Red Pepper Racing

So, long story short, my '85 Si sat for a while. Like...almost 10 years. A rat got under the dash and decided it was snack time and almost burnt the car to the ground..

A buddy and I replaced the under-dash harness and got the car running again and it drove home great. But after that, it started doing this:



We replaced the fuel pump (which is now making funny-haha noises so that could actually be the issue) and fuel injectors. Buddy - who's been working on Hondas forever - says they were the correct-flow injectors.

The car seems like it's running very rich. 

Where should I start with this? Any hints?

Did you replace the fuel filter that’s under the hood by the wiper motor?  Also if it sat that long I would drain the gas and put fresh fuel in it too.  Sounds like a miss.

Did you replace the fuel filter that’s under the hood by the wiper motor?  Also if it sat that long I would drain the gas and put fresh fuel in it too.  Sounds like a miss.

 

Yeah It definitely sounds like it's missing. Fuel filter and gas are new. Buddy thinks it might be a clogged cat, which is possible if something crawled in there and made a home for itself. I'm with you though. It sounds like it's missing. 

I'm wondering if the injectors are sketchy. They were some spares he had but I ordered 3 sets and could never get the correct flow rate. Do you happen to have a source for the correct EW3/D15 injectors?

Wondering if it could also be one or more fowled plug.

I would also guess that driving it shook loose a bunch of crapola (sediment) that was in the fuel tank and the fuel pump started redistributing it throughout the system.  I would:

 

Do you have a infrared heat sensor?  If so, start the car and point it at the exhaust right after the gasses leave the head.  If one of the tubes is colder, that is a good indication of which cylinder is missing.

 

1 - Pull the tank, drain it and make sure you get all the debris out of it. Take a look at the fuel pump pre-filter to make sure it is clear.  Run the fuel pump outside of the tank to make sure it does what it is supposed to do.

 

2 - Change the Fuel filter on the fire wall.

 

3 - pull the injectors and look at the filter that is on top of each one to make sure they are clear.

The video reminds me of when I’d fire up my crx’s after sitting at least 4 years

 

great advice on the IR scan of exhaust manifold!

 

it sounds like one cylinder isn’t firing right.

 

id target the filter on the inlet of your pump first.  I’ve had that clogg on me w rust after long term start up….   Similar engine performance as your video.    And CSP had the same filter clog after he went off the track, into the rough and sediment broke free.  He can explain better than I can what happened after

 

For the most part, I’ve only had injectors stick from varnish from long term storage.  Watch the oring for leakage at the end of the fuel rail.  All my cars seemed to leak at the 20 yr mark.

if ur unsure of ur injectors..   get the correct ones.    My cars still have Honda oe injectors.  Only time I’ve replaced them is when one cracked and leaked gas 25 years ago.

 

good advice to test fuel pump.  I finally replaced mine at 280k.  It was loud and growley as hell.   But it still worked.  Once I pulled it out of the car.  Ran it dry.  Put my finger on the inlet and I could barely feel any suction.  I pulled 2 nos Honda pumps from stock.  Ran those dry.  They had good suction against my finger.  Not a hicky suck, but very solid.  This is subjective, but gives you a baseline.  Doesn’t sound like you’ve replaced the pump yet…

 

I replaced my 280k oe pump w a 36 year old Honda oe fuel pump w 129k.  Had good suction when compared to nos.   So I don’t have experience w failing pumps.   And I drive my crx 15k miles a year all over the country.   DD, not performance

 

another thing is to grab a stethoscope and listen to each injector.  Listen for very faith, but steady “ticking”.

 

the jumping tac concerns me,  a guy w a red hatch had a jumping tac.  He ended up replacing the ignition coil.  You can get a modern coil off eBay from a Fit for about $130.  I replaced mine around 260-280k just for insurance.

 

cat is easy to check if system is still OE, jump uncouple the spring loaded ball connection between the cat and down pipe.  Shop air or blow drier and see how it flows.   I’m sure you’ve got the time of day on this car….  I’m sure this details not needed for ya   Lol

 

 

keep us posted.   I’m deathly afraid of that bizzare electrical issue shutting me down 2000 miles from home

 

oh, if you get a lot of crap in ur fuel pump pre filter,…. You’ll want to replace the intake sock inside ur tank.

I just cleaned the pre filter again in mine is still picking crap up from my excursion!