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1 Posts
Hi all.
I recently took a trip out to California from Arizona in my 2001 CR-V (96k miles). It ran fine the whole way there. The day before I was going to head home, I filled the gas tank, drove it back to my friends and parked it. The next day, I left. The first big hill I got to on I10, the Check Engine light (MIL) started flashing at me and the vehicle started running very poorly. It could barely get up the hill at Indio, CA. I stopped for fuel once just over the Arizona border, fuel level was just under half a tank, and it was still running very poorly. Thankfully I made it home; total trip home was just under 400 miles. I was convinced I got bad fuel. So I drove it around until the low fuel light came on, and then filled it up. Oddly enough, before the refill it was running normal again. As a test, I was driving around with my fuel pressure gauge attached as I wanted to see if the pressure dropped when it was running poorly. As soon as I filled it and started it up to leave the gas station, it started running poorly again, however the fuel pressure was spot on! Hmmmm. I started to suspect the problem isn’t fuel related. I read a lot of posts about the distributor causing the flashing MIL, so I tested the CKP/TDC/CYL sensors and even the CKF sensor. All where within spec. Now, I know this means they were good when I checked them and that they can still be bad. So as a precaution, I ordered a new distributor, for $114 it’s worth a try. Note, since I’ve owned this vehicle, it’s always had an odd no-power/power issue; you’d hit the gas, there’d be no power, but suddenly there’d be power again, like throwing a light switch. While waiting for the distributor to arrive, I did a compression test (all cylinders were about 138# dry), tested the plug wires, and adjusted the valves (some were a little tight, one was loose). When the distributor finally arrived, I pulled the cap and seen the cause! See picture. Somehow, moisture got into the distributor! I did a complete tune-up under a year ago and live in Arizona, I don’t remember the last time this car was in the rain! LOL All terminals/screws in the old distributor were corroded and I can’t get the rotor off anymore. Glad I got the new distributor! Installed the new dizzy and it’s running fine again, I hope this fixes that no-power/power issue too, time will tell. I guess the moral here is, even though a problem seems like one thing (fuel), you should always start with the basics (distributor cap). Hope this helps someone.
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I recently took a trip out to California from Arizona in my 2001 CR-V (96k miles). It ran fine the whole way there. The day before I was going to head home, I filled the gas tank, drove it back to my friends and parked it. The next day, I left. The first big hill I got to on I10, the Check Engine light (MIL) started flashing at me and the vehicle started running very poorly. It could barely get up the hill at Indio, CA. I stopped for fuel once just over the Arizona border, fuel level was just under half a tank, and it was still running very poorly. Thankfully I made it home; total trip home was just under 400 miles. I was convinced I got bad fuel. So I drove it around until the low fuel light came on, and then filled it up. Oddly enough, before the refill it was running normal again. As a test, I was driving around with my fuel pressure gauge attached as I wanted to see if the pressure dropped when it was running poorly. As soon as I filled it and started it up to leave the gas station, it started running poorly again, however the fuel pressure was spot on! Hmmmm. I started to suspect the problem isn’t fuel related. I read a lot of posts about the distributor causing the flashing MIL, so I tested the CKP/TDC/CYL sensors and even the CKF sensor. All where within spec. Now, I know this means they were good when I checked them and that they can still be bad. So as a precaution, I ordered a new distributor, for $114 it’s worth a try. Note, since I’ve owned this vehicle, it’s always had an odd no-power/power issue; you’d hit the gas, there’d be no power, but suddenly there’d be power again, like throwing a light switch. While waiting for the distributor to arrive, I did a compression test (all cylinders were about 138# dry), tested the plug wires, and adjusted the valves (some were a little tight, one was loose). When the distributor finally arrived, I pulled the cap and seen the cause! See picture. Somehow, moisture got into the distributor! I did a complete tune-up under a year ago and live in Arizona, I don’t remember the last time this car was in the rain! LOL All terminals/screws in the old distributor were corroded and I can’t get the rotor off anymore. Glad I got the new distributor! Installed the new dizzy and it’s running fine again, I hope this fixes that no-power/power issue too, time will tell. I guess the moral here is, even though a problem seems like one thing (fuel), you should always start with the basics (distributor cap). Hope this helps someone.
