Acura Integra '91 now running rough ? ideas ?
 

'91 Acura Integra LS 3dr 5 spd MT 1.8L

Was running fine (maybe a little off , noisy valves, not quite as peppy as
younger days)

Developed a radiator leak so i changed radiator that was pretty straight
forward.

While changing radiator I did oil change, filter changes, rotor replace and
distributor cap replace ....

why ? because.... went to clean carbon off rotor and cap terminals and
noticed the rotor was loose and a bit floppy , apparently the set screw
had worked loose a tad and years of vibrations made the rotor work back and
forth enough to wear it's collar down and make it flop and wiggly on the
distributor shaft/spindle.

So finished all the work and car running peppier than ever on it's 5-10
minute test drive.

Next morning makes 15 minute drive to work just fine and peppy.

On way back from work car is sputtering and stumbling at lower RPM and
starts. If you rev motor up alot it helps but stumbles whenever you press
the gas to accelerate.

Idle seems ok till it heats up then it won't keep steady idle and trying to
stall.

It is almost like it is missing fire a cylinder or not firing regularly on a
cylinder but i checked all the wires and connections to cap .

Please, any ideas here I am a bit of a loss.

Thanks,
robb





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Acura Integra '91 now running rough ? ideas ?
 

"robb" > wrote in
:


>
> On way back from work car is sputtering and stumbling at lower RPM and
> starts. If you rev motor up alot it helps but stumbles whenever you
> press the gas to accelerate.



Is it a rough, uneven stumble? Or is it a regular, steady miss?



>
> Idle seems ok till it heats up then it won't keep steady idle and
> trying to stall.


Is the Check Engine light on? Are any codes stored?


>
> It is almost like it is missing fire a cylinder or not firing
> regularly on a cylinder but i checked all the wires and connections to
> cap .
>


Did you check INSIDE the cap?

Have you ever checked the ignition timing?


--
Tegger

Acura Integra '91 now running rough ? ideas ?
 

Tegger > wrote in news:XnsA3E15474A1CAFtegger@
208.90.168.18:


>
>
> Did you check INSIDE the cap?
>
> Have you ever checked the ignition timing?
>
>


Also -- weird thought -- is the distributor loose? Or is it turned all the
way to one side of its adjusting slot?


--
Tegger

Acura Integra '91 now running rough ? ideas ?
 

I had a similar problem, and it got so bad that it took a couple minutes of cranking to start. I had tried several things (changed fuel filter, checked idle control valve, ignition control module, main relay, etc.), didn't help. The distributor had oil in it, so I decided to change the oil seal in the distributor and clean all the oil out of it. When I got it apart, the insulation on the wires inside the distributor started flaking off and I had a bunch of bare wires. I replaced the distributor and now it runs better than it ever did.
This was on a 92 Accord, 2.2L.
You might want to try wiggling some wires inside your distributor, see if they're flexible or if any insulation flakes off. I had also noticed one of the insulated terminals that plug into the ignition control module (igniter) looked like it had melted in the past.
Hope this helps.

Acura Integra '91 now running rough ? ideas ?
 

"Tegger" wrote in message ...

> Tegger > wrote in news:XnsA3E15474A1CAFtegger@
> 208.90.168.18:
>
> >
> > Did you check INSIDE the cap?
> >
> > Have you ever checked the ignition timing?
> >
>
>
> Also -- weird thought -- is the distributor loose? Or is it turned all the
> way to one side of its adjusting slot?
>
> --
> Tegger
>

The distributor was tightly secured and the adjustment bolt it is situated
just ever so slightly (~ 0.5 - 1.0 mm) off center of the adjustment slot .

robb




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Acura Integra '91 now running rough ? ideas ?
 

"robb" > wrote in
:

> "Tegger" wrote in message
> ...
>
>> Tegger > wrote in news:XnsA3E15474A1CAFtegger@
>> 208.90.168.18:
>>
>> >
>> > Did you check INSIDE the cap?
>> >
>> > Have you ever checked the ignition timing?
>> >
>>
>>
>> Also -- weird thought -- is the distributor loose? Or is it turned
>> all the way to one side of its adjusting slot?
>>
>>
>>
>
> The distributor was tightly secured and the adjustment bolt it is
> situated just ever so slightly (~ 0.5 - 1.0 mm) off center of the
> adjustment slot .
>



There were three points in my reply. You have only addressed one of them.


--
Tegger

Acura Integra '91 now running rough ? ideas ?
 

"Tegger" wrote in message ...

> "robb" > wrote in
> :
>
> > "Tegger" wrote in message
> > ...
> >
> >> Tegger > wrote in news:XnsA3E15474A1CAFtegger@
> >> 208.90.168.18:
> >>
> >> >
> >> > Did you check INSIDE the cap?
> >> >
> >> > Have you ever checked the ignition timing?
> >> >
> >>
> >>
> >> Also -- weird thought -- is the distributor loose? Or is it turned
> >> all the way to one side of its adjusting slot?
> >>
> >>
> >
> > The distributor was tightly secured and the adjustment bolt it is
> > situated just ever so slightly (~ 0.5 - 1.0 mm) off center of the
> > adjustment slot .
> >
>
> There were three points in my reply. You have only addressed one of them.
>

Hey Tegger,

I think I responded in separate previous post but i will condense here.

Timing -- "I" have never checked. Very likely set when we took it for
tuneup to local reputable import mechanic ~10 years ago.

Cap & Rotor -- That is what started this thread/mess (Replaced)

Car was running a bit rough so I went to clean carbon off rotor and cap
terminals and noticed the rotor was loose and a bit floppy (surprised car
was running at all), apparently the set screw had worked loose a tad ,,,
and after years of vibrations the rotor worked back and forth enough to wear
it's metal sleeve/collar down ????

Distributor -- adjusted slightly off center (turn cap/dist toward rear of
car).

----------------------
After reading your pages i eventually replaced the original (sumitomo 1990)
wires and plugs and the car ran much better after that

thanks
robb


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Acura Integra '91 now running rough ? ideas ?
 

"robb" > wrote in
:


> After reading your pages i eventually replaced the original (sumitomo
> 1990) wires and plugs and the car ran much better after that
>


Holy moly. You were using TWENTY-FOUR-year-old wires? I"m surprised the
thing ran at all, especially in wet weather.

Well, I'm glad it's better.


--
Tegger