TheBigGuy

**PROBLEM SOLVED, CHECK PG. 2**


well, i took my car into an independent shop to get the timing belt & water pump changed.. after it was done, i picked it up with no issues at all.. drove it 5 miles to my house and it ran perfectly fine, so, i turned it off, went inside to grab something (5 minutes), came back out to start up the car and the CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON!!!! (this was all yesterday)

it did run fine yesterday but it wasnt until this morning that i started getting worried.. went to start up the car and it was misfiring/bogging/stuttering like crazy!! The engine was cold when all this happened and the misfiring/bogging/stuttering gradually went away as the engine warmed up to normal operating temperature

so i took it back to the shop today and explained everything to him.. He ran his scanner and got a P0342 code (Camshaft Position Sensor).. he checked both cam sensors and both checked out good but the check engine light was still on and still giving out that P0342 code, nothing else..

After 2 hrs of diagnostics (sp??) we could not find the problem.. engine was running smooth with a bit of bogging/shaking but nothing serious.. it drives perfectly fine as long as i dont floor it or go pass 3000rpms (bogs hard after 3000rpms) which i hardly drive that hard anyway..

He's willing to take it apart again (this weekend) to check the timing belt and such to make sure he put it in right...

Do any of you guys know what could be wrong here? Im assuming that the timing is off but wouldnt the engine be running really rough? No clue whats wrong with the car now.. the engine was running PERFECT before the timing belt change.. again, both cam position sensors are working properly but the CEL is still throwing the P0342 code

shed some light on this please.. im tired of driving the wife's CRV, i want my lexus!!!

L_Sport

Hmmm... just a hunch but have you looked into the fan barring? I have had some 1st gens come through with the same symptoms that you described and it was the barring, we had that replaced as well as some belts and what not. It was intermittent because the barring wasn't all the way bad but was beginning to go out. It also got louder as we reved it up (fluttering, knocking sound) also the fan did not look like it was spinning true. The repair cost about 600 bucks. They had first thought it was the water pump and belts. Just an idea, run it by your mechanic.

Hope she gets better soon!

mista808

My car throws a code 13 (pulled it using a jumper wire in the obd1 connector) rpm signal/ cam position sensor... my car runs fine, just seeing that stupid light hurts, but it runs fine. The tech at my work said that these motors are very strong. If the timing was off a tooth, u wouldn't be able to feel it, so he says... maybe your sensor if in fine working order but is too far away from the teeth to pick up any signal.. Coil pack would cause no power or bogging, pull a plug on each side and see if there is any spark, then swap the coils.. I would hate to see your car out of commission man... hope everything turns out well...

dragonhvu

sounds like maybe you might be of a tooth or 1/2 a tooth on one or both cams. if you dont pay attention when releasing the auto tensioner, it will pull both cams off a tooth, while the crank at TDC.

to check you're timing... you can see the cam gear markings if you take off the plug covers on both sides, and you should be able to see the crank markings through the radiator fan.

hope this helps.

SH212

MY geuss is timing is off... let us know what happens

TheBigGuy

thanks for all your concerns and helpful comments.. i did tell my mechanic about the possibilities of the timing being off (after reading a lot on this site ). that is why he will take it all apart this weekend to check the timing belt markings and such..

i will let you guys all know the outcomes once i get my car back sunday evening hopefully..

for now, i'll be driving this

SH212

GOOD LUCK!!!

haha nice honda

throw some 18's on there and your ride is PHAT!!!

heyhowyado

this is one reason to find a GOOD independent shop to do your work (if you're not going to the dealer) not necessarily the cheapest.(not saying your guy wasn't good)

sometimes when i hear stories like this, it makes me think twice before NOT going to the dealer for something major.....

hope you get the problem fixed, bro.....nice honda too!

19psi

the cam sensor wire can get pinched or even cut during the t belt replacement becuase of it's location. make sure he checks that.

TheBigGuy

hmmm., i'll check that myself before i take it in tomorrow.. but we ran the ampmeter (sp??) to check the ohms running through the sensor/wires etc and all readings were in factory specs

and i agree about finding a good reputable shop to do these major maintenance jobs.. i went with this guy since his uncle used to work with me at a Mazda Dealership and he seemed like a good type of guy.. and he also said he has done "a handful" in the past without a problem even they are a pain in the ***..

sucks.... i even told him to take his time and do it right..

omarg

i had an almost identical problem. somehow after the timing belt and water pump were changed, the car ran TERRIBLE!!! like on 6 or 7 cylinders. Somehow coolant leaked into some of the chambers and ruined the sparks and wires. i changed them and the car runs awesome.

I was soo worried!

We changed the belt and pump becasue the pump was leaking. Hope this helps a bit!

TheBigGuy

was ur car running really rough when engine was still cold and the roughness gradually went away as the engine reach normal operating temperature??.. thats what mine does!!! i should check the spark plugs also....

omarg

no. the car ran rough at all times. The check engine light was on all the time. Also the tach didnt work.

I was really afraid my mechanic really f'ed up. But i just replaced the sparks and wires and the car runs new.

TheBigGuy

well, i removed the spark plug/cam gear covers and saw that the driver side cam gear was off by almost a centimeter..

Turned the crankshaft pulley to "0" and yea, passenger side cam lines up with the marking while the driver side does not.. hopefully that is the problem.. it would make sense for the check engine light to throw a "cam position sensor" code since the driver side cam timing is off..

i will let you guys know the outcome!!! BTW, thats one problem/thing i see on this forum.. People post about their engine problems but hardly post any solutions to the problems =/

TheBigGuy

in the meantime

19's!!!!!


hahaha.. i seriously should've bought these wheels off my friend's S2000 if i knew i was getting a LS400.. tires were too 'low profile' and staggered for the CRV