rajiv

Hi,

I have a Honda Civic 1.6 SE (2001). Today a orange light came on while driving (Check Engine). I was on motorway and drove about 17 miles (fairly slowly- about 40-50 mph) back home.

The AA checked and found that there was NO oil. He has put oil now and I have driven it abit without any problems. He has checked and there is no oil leakage and the engine noise is the same. The AA guy said that only time will tell if the engine has had a damege (" Can run 20 or 2000 miles")

I am not sure if I am supposed to be doing anything else. I would hope that if there was no oil then the Red Oil light should have come up.

Any suggestions on whether I should continue to drive or do something ?

Thanks

Rj

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

well there had to be oil in the car otherwise your engine would have been dead in a few seconds. maybe he meant it was not showing anything on the dipstick, which is about one quart low. if the oil light did not come on, you are probably fine. the vtec oil pressure switch is more sensitive and the engine light came on so that vtec becomes disabled, to prevent the engine from blowing up. if vtec engages with low oil, serious engine damage will occur. but i have a feeling your car will be fine.

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

well there had to be oil in the car otherwise your engine would have been dead in a few seconds. maybe he meant it was not showing anything on the dipstick, which is about one quart low. if the oil light did not come on, you are probably fine. the vtec oil pressure switch is more sensitive and the engine light came on so that vtec becomes disabled, to prevent the engine from blowing up. if vtec engages with low oil, serious engine damage will occur. but i have a feeling your car will be fine.

rajiv

Thanks a lot for your answer !!

You are right, the oil did not show up in the dip-stick. And since there was no Red light... hopefully everything will be fine.

I am taking it to the garage for servicing though. Something I guess I should me more particular about.

Thanks

Rj

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

just watch the oil level because it might be burning some or leaking. if you check every few weeks, you can add more before a problem happens.

lokixxcivicb0i

i have the same problem p1259 its the rear bank of the vtec. at least thats what it says. im not burnin oil or leakin oil which doesnt make sense cuz the oil is going somewhere. i cant find anyone that has fixed this problem before so far everyone just keeps puttin oil in. if i figure it out ill let you know.

01CivicEXs

Rajiv,
I just had the same exact issue, only the CEL code was different:
CEL code P1457 "Manufacturer Controlled Auxiliary Emmisions Control".

Knowing that I was a bit late on my oil change, I checked my dipstick and sure enough there was not a drop to be seen.
I added about a quart or so to bring the oil back to a safe level.
I did not reset the CEL because I wanted to see if it would go away by itself, which it did within a few days.

However, my issue now is that I believe VTEC is still disabled on my vehicle.
Does anyone know if there is any way to tell? Many years ago I installed a VTEC led (basically lights up when solenoid is engaged).
It no longer lights, and i'm curious to know if there is anything I can do to re-enable VTEC if in fact it is disabled.

Much appreciated!

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

if any part of the vtec system is not working, you would get a check engine light. for 01-05 civic, vtec engages at 4500 rpm with full throttle and the engine warmed up with good oil pressure. so try that and see what happens. if cel comes on, theres still an issue. but i think youre fine.

DieMaster

iTrader: (5)

this has happened to me sevral times. the light comes on and i think theres a problem. scan it at home it's the VTEC. check oil - none on the dipstick. put in 1 to 1.5 quarts reset light evreytings fine.

PaCiFiKbAllA

iTrader: (1)

whenever we get this code thrown that means your oil levels are low and vtec will not engage because there is not enough oil pressure to engage it. i had it happen to me once..lost track of my oil changes...

if ur a diy'er, change your oil, then clean out the vtec solenoid screen and make sure the little button pushes in and out freely. after that, u shall never have to worry again.

clott

Same thing has happened to me. Had everything check no leaks. But the engine light is still on. Had code read again. Says vtec soli malfunction. Ive heard i need to take it off and clean it if that doesnt work just replace it.

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

yeah if cleaning doesnt work, you gotta replace it.

clott

im a engine noob. is unbolting it difficult?

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

well kinda. you need to prolly remove the stock intake box to reach the bolts.

there are 3 bolts on the side you can see they are halfway removed here (not the top bolts)

ssclayton10

veryyyy simple check at least every three days to make sure you have oil in your car and it wont happen again i know someone that happened to who has the same year model as my civic. basically the older your engine gets the harder it has to work so keeping oil in your is essential especially if you have vtec because that **** eats up oil lol and yeah like that guy said vtec disingages when its low on oil. if that happens and the engine light doensnt come on for some odd reason then you should notice the loss of power.

sl33pyriceboi

iTrader: (3)

dont forget to refill ur vtec fluid.

i can sell u some if u want. =]

01CivicEXs

Thanks for your replies guys.
I mean, I brought the car to inspection where it passed just fine. I still don't feel the vtec engage like I remember it, but it could be due to the fact that I don't drive it as much as I used to, or just the fact that it's in the 160k's these days.

Nevertheless, since I still don't see my little pathetic vtec light trip, I am going to check out the solenoid if I have a chance this weekend. Who knows, might just be the issue.
Otherwise, gonna let it be....thanks for the pics and diagram!

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

make sure engine oil is full too

Tragedy

iTrader: (10)

Adding some info to the thread.

This code can also be triggered by an intermittent failure.

Take a 22mm socket and unplug the vtec pressure switch. Gently break it loose and unscrew it. Notice the orange O ring?

It wont last forever and if it is broken, or burned out, it will throw the CEL light to come on.