I think most of the problems people have with the coils is due to the coil boots instead of the coils themselves. I cleaned and dielectric greased the springs and contact areas and my car runs smoother. Just a thought, you guys may be pulling coils and replacing them when the boots are the problem. Clean the boots, paint the contact areas with dielectric grease to slow corrosion and torque the plugs down and you should be good to go with iridium plugs.

 

Thanks for the help and great info once again. My car has been running smoothly since I got the spark plugs and cylinder 1 coil swapped for new and the valve adjustement.

The mileage on the screen is 7.4l/100km (31.8 US mpg), which seems a little high?

Now, today, at nearly 110000km, I notice the CEL light was on again! Dope. I pulled out the OBDII and pulled the following code: P0420, Catalyst System Efficiency Below Threshold

Now i've read on other threads that the very fact I had misfires could have indeed blown the catalytic converter. wow.

And tips on what to do now?

Cheers!

 

Read somewhere the catalytic converter was under warranty up to 130000km so decided to contact the local honda dealer who did the valve adjustment and spark plug/coil swap and let them know which code (P0420) I pulled. They said I was lucky and that they will replace the catalytic converter for free given its still under warranty. Sounds like they will replace the lower O2 sensor while they are at it too (also for free). They are also guessing the cat failed due to the misifres.

So yeah, I learning something. Misfires should be fixed ASAP, so as to avoid cat damage. I was told by a few mechanics that I could still run the car for a while to see how oftern the CEL light came on with my misfires. I will NOT do this next time!

I will let you know how the warranty replacement went and how the car runs afterwards.

 

I'm now at 110200 or so, and man o man, I got a flashing CEL light go on and loss of acceleration, just a few hours (only 10km) after an oil chance. Still waiting for the new Catalytic Converter...

So I stopped the car and pulled the following codes: P0204 (Injector Cylinder Malfunction), P0304 (Misfire) and P0008. Got a free tow back the Honda dealer.

Man o man, I am really out of luck!

Any suggestions to help me ensure things are done right?

I am really out of luck with this car.

 

So the dealer confirmed I had a failed injector and that it shorted the ECU! Man on man! Lucky again in that the ECU is still covered by the 8-yr warranty. They recommend i swap all 4 fuel injectors and replace the ECU of course. The bills are piling.

What on earth? Why is everything wrong with this car's motor?

Anything I should be checking out that has not yet? Is there something I can do to prevent a short in the future?

 

Why do things short out?
Poor connection. Could be manufacturing defect, corrosion (cleanable/preventable with silicone paste), damaged wiring (mice), poor connection (oversight).
Which do you think is likely?

Sorry to hear all the bad news..

 

I know those boots corrode internally with time. You should disassemble them and coat the contact areas with dielectric grease. Be careful when removing them so you don't damage the coil too much. Use a bit of brake clean or whatever the grease the connection to the coil and remove it with a curved pin (looks like a bent ice pick) used to loosen hose connections. The small ones work well or these boots. Don't go overboard and fill the boot with incorrect lubricant. Once you get the boot off the spring and the resistor will fall out. Clean and grease them with the correct grease and reassemble them.

Best of luck,

Clay