Black Mamba modding and repair thread (1997 Civic HX 5-speed)

[Baltothewolf]

Cleared the code and it came back within a minute. Anyway I got my best tank going to work today, 55.6. Lean burn is getting harder and harder to get to engage. I'll pull apart and clean the entire EGR system this weekend. Still no CEL.

[Insight for life]

are you sure the light works? 2nd if it does, that means its a pending code or "soft" code, it still means there is a problem, but just not constant enough to set off the light/ become a "hard" code.

[Baltothewolf]

Yea, it comes on when you turn the key into the 'on' position like it's supposed to.

P.S: On UG it's coming up as a trouble code, not a check engine code.

[Baltothewolf]

Well on my way home tonight... It happened. CEL. I thought you couldn't go into Lean Burn when the CEL light was on? Because I went into L/B twice after it turned on. 0.000 voltage on o2 sensor and I felt the power loss and everything that goes with L/B.

[Xist]

Hey, it is strange how I periodically miss threads, this one is ten days old and seven pages already!

I have needed to make a disproportional amount of repairs to Chorizo for how much I drive it, but I plan on driving it for as long as I could. Mom called it "a money pit" and I mentioned that I could purchase my dad's Focus SFE, which has the same EPA rating, but seems to get better mileage in practice.

I will stick with the Honda.

The largest modification that I have done so far is the power steering delete, which I did not finish, because my life fell apart. I have hardly driven my car for six weeks, nor have I been in-town much to drive it. I decided to remove my power steering because I needed to replace my alternator, and my instructions said to remove the power steering pump. It certainly made it easier and it was still a difficult job!

I took pictures, planning on doing a write-up, and if you say please, I will finally take the time. The difficulty that I had was finding the proper fittings.

These are my [usually] relevant threads to date:
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...ual-29038.html
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post428591
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...nes-29111.html

For that second thread, it was already linked; I linked the last message, where I linked the parts to loop the hose. From what I have read, breathers are only necessary for certain types of racing, and NoD and others say the power steering fluid is not necessary for lubrication. The most important thing that I remember is to find a turkey baster narrow enough to fit inside the reservoir. I bought one for a dollar or two, but it was too wide, so I used a short hose to siphon it into a bottle. I would not disconnect the hoses from the pump or reservoir, that way you do not have fluid ruining your entire engine bay, just the rack and pinion, which will get it anyway.

I did an air dam, just half a roll of Home Depot lawn edging, with black self-tapping screws. It definitely works best to warm it up first, lay it in the sun, or boil it in a huge pot. There are flaps on each side and the one on the inside got in the way of the bumper, so when I redo mine, I will slit that every inch. I tried to shape it with a heat gun, but while some parts started tightening, others began sagging.

Then I made something like an air dam. I just cut a section of coroplast, I believe that it is 36" wide and 18" tall, with two holes for the license plate holder screws. It is terribly ugly, but should be effective.

I will try to put together the power steering deletion thread.

[Baltothewolf]

Originally Posted by Xist

Hey, it is strange how I periodically miss threads, this one is ten days old and seven pages already!

I have needed to make a disproportional amount of repairs to Chorizo for how much I drive it, but I plan on driving it for as long as I could. Mom called it "a money pit" and I mentioned that I could purchase my dad's Focus SFE, which has the same EPA rating, but seems to get better mileage in practice.

I will stick with the Honda.

The largest modification that I have done so far is the power steering delete, which I did not finish, because my life fell apart. I have hardly driven my car for six weeks, nor have I been in-town much to drive it. I decided to remove my power steering because I needed to replace my alternator, and my instructions said to remove the power steering pump. It certainly made it easier and it was still a difficult job!

I took pictures, planning on doing a write-up, and if you say please, I will finally take the time. The difficulty that I had was finding the proper fittings.

These are my [usually] relevant threads to date:
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...ual-29038.html
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post428591
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...nes-29111.html

For that second thread, it was already linked; I linked the last message, where I linked the parts to loop the hose. From what I have read, breathers are only necessary for certain types of racing, and NoD and others say the power steering fluid is not necessary for lubrication. The most important thing that I remember is to find a turkey baster narrow enough to fit inside the reservoir. I bought one for a dollar or two, but it was too wide, so I used a short hose to siphon it into a bottle. I would not disconnect the hoses from the pump or reservoir, that way you do not have fluid ruining your entire engine bay, just the rack and pinion, which will get it anyway.

I did an air dam, just half a roll of Home Depot lawn edging, with black self-tapping screws. It definitely works best to warm it up first, lay it in the sun, or boil it in a huge pot. There are flaps on each side and the one on the inside got in the way of the bumper, so when I redo mine, I will slit that every inch. I tried to shape it with a heat gun, but while some parts started tightening, others began sagging.

Then I made something like an air dam. I just cut a section of coroplast, I believe that it is 36" wide and 18" tall, with two holes for the license plate holder screws. It is terribly ugly, but should be effective.

I will try to put together the power steering deletion thread.

Thanks! I really appreciate the long response, I was wondering why you hadn't commented on it yet lol. I plan on cleaning the EGR system this weekend so I'll probably try deleting the P/S completely and looping the lines since I will be outside anyway, along with replacing the axle on the passengers side, due to the boot being ripped. Not sure about the air dam, I might do that this at the same time, but I'm not sure.

[vskid3]

My Insight still did lean burn with the CEL on. It had what's known as the herky-jerkies, generally caused by the EGR valve going bad or the EGR being clogged. I unplugged the EGR valve and the herky-jerkies disappeared and the resulting CEL didn't cause any issues.

If you're noticing any symptoms besides just the CEL, I would unplug the EGR valve and see what happens.

[Baltothewolf]

Originally Posted by vskid3

My Insight still did lean burn with the CEL on. It had what's known as the herky-jerkies, generally caused by the EGR valve going bad or the EGR being clogged. I unplugged the EGR valve and the herky-jerkies disappeared and the resulting CEL didn't cause any issues.

If you're noticing any symptoms besides just the CEL, I would unplug the EGR valve and see what happens.

Oh I'm suffering from major power loss and the 'herky jerky' as you would put it lol. I'm like 99% sure the EGR chamber is just blocked, I already got all the parts to fix it for 65$. Gonna do it Sunday or Monday.

[vskid3]

I would unplug the EGR valve just to double check that its really the problem (sounds like it is, though), and to improve the performance in the meantime. Only takes a few seconds to do.

[Baltothewolf]

Originally Posted by vskid3

I would unplug the EGR valve just to double check that its really the problem (sounds like it is, though), and to improve the performance in the meantime. Only takes a few seconds to do.

Where is the plug? Is it something electrical? I know where the EGR valve is, just don't know how to unplug it.