Honda Civic 1991 Auto Engine Trouble. Need advice. [Archive]

honhonda

26-08-2010, 09:39 PM

Im looking for advice about

bought it 2 years ago ran well. Use to do 450km on a full tank. Loved the car and still do.

Then i was told it was running on 2 cyl and the head gasket was gone. So they convinced me to replace the engine. I got a second hand one and the mechanic put it in ready for my trip to Mel for Christmas. Near Golburn, the engine made a terrible noise and broke down. Least to say, we had to tow the car back to the mechanic and didnt make to Melb for Christmas!

The mechanics put a another second hand engine in. This time from a 1993 honda civic. It went ok for a few weeks, but black smoke came out in buckets when starting. The fuel consumption is terrible only doing 200km on a full tank.

After many breakdowns, an NRMA mechanic gave me a name of a garage who had a good rep.

He said the CV joints need replacing.
There is a terrible oil leak.
The other guys didnt replace the carbs so its running on the old ones
There are leads around the engine which he has no idea where they are to go.

He basically said to get rid of it and get a 1995 or younger car because he had no idea how much money and work it would take to get it fixed.

Here is my dillema. I absolutely love this car. Give me a Rolls Royce and I still will want to drive my lovely Honda Civic. But I really dont know what to do. Should I get the old engine reconditioned. Is so how much is that gonna cost? ( I keep the old engine in a friends garage)
Also if I did get all of it repairs done will i expect it to run as efficiently as before?

I really need advice from fellow Honda Civic fans.

Thanks heaps,
Yasmin

jdm_b16a

27-08-2010, 08:30 AM

I'm looking for advice. Bought it 2 years ago. Ran well. Used to do 450km on a full tank. Loved the car and still do.

So its either a Series 2 ED6 or an early EG. I assume it's a hatch. It uses a D15B4 twin carby engine. In my experience even 450kms per tank is quite low suggesting your engine had a problem to start with that was probably related to the head/carby setup. The ED6 hatch should return well into the 600kms per tank if driven appropriately, and given you say it's an auto, even more so. And you are right, they are a nifty little car, economical to run and parts are plentiful.

Then I was told it was running on 2 cyl and the head gasket was gone. So they convinced me to replace the engine. I got a second hand one

What did you actually buy? A complete engine or just the bottom end? Was it a straight 2nd hand engine or a reconditioned one?

I'll take a guess here and say that the people who put your 'new' engine in probably bought a complete 2nd hand (used) engine, and then only replaced your bottom end (or block). I wonder if they even used a new head gasket. Minimum should have been a compression test on the 'new' engine.

I don't know how much you paid but you can get complete D15B4 engines for under $100 on forums like this one. I know I rang a wreckers once and they quoted me $750 for the same engine, 2nd hand not reconditioned. A reconditioned engine would be double that but at least you get a rebuilt engine that has a guarantee.

Most of your cost would have been labour, and given you say you had more trouble, they probably cut corners to maximise their profit even more. I'm only guessing of course and that's only my opinion.

and the mechanic put it in ready for my trip to Melbourne for Christmas. Near Goulburn, the engine made a terrible noise and broke down. Least to say, we had to tow the car back to the mechanic and didn't make to Melbourne for Christmas!

Did you use a known mechanic? Someone you knew I mean. I have a fairly strong opinion on most mechanics but suffice it to say you should always use the workshop you have dealt with before, people you can trust and can vouch for their work.

What you probably got was an engine that had been sitting for some time, and the mechanics didn't even change the rings. So it's now travelling at 100kph on the freeway, and it's seized. Did you get an itemised account from the mechanics?

The mechanics put another second hand engine in. This time from a 1993 Honda Civic.

So I assume you trust this workshop as you went back the second time. Did they put the 'new' engine in under warranty? So they decided to use the same engine but from a later model car (EG instead of an ED). I'd still be asking the same questions about it as above.

It went ok for a few weeks, but black smoke came out in buckets when starting. The fuel consumption is terrible only doing 200km on a full tank.

Sounds like it wasn't installed properly or worse, they used it's bottom end but continued to use your original head and intake system (carbies). This is probably where your problems are.

After many breakdowns, an NRMA mechanic gave me a name of a garage who had a good rep.

Now you are learning! Sorry to sound harsh and I know the reputation of many mechanics is if they see a female (I assume you are female by your name) they will take advantage of your inexperience.

He said the CV joints need replacing. There is a terrible oil leak.

CV joints can be replaced or rebuilt. Go to a reputable Brake & Steering shop to get this done not at a mechanics workshop. They still send your job out to the B & S shop then charge you to do that. I can recommend a very reputable shop in Western Sydney if you like but the choice is yours.

The oil leak is in the CV joints or somewhere on the engine? I assume the engine. Whereabouts is the leak? From the sump (the pan at the bottom)? Probably a stripped thread on the plug. Or from an oil line? Front or back of the engine? If it's near the top you could have a twisted or badly seated gasket around the cover.

The other guys didn't replace the carbs so its running on the old ones

Well, there you go. Sorry I didn't read down this far but it was obvious to me that's what had been done. So they probably charged you a small fortune for a complete engine then kept most of the parts and only used the bottom end, which you could buy for next to nothing.

There are leads around the engine which he has no idea where they are to go.

Which would explain the poor economy on the fuel plus probably half the sensors aren't even connected so the engine ECU (computer) doesn't know what's going on.

He basically said to get rid of it and get a 1995 or younger car because he had no idea how much money and work it would take to get it fixed.

Good advice at this stage. Workshop labour will kill you. You have to look at how much $$$ it's going to cost to fix all the problems compared to what the car is worth. In it's current condition you probably would have great difficulty selling it - it would only be good for someone as a project.

Here is my dilemma. I absolutely love this car. Give me a Rolls Royce and I still will want to drive my lovely Honda Civic.

So you want to keep it. OK.

But I really don't know what to do. Should I get the old engine reconditioned. Is so how much is that gonna cost? ( I keep the old engine in a friends garage). Also if I did get all of it repairs done will i expect it to run as efficiently as before?

Have a reputable workshop install a reconditioned engine as I said above. There are a few of these places around Sydney. I won't mention any here but check GOOGLE and go with someone who is well-established. My father-in-law had a reconditioned engine installed in his old Corolla and it's still going strong! Get a few quotes and you can see how much you're up for. Don't necessarily go with the cheapest quote. Check out their workshop and decide. Is it clean? Are the engines visible so you can inspect? Get a full list of the work that WILL BE DONE! Ask about the warranty. Are there any special conditions?

I really need advice from fellow Honda Civic fans.

That's what we're here for. Always glad to help a fellow Honda person. I see this is your first post so you have already learnt a valuable lesson by joining OzHonda.

Peter