B16a Idle issues and power loss. What do you suggest?

THE WITCH KING.

New Member
Hey all! So I've been noticing recently that my power hasn't been quite where it should be and that my idle has been hunting. I did some research and found that it could be because my IACV and FITV could be dirty, so I pulled those off and cleaned them pretty thoroughly with some throttle body cleaner. Every thread I found made it incredibly clear that I not lose the o-ring attached IACV, but when I pulled mine off there wasn't an o-ring. Is that an issue? I saw a thread on honda-tech that a guy posted and he was also missing an o-ring and he put one on and it made his idle worse because he didn't adjust the IACV to compensate for the o-ring's presence. Before I go through the hassle of even doing that, is the o-ring really necessary? Also, when I put my FITV back on, one of the bolts broke off. I'm pretty sure its secure in there, because it broke when I was doing the last turn on it. I'm worried that it might not actually tightened all the way. How big of a problem might that be if this is the case? My high idle got somewhat better after cleaning the 2 valves out, but now it idles at around 800 after its warmed up. Isn't it supposed to be sitting around 1k? I'm new to hondas, so this is all new to me. What do I need to do with the IACV to bring my idle back up to 1k? I have a B16a btw.

As far as the power loss goes, could it be hand in hand with the whole idle issue? I'm told it's probably a partially clogged cat, but before I go through the process of replacing it, what else should I rule out? I've replaced my spark plugs already, my wires and dizzy seem fine, I just recently had an oil change, and I ran a fuel injector cleaner through my tank. I'm thoroughly stumped.

Also when I was changing my plugs, I noticed there's some oil in ports 2 and 4, so I'm running rich, right? How do I stop that? I need a step by step because I'm honda retarded but I'm trying to learn everything about my new teg.


Also, dumb question, but where the hell is the fuse box? Is the one in the engine bay the only one? I'm also having issued locating my PCV Valve.. Please help!
 

integration718

New Member
The dirty plugs are probably because of your rough idle caused by you running rich,I hope you purchased NGK OEM for B16's from honda and in regards to your IACV the O ring is important because of your antifreeze mixing.its really not expensive from the dealer.and if your CAT was cloged it would smell like spoiled eggs.the fuse box is located just left of your foot rest you turn the knob clock wise and ta da there they are.Your PVC valve is just above your fule rail its a little plastic piece thats held by your intake manifold they usally breaks but if you use OEM it will last longer.good luck
 

heritage36

New Member
Okay, quite a few questions you had in this one. That O-ring is necessary, and whoever said you don't need it and all is an idiot, if its there from honda, you need it when it comes to something like that. Your bolt you broke off, you should drill out and replace. The last guy was right in asking if you used OEM plugs or not? Hondas are picky about what plugs they use, believe me, I work at a dealership and see it all the time. If you have oil in the plug areas on two cylinders, you need to replace your valve cover tube seals. Take off the valve cover, and they are the circular seals around where the plug wires go in. 800 is a normal idle around for a honda, 1000 is a bit high. Shoot for 750-800 there is probably safe. You rrobably don't have a clogged cat, that is pretty rare, but you could remove it and see how the honeycomb interior of it looks. You should be able to see through to the other side up by a light, if not it is probably clogged. I would probably be looking for your power loss at fuel pressure, spark and check the timing. Spark is a common issue on these, because coils and ignitors go bad often on older hondas like this. Hope that helps, if you have additional questions feel free to ask.
 

THE WITCH KING.

New Member
This is a lot of helpful info. Thanks guys! I do have NGKs though, and I was planning to drill it out but was more concerned about the o ring. There wasn't even one on there when I pulled it off, so it made me wonder. I tried to buy one at my local parts store but they told me they do them by dimensions so I was jsut going to get some gasket maker and call it good. I think that would be fine, right?

Thanks for the heads up on the valve cover seals. I'm about to go pick those up right now.
 


heritage36

New Member
If you are talking about the double o-ring with the filter element for it, I would definitely not just use liquid gasket for that. Just buy an OEM gasket would be my recommendation, probably only costs a few bucks.
 

heritage36

New Member
Are you sure? What year/model type B16 do you have? Usually most of them have one on the end of a small hose that goes to a little port on the intake manifold by where it meets the cylinder head. Maybe if you have an OBD-0 one, maybe those never did, but I can't say for sure. I know all OBD-1 and OBD-2 ones should have one.
 


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