92 civic vx sputtering/slight missfire at idle normal?
 

hello i recently rebuilt my 92 civic vx with the 5 wire o2 sensor. the car had a full rebuild with new valves and seals. new head gasket, piston rings bearings ect. only thing not new is the distributor. i replaced the cap and rotor and wires. and new plugs (ngk zfr5f-11) due to me being in central california a warmer climate and i will be commuting about 80miles for work a day. new cat, new ngk o2 sensor. timing is set to 16 degrees btdc. there is no check engine lights, and i have checked the egr system, which functions properly. fuel system and map sensor. all check out good. i have not checked the vtec solenoid. or the iacv but i dont think that would cause the issue. this is my first vx and i know they are temperamental. im wondering if this is just normal behavior like i have heard, or if i am missing something.

i also tried a spare 94 p07 ecu (4 wire) which threw the o2 sensor code. but it still ran the same.

im out of ideas. wondering if anyone has any ideas...

Sorry, I wish I could help. I have had an HX for a couple of years, but I do not know what to tell you. Good luck!

does the hx sputter a little at idle?

No, it should idle butter smooth. I suspect you are getting a misfire at higher RPM's, it a just not noticeable. As for diagnosing the problem, I really don't know. It could be running way rich for some reason, or very very lean. Could be bad grounds, interference in the plug wire signals, who knows.

Is the base timing supposed to be that high?

Make sure your spark plugs are right and use premium gas, ethanol will make it sputter, so will a bad distributor cap.

my VX has the smoothest idle of any car i've ever owned. i see no change with e-10 or e-15 or whatever crap comes out of the boat and mower at the end of the summer,
my guess is timing, if the timing belt was off a tooth after that rebuild. that would certainly cause a bad idle. or a bad o2 sensor, find someone local and trade o2 sensors for a day or two,

After 32 years working on cars when I was faced with the choice using the cheapest aftermarket parts versus the OE Nissan parts I insisited on using, I chose to leave the business altogether.

I did not see any future in trying to FIX peoples cars efficiently and to a life expectancy that they expected to match the original parts that had lasted 150k + miles, while still being able to make a decent living and not waste my time and my customers money chasing down the defective part I just replaced, versus KNOWING the part I had just replaced was now a finished step in a process of a complete repair.

Compounded by the exponential increase in complexity of the various systems, I could only see increasing levels of frustration, wasted efforts, and failures in process compounded by the unknown of defective replacement parts, I changed careers and sold my business.

The problem you have in properly repairing your car to run they way it did when new, without knowing every single part that was replaced and the infinite combination of
potential reminds me of why I quit the auto repair business.

I hope you have great success but fear it may be a very frustrating journey.

regards
mech

Is the base timing supposed to be that high?[/QUOTE]

yes according to the fsm.

is "best" a brand?

well the o2 is the brand new ngk o2 that the car calls for. after tons of research i found that this one is the one to use. so i wouldnt think its that...

the timing is dead on 16 so if i was off a tooth my timing would be off significantly as when that has happened in the past with previous hondas, it was impossible for me to time it correctly...