft.

23. Properly tension the timing belt by slowly rotating the crankshaft pulley bolt CCW 3-teeth on the camshaft pulley, using a breaker bar. Engine must be cold and at TDC on the compression stroke (maximum resistance for creating tension). There's a tension side (camshaft pulley to timing belt drive pulley) and a slack side (water pump to camshaft pulley) to the timing belt. The tension side should be "banjo" tight. TRICK: Some mechanics press their left hand down on top of the camshaft, to create additional resistance and tension on the timing belt, while they slowly rotate the crankshaft pulley bolt CCW 3-teeth on the camshaft pulley. This increases the natural resistance at TDC on the compression stroke and results in a tighter timing belt.

24. Torque timing belt tensioner adjusting bolt (14mm, 33 lb.-ft.).

25. Re-torque pulley bolt (17mm, 134 lb.-ft.).

26. Replace belt tensioner rubber plug in lower cover.

27. Adjust valves.

28. Replace upper timing belt cover and cylinder head cover.

29. Button everything up.

Note: Torque specifications can vary engine-to-engine. Those given are for Civic D15B7, D15B8, D16Z6, and D15Z1 engines. It's a good idea to replace the camshaft seals on Accords, since they tend to be driven harder than Civics.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TxGreaseMonkey

The front side of the timing belt, between the camshaft and the crankshaft pulleys, needs to be "banjo" tight. It definitely sounds, to me, that you need to remove the crankshaft pulley bolt, pulley, and cover to check things out. I would install a new timing belt and tensioner, while you are at it.

OK that's what I thought. I can actually pull the belt off the cam shaft by hand if I wanted to that's how loose it is but it appears to be in good shape. With that said I will definitely replace it though. Thanks for the quick response I will keep posted

If it's that loose, there may be valve and piston damage, since it's an interference engine.