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Greyd

Platinum Member
So I drove my car to a resturaunt earlier today and no problems,etc. Whn I get out of the restaurant and start the car - I immediately notice that the engine is running weird. It's shuddering, but still driveable. Exhaust sounds a little weird. Engine power seems to be way down also. When I come to a stop light, the car shudders and shake - more than normal. It's making a continuous putt - putt - putt sound.

The car is a 93 Honda Civic EX. A little over 100k miles.

Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks
 
The weird exhaust sound is probably a function of the rough-running condition. So don't look at it as a cause.

What is sounds like is having one dead cylinder. Check for spark to all plugs and if they have spark, check to see if all the injectors are firing. The most likely cause though is that either one of your plug wires has come loose, or you have a crack in the distributor cap that is letting moisture inside.

ZV
 
Sounds like you're not running on all cylinders. Check the plugs, plug wires (specifically the insulation/boots for cracks), distributor cap and rotor. I had this problem once and it turned out to be from a bad plug wire.

EDIT: Damn you Zen! Beat me to it!
 
Putt, putt exhaust noise and an engine miss. I might be premature but it sounds like you have a spark plug loose or missing in the cylinder head.
 
Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
The weird exhaust sound is probably a function of the rough-running condition. So don't look at it as a cause.

What is sounds like is having one dead cylinder. Check for spark to all plugs and if they have spark, check to see if all the injectors are firing. The most likely cause though is that either one of your plug wires has come loose, or you have a crack in the distributor cap that is letting moisture inside.

ZV
Click to expand...

plug wires aren't loose - but haven't changed plugs in awhile.

How do I check the spark plugs?

How do I know if its the distributor cap?
 
Originally posted by: Greyd
Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
The weird exhaust sound is probably a function of the rough-running condition. So don't look at it as a cause.

What is sounds like is having one dead cylinder. Check for spark to all plugs and if they have spark, check to see if all the injectors are firing. The most likely cause though is that either one of your plug wires has come loose, or you have a crack in the distributor cap that is letting moisture inside.

ZV
Click to expand...

plug wires aren't loose - but haven't changed plugs in awhile.

How do I check the spark plugs?

How do I know if its the distributor cap?
Click to expand...
Pull the plugs and check for discolouration and/or deposits. Also, take a spare plug and attach the end of each plug wire in turn to it instead of to the plug in the engine. Ground the spare plug against the cylinder head and have someone else crank the engine over. If that you can see a blue/white spark, that wire is passing electricity, if the spark is not blue/white, then it's not getting sufficient voltage.

As far as checking the distributor cap, you have to remove it and look for both evidence of condensation and carbon tracking (would show as black/grey lines along the inside of the cap). Also, check the condition of the contacts for corrosion and wear.

ZV
 
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