So I just swapped a B18C (obd2a) into a 98 civic ex (obd2a) and am using the stock B18C ECU.

Having some issues at startup. When I first turned the key, I heard the main relay, but no clicking of the starter. The previous owner had a crazy ground setup, so I simplified it down a bit and made sure the battery connections were good. Again, no clicking. So I tapped the starter with a hammer and tried again..fired up for just about 2 seconds then died.

Now a few things to note:

On startup, the engine sounds pretty rough. I'm pretty sure there's an exhaust leak between the header and block, so that's hopefully not a big concern. I tightened the bolts to spec, so I may have to get a new gaskett.

There was a big fuel leak that was caused by using the B18C fuel filter. I swapped in for the D16Y8 filter, and no more leak. Don't think this is an issue.

I'm using the Y8 throttle cable and the stock B18C bracket & location, so there is a bit of slack. When pressing the pedal down, it feels loose and barely pulls the throttle. Obviously I have to fix this, but I don't think this would cause the engine to shut off after startup, would it?

I changed the timing belt and waterpump with the engine out of the bay. I followed a combination of the haynes procedure and an online DIY perfectly, and checked again and again to see that timing stayed perfect as I turned the crank. I think the only place I could've gone wrong was when I reinstalled the pulleys. The intake cam should be good as I made sure the timing & up marks were in the right position while the dizzy was positioned at the 1st cylinder position (bottom left plug wire). Crank was positioned at TDC using the white mark. I didn't find any procedure for getting the exhaust cam to the cylinder 1 TDC position though..I'm pretty sure it didn't turn much as I removed the pulley, so I set it back using the timing & up marks. How can you check to make sure the timing is correct on the exhaust cam? I also feel like the belt had a bit more play then I'd expect. Right between the pulleys, I could push it down about half an inch..I feel like it should be tighter than this (yes, I turned the cam 3 teeth and tightened the tensioner)..is this a problem?

I've read some issues about mixing up TPS & MAP sensor wiring. I labelled all wires as I removed the harness, so I'm pretty sure that's not the issue. I may try swapping them just for fun..

Pretty sure all hoses and tubes are connected properly and shouldn't be leaking, but I'll triple check..

Anyways, I'll continue searching around, but if anyone can help me out with ideas, I'd really appreciate it!!

Thanks in advance!!

 

Make sure everything is connected properly.

Both cams should have up arrows indicating TDC for Cylinder #1 and should point straight up with the crank at TDC for cyl #1.

 

Ya, that's what I did..though from what I could tell, the up marks weren't exactly straight up. I lined the timing marks so that they were lined up with the mark on the block and therefore pointing directly at each other. The up mark seemed to be a bit off from the 12 o'clock position on both gears I believe (about a tooth or less off..I'll have to check again).

May just be my imagination though..

 

i might be wrong but i think there are 2 connecters that r the same near the t,body and intake mani you might have switched? ,,map and tbody position possibly.

 

Make sure you didnt miss a ground cable. Can never hurt to have too many grounds, so for time being just add a few from v/c to frame, make sure there is one on the thermostat and the ones you are using arent old and rotting.

I doubt its the header since i've re-used my manifold gasket about 5 times and its always decent without problems. The engine could just be running rough. Moreover, a leak would cause it to be louder but there would be hardly enough back pressure to cause it to idle/run rough


Try moving the bracket over to the right using only one bolt instead of lining up both of them. Thats how mine is and many many more swapped civics. just make sure the bolt is nice and tight, that should allow you to eliminate the slack in that cable.

Take the Valve cover off and just eye ball it man. A tooth will be easy to tell if its off. Now having that much slack between gears is not normal. Try re-tensioning the belt.

 

alright, i'll mess around with it all when i get home..will post some pics if i'm unsure about things.

the ground cables are almost all aftermarket and in very good condition (thanks to the previous owner). i followed some thread that said go neg batt to tranny, tranny to chassis, tranny to tstat, tstat to v/c, v/c to chassis, and i also have v/c to dizzy. should be good i'd think..

i'm a bit confused without having the engine to look at as reference..what do you mean by moving the bracket to the right? you are talking about the tbody bracket right?

i'll give it a shot. i did hear a squeal after the first startup..

i also forgot to mention that i broke my tps sensor while getting the motor into the bay. i swapped it with my Y8 sensor, which is supposed to be the same. i've heard things about calibrating the tps...should i have done this??

 

You know the bracket that tensions the cable? well its held by two 10mm bolts. Take them out and move the bracket to the right so the left hole for the bracket lines up to the right hole on the intake manifold. that should allow you to tension the cable. Ill take a pic if im not too busy later. That is how mine is held and the few swaps ive done i did the same.

The tps sensor has to be calibrated, correct, but i don't see how the car would stall in idle with that being off. Worth a shot though. Look it up in Honda Service Manual, you can download those for free, it should show you how to calibrate it to spec. You will need a multimeter.

The squeal you heard is most likely alternator/ps belt. They squeal when there isnt enough tension and or you have oil or other liquids causing it to slip. Timing belt will not squeal since it has teeth on it. If it were to squeal, you'd destroy the engine bending valves etc...

 

I took a quick look at the service manual, Measuring voltage between yel/blue (+) terminal and grn/blue (-) terminal, it should read approximately 5V with ignition on [not started] .

 

ok i'll try that..for some reason i remember the bracket having a top and bottom hole, not left and right. but i'm probably wrong.

got a multimeter so i'll check it out too. so if it's at 5v with ignition on, then it's calibrated?

that was a dumb moment...of course it wouldn't squeal!! there was a bit of water on the accessory belts..

 

Alright, so I checked timing and spark last night then passed out. There was spark coming from 2 of my plugs..before I could check the last 2 plugs, i think my starter crapped out..it was humming without even turning the key, and now just clicks terribly when i try to crank..

timing seems to be good (at least at the cam end). when i try to turn the crank, there is more resistance than there was when i changed the belt. this could be because i now have the alternator and p/s pump hooked up...but could it also be due to a faulty starter? it's consistant resistance as opposed to varying (i'd assume varying would mean poor timing?)

here are some pics showing what i was talking about:

Timing marks lined up with marker on head:

 

Woops!! Ok i've attached the pics. They show the cams when both timing marks are lined up with the marker on the head. You can see the belt play i was talking about.

I also attached a pic of my throttle cable bracket..it is a top and bottom bolt pattern..am I supposed to use my d16 bracket?

 

seems like its straight, just need to retighten it.

starter clicking is usually sound of a bad ground. Had it quite the number of times with my crappy ground lol

 

you may be right about the ground. i dont think i tightened the bolt on my v/c completely when i was testing the plugs. thing is it sounded pretty bad..as if something is trying to turn but can't for whatever reason..is that what it'll sound like? the humming makes me think there's a problem other than a grounding issue (that happened when all grounds were good and secure)

any input on the bracket?

 

and to retighten, do i set it to tdc and do the 3 teeth method again? should there be any belt play at all?

 

TPS checked out.

Redid timing and it fired up and stayed on. Mustve been off by a tooth at the crank :S the belt has a tiny bit of play, but i'd think that's normal.

Didn't keep it on for long because there was a ton of belt squeal and smoke coming from the belt side of the car. Didn't have time to dig any deeper. Battery light is on, but that's probably related to my 3 to 4 wire alternator plug conversion. I'm praying that the smoke is accessory belt related..

The car also sounded a bit rough compared to a d series...but maybe that's how it's supposed to sound? I guess i'll have to check youtube.

 

the belt could also be why your alternator light is on maybe it or another pulley is seized

 

^^what he said.

You've been cranking the car and trying to start it, it killed some battery. If the belt for alternator has loads of fluid on it, it will slip/squeel/smoke causing it not to charge battery.

Belt has to have play, not much but just enough. lol i know it hard to understand but some minor flexing is fine.

Running rough...yeah no, it should idle as smooth as any other engine. Unless you got yourself some solid mounts which would cause it to vibrate the car and what not. But idle should still be even and smooth.