Rep Power: 0

Adding this post to document the rehabilitation of our faithful old 2000 EM1 that we've owned since it was new. It was my Girlfriend's daily driver until late 2007 when she moved onto an '08 Accord. I gave her 8K for its down payment and took over the old SI. It had 78K miles at the time and I proceeded to add another 220K miles of nearly trouble free service as my daily driver. This is why I insisted she buy a Honda in the first place when looking for a new car. It burned a valve in 2019 at 250K miles so I had just the top end redone at the local dealership and kept going until last November. Then another dealerships misdiagnosis of broken timing belt at 298K miles put me on a track for an entire engine overhaul. I was pissed to later find out that it wasn't broken and that I most likely didn't have to pull the motor just yet but hey, I've had a great run and now was the time to give back this car. I'm done with dealerships and am rebuilding it myself with the help of a couple of good buddies.

One of many things I love about this old girl is that through all the years and miles its gone it has never left me walking. This last 700 mile one way road trip was no exception. It got me in the driveway, then it restarted fine an hour later so I could pull it into the garage; A week later... the motor just cranked over and wouldn't fire. It acted like it was about to, but no go. The only bright spot was that it happened here in the garage and not out in the middle of nowhere. I suspected it was the fuel pump as again it seemed to almost fire up. Its the original pump and now being 23 years old with almost 300K miles on it, it seemed the likely culprit.(BTW: you can see the actual miles on it above. Just missed 300K by about 1,500 miles.) I had no tools there so I was pretty much at the mercy of a shop. I decided to have it towed over to the local Honda dealer for diagnosis and repairs. As you can see above they came back with a broken timing belt. I had a hard time believing that, as it only had 40K on a new replacement when I had the head redone. If they were correct then I was worried about internal damage to the Valve train etc. They offered to install a new timing belt but made me no guarantees that it would solve the problem. I wasn't going for that.

I declined and had it picked up and towed back to the house the following day. A lot of money wasted to be right back whare I started. Two tows and a misdiagnosis ran me over 300 bucks!
Eventually I had to get this car and myself back to Nevada so I started looking up quotes for auto transport and a plane ticket. Once I had an approximate total I thought of asking my lifelong buddy if he'd be interested in taking a little road trip. I offed him what it was going to cost me to get us both back. I thought better in his pocket than theirs. He was up for it so I rented a dolly and this shot was taken on the morning we left.

Late that evening we had it safely in his shop. Begin pulling the motor to find out exactly what happened next.

In the process of unplugging all the systems, bagging and marking all the bolts and hardware. Took several photos of the engine bay as it went to hopefully help me get things all back in the right place once its over.

For the next session, we made the hard push to get the motor and trans dropped out of it. Fortunately my buddy Eric has a really nice shop with a two post lift which made so much easier. Thats him trying to pound out that roll pin that connects the shifter. We heard from several Honda guys that its one of the most frustrating things to remove. It did not disappoint!

By sessions end we had the drivetrain out, disassembled with the motor stripped down to a long block.

Mounted on my stand and began stripping off the layers of dirt and grease before its opened. We did confirmed that the cams were still rotating with crank as it turned freely so belt was definitely not broken as the dealership told me it was. I'm still thinking it was the fuel pump after all but I'm not quite there yet to confirm it.

While I its out I began presoaking the engine bay in degreaser as well. The transmission and every related component and bolt will also be cleaned and replaced as needed. I was building my parts list and it was already getting very long.
Thanks for looking!

Justin

 
Rep Power: 223

Timing belt isn't broken, but is the engine still in time?

 
Rep Power: 125

Can't provide any proper input since the timing cover is still on it. That being said, I've seen cheap belts fail prematurely, most commonly Greentree or whatever it's called. Especially since it's already been 5 years. The OEM belts are only rated for 7 years so I can only imagine the cheap ones are likely somewhere less.

If it's reading no compression, it likely jumped time as mentioned above.

 
Rep Power: 0

Thanks for the input guys. To be honest with you, at the time we pulled the motor a V-Tec engine was an intimidating proposition to me; What mysteries could be lurking under that black valve cover? I never took it upon myself to find out until just recently which is why it always went to the dealership for any repairs. I have my hands full enough with my long term project cars.

My buddy Eric's coworker was a former Honda tech for several years so after I got the outside all cleaned up I turned it over to him to dismantle this long block and to tell me exactly what was going on inside. Once he had it dismantled he said that the timing belt was fine. He made no mention of the valve train being out of time or the belt jumping a tooth so I can't answer to that. The timing belt was a Honda unit, I'm stickler for OEM parts which is why I always took it to the dealer as I thought that is what they would use. Well, after this disassembly I realized that wasn't the case at all. In '19 when I had the head redone. The dealer installed a Fel-Pro head gasket, a cheap clutch assembly and cheap Chinese inner CV boots. I'm shocked that it wasn't a Green tree timing belt in there now that I'm thinking about it. The Tech said that they don't care about OEM parts especially as the car gets older. Its down to what is most readily available so they can knock the job out. Makes sense of course but for the 5 grand I dropped on that job I was expecting OEM parts. Another valuable life's lesson, no one is going to care more about your car than you. The low compression diagnosis could be attributed to the shear amount of miles on it? It didn't smoke but it was using oil, about a quart every thousand miles or so. I began adding high milage oil treatment and that seemed to slow the oil consumption down a bit. The Tech thought it might be the igniter unit in the distributor but it seemed fine after his inspection. After all of this I am still thinking its probably the fuel pump. On the day it wouldn't start I noticed that I couldn't hear it kick-off like I used to. Its the original unit so it still seems plausible. I'll see what happens once its all reinstalled. Anyway, after disassembly it seems the motor did not have to come out just yet but either way I was on borrowed time.

 
Rep Power: 221

Man that thing is clean for 300k miles

 
Rep Power: 125

I'm more perplexed about the "low compression" vs "no compression". My '01 coupe was using more oil than that and putting up an even 120psi per cylinder even after my timing belt snapped. That was in the 210k mile range at that point. Probably something I would've checked before pulling the engine but whatever.

Certainly pointing to something not timing or compression-related, though, if your tech buddy is confirming those are okay.

Are you sure those are the correct brands for the parts replaced? I'm assuming the EM1 is a lot more common in the US than here since it was the SIR but I have a hard time imagining that they wouldn't have a B-series timing belt, CV boot, and clutch in stock, especially since it shares a lot of parts with Integra's which are still everywhere. It's strange that they'd warranty something that isn't theirs.

 
Rep Power: 511

not me seeing this and going detective mode to see if you're Vegas, outlying areas, or in northern NV. Looks like that's a Raider plate on that Tundra, so I'm willing to bet Vegas. lol. The flatbed pic and loading the EM1 on the dollies is def not Vegas. If my suspicion is correct and you are Vegas, maybe I'll see it around once you get her up and going

Like Sam, I'm extremely curious about the no compression diag and the "torn timing belt" when your buddy looked at it and said the timing belt was fine. With that quart per 1000mi (which is still within acceptable loss rate, iirc), you may have some leakage past the rings, but I doubt that'd be enough to have no compression. Since it's all apart anyways, check the valves. If it did jump time, slight chance that the valves might've kissed some pistons, causing the compression issues.

 
Rep Power: 223

If the timing belt is still on, have your friend check the timing. 2-3 teeth off is all it takes to no longer start.

Also, I would recommend not going back to that dealership. I am also very surprised they wouldn't use OEM parts only, especially for items that shouldn't be too difficult to get.

 
Rep Power: 0

Thank you Colin, While it has been driven, A LOT its led a very protected life. We've always kept it garaged along with regular maintenance and oil changes. Its been in the high desert since new so rust and corrosion is a complete non issue however the trade off is "hot-rot". Any rubber, fabric, plastic or painted component is susceptible to failure over the years of repeated heat and UV light exposure. Up North you find cars with much better preserved rubber seals, interiors etc. but may have corrosion; always the trade off. I've done everything I can to minimize its sun exposure and just general wear in particular. I've always been careful how I get in and out of it to preserve the drivers seat. No pets allowed in it either as they are very hard on upholstery. During the summer months when the peak temps get into the 110's+ I've made it a habit to raise the hood after it was done hauling my *** around in air conditioned comfort to help dissipate the engine heat. Sometimes I'd get asked if I was having over heating issues and I'd say no, I'm just being nice to all the rubber and plastics in the engine compartment. During this current overhaul this actually paid off because most of the plastic clips, connectors and rubber hose survived removal and can be reused. Anyway, a lot of use but also lots of preservation efforts as the years and miles have ticked by. Thanks again...

FRSam, Hindsight being what it is I would done a lot of things differently. Their entire diagnosis at the Dealership was complete BS. I don't know what they where thinking other than they might beat me for the cost an unnecessary timing belt change. I believed it at the time and was worried that a valve was probably bent but after they made no promises that their belt change would solve the issues... well there was no way I was going for that.


The block and head have been back from the machine shop for a couple of weeks now and after the completed repairs and their assessment there is no way the motor was having compression issues.


The head was disassembled, milled and given a valve job. It needed no new valves, seats or guides. So the pistons did not contact a valve. The silver intake valve is the one that was replaced in '19.


I was ready to have it bored over but it didn't need it. No significant tapering or barrel wear. No detectable wear ridge at the top. They said that walls were not polished and even retained some of the factory honing marks,


Some minor ring scoring and a few pits but nothing you can catch with your nail. They just honed, it cleaned the original pistons and re-ringed them.


All the journals checked out fine. New standard mains and new standard rod bearings installed. The machine shop could not believe this motor has gone 300K miles. All those regular oil changes at 5K intervals paid off but I have to admit once it started using oil I stretched them to the 7,500 or so mark. The wear ridges on the crank flanges from the front and rear main seals do give it away though. Hopefully those won't cause me sealing problems for a while.


Great bit of detective work (XriceboyX) I'm in Henderson. I'd be happy to meet up and see your car as well.

All done with Dealerships (brotatochip) I am doing this all myself now. The engine is now almost reassembled. I'll post all that up here next.

Thanks for all the great suggestions and help on this you guys.

 
Rep Power: 0

First round of replacement parts:

My welding and fabricating mentor beat it into my head as a young man to buy the best and cry only once about it. He had an old First gen. Toyota 4runner and he was a stickler for factory OEM parts only. It always ran tight and I definitely found his advice to be true later on trying to beat the system by going to Autozone for the free "lifetime guarantee" on alternators and starters etc. A free replacement means little after you're left stranded not the mention the time invested of repeated installs. So with lesson well learned I always step up and buy OEM when I can get my hands on it. The years have slipped by and I got a reality check on just how old this car actually is now and its effect on parts availability. Thanks to the internet though I've been able to round up a lot more discontinued parts than I first thought.

One of the first discontinued parts I was so relieved to find was the air intake elbow. The original has been off only once and I did I find it had cracks and breaks in several places. A lot of the plastic and rubber components have survived but this unfortunately wasn't one of them. I think this might be a reason why my check engine would come on and then go off every so often. Anyway this vendor, all the way from Japan had two new ones so I snagged them both.

First round of parts ordered where mostly the basic items for the engine block. Again, I want OEM if I can get it but I did step up to ARP hardware for the head studs.

Three of the motor mounts were broken and the other two where generic replacements installed by the dealer when I had the top end redone in '19. Really happy to be putting a fresh set of all five factory units in when the time comes. I wasn't close to being done yet, I kept studying the factory parts diagrams for every seal and o-ring I could find. After discovering the rotted intake elbow I was on the hunt for every rubber seal and plastic part I could find.

Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 223

That is a lot of OEM parts!

 
Rep Power: 0

It was the beginning of my OEM buying frenzy. I started with the motor then moved outward to the other systems that are subject to wear like the shifter assembly for example.

Second round of mostly engine parts. Probably doesn't need an oil pump but its down this far and my goal is to never have the motor out again while I own it. The same with the water pump it seems fine now but for how long? Now is the time. Some of these parts like the smaller heater hoses are fine but I thought I had better get them now while I can still find them. I'm still ordering parts though I have the drivetrain pretty much covered now.

Back to the motor:

The rocker arms do show some normal wear. The machine shop did not mention them so I assume they are fine. At this point I would have went for replacing them but new OEM is unavailable and so are new OEM cams. Going to have to just go with it.

Cam caps are also showing some wear in a few areas but these are machined with the head and cannot be replaced.

The cam and lobes by contrast are in really good condition so there is at least that.

I had lots of cleaning to do both inside and out. Deep cleaning like this is only something you'll do yourself so I am glad that its me handling the rebuild at this point. More to come...
Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 0

Head prepping:

Wanted to confirm my new valve job so inserted a plug and topped off the combustion chamber(not quite full in this shot) with lacquer thinner and checked the ports for any seepage.

I'd let each one sit for about 20 minutes. In the end I ended up with 6 valves weeping just slightly. I ended up running the head back to the machine shop so they could lap these just a little more. It was knocked out the next day and I retested them. All good to go.

While in process of cleaning all the head related parts I realized that the front two oil galleys for the V-tec system were plugged with Honda bond...

Both sides... The cams weren't necessarily starved for oil but I don't see how the V-Tec would have been able to engage.

Both sides are supposed to get this O-ring. No signs of any being reinstalled in '19...just "honda -bond" plugs. My whole opinion of dealership work has been completely blown.
BTW: up until a few weeks ago I knew nothing about these engines. I ran across this great Youtube EM1 restoration series that AHC Garage did. I'm sure a lot of you guys have seen them. Anyway, I've watched the engine assembly video about 10 times. Extremely informative with a couple of Techs who really know what their doing. The knowledge and tricks they share gave me everything I need to confidently put this thing back together and helped me identify what these plugged passages do. Also Installing the belt, setting the valves and critical areas where the honda bond is needed etc. Here's a link to it:


Thanks for looking.
Justin

 
Rep Power: 221

That is one shitty dealer, the ones up in my area always seem to do quality work.

 
Rep Power: 223

I'm shocked at how terrible the dealer is. Usually when people complain about poor mechanics we would recommend taking it to a dealer. Not the case here.

 
Rep Power: 0

Thanks guys, I cannot account for what went wrong over there. I've heard that it mostly depends on who the service manager is. It was source of pride that this car was always dealer serviced but as I now know it guaranteed nothing.

Learning Curve:

Assumed that the O-rings went between the caps and the head...

Fortunately for me I watched another engine build video and it showed that the seals actually go around these metal spigots.

Their both tapped so you can thread a small bolt in and extract them. The original seals were actually still in good condition but I'm here and I have new ones on hand so they were both replaced. Thank god I watched that before I finished reassembling this motor; always learning.

Next round of OEM just parts arrived. This pretty much gives me everything I need to finish and reinstall the drivetrain.
Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 0

Took a few minutes and indexed the spark plugs. After a few tries I got three out of the four in the pack to orient in the direction of the intake valves.

Instead of buying the index washers I bought another pack of plugs to see if I could get that last one to line up right once tightened down. The first one out of the second box turned the trick. All four plugs open towards the intakes. I've seen a lot of videos on whether this actually makes any difference or not and at best it is minimal if anything but it just took a little effort and if it helps with efficiency over time why not.

This wear ridge was little concerning...

I was able to snug the new seal back just a touch more and hopefully enough to give the lip will have fresh surface to seal against.

New oil pump installed next then onto the windage tray and the scavenger tube in preparation for the oil pan. Honda bond was applied over the joints of the oil pump and the rear main housing before this new seal was installed as described in that engine build video.

Oil pan installed then flipped over to finally get the head reinstalled. ARP studs now in along with the new head gasket.

Head installed and studs torqued to spec in that cross pattern working from the center outward. Getting ready to install the cams next..
Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 223

Everything looks so clean, it's beautiful. Great work!

 
Rep Power: 0

Thank you! Many an hour spent cleaning every component as bast as I could as I hate putting anything back together dirty.


Cams installed with cap bolts torqued to spec at 20LBS. The smaller 10MM bolts at the ends only tightened to 7 LBS.

Coolant tube and crankcase breather with new grommets installed next. Some corrosion on the hose fitting on the thermostat housing but nothing serious. I would have replaced it but it's another discontinued part.

Also some electrolysis along the water pump mounting flange.

Wiped Honda bond along the flange to both ensure the O-ring wont leak and to provide a protective barrier to stop or least slow down any further corrosion.

New water pump installed along with the cam sprockets and base cover. Timing belt next..
Thanks for looking.
Justin

 
Rep Power: 0

Timing belt install:

New factory tensioner and spring.

The old spring and idler seemed okay but after 24 years now was a good time to put in a new set.

Crank all set at TDC cylinder # 1. That was the easy part, getting the timing marks on the sprockets to stay lined up turned out to be a big PIA as the lobe tension kept kicking them out of alignment. I didn't have that designated holding tool on hand so I was searching for something in my shop to jamb them into the sweet spot. I saw one video were a guy clamped them with a pair of vise grips but I wasn't comfortable doing that.

After about 20 minutes of trying to find a tool or scrap section of metal that would be just the right diameter/shape to jamb these two into alignment I eventually found the perfect holding jig in this sharpie pen. I was getting desperate and this was one of my last attempts as I was just about ready to order the tool...but this worked and most importantly no chance of damaging the sprockets with it in there. All the timing marks lining up here; including the lateral one on the plastic shroud.

These marks are on both sides of the plastic base and also one in the middle between the sprockets. I love how the Japanese give you every opportunity and guide not to screw things up!

I began installing the belt on opposite side of the tensioner just as the Tech recommends in the Video. To do that I needed an extra pair of hands to keep the belt from jumping off the sprockets as I made my way down to the water pump and tensioner. These pair of C-clamps kept the belt in place as I fed it over the pump and onto the tensioner.

Loosened the tensioner bolt and the let spring do its work as I rotated it counterclockwise three teeth as described.

It took up the slack beautifully. I had the same amount of play on both sides of the belt also described in the assembly video.

Tensioner bolt was torqued to 40Lbs as specified. Belt guide and crank sensor re-installed. Ready to close this up and move onto the valve adjustment next.

Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 0

Valve Adjustment issues:

Bought a new set of feeler gauges and the specialized adjustment and tightening tool. Rolled the cams over to the base circle and set the Intakes at 7 thousandths and the Exhausts to 8 thousandths as recommended in the assembly video.

I was almost all the way through the adjustment and decided to recheck the valves I had set earlier. Much to my surprise some of the valves where now too tight and others too loose! Eventually I figured out that this discrepancy is just due to the wear on the cams and the rocker faces.

I was at a loss so I called my cousin Dave who is a professional engine builder that specializes in Viper motors and asked him for his advice. After rotating the motor over and over while checking the lash as the cams cycled through I did confirm that the discrepancy was only about a thou. from one side of the base circle to the other, some were a touch less. Dave recommended that its better to be on the loose side rather than too tight so with that advice in mind I set the tighter ​​​​​​ side of the base circles to the 7 thou. on the intakes and 8 thou. on the exhaust side. When I cycled the cams again the more worn side would run out to that additional thousand on average. Not the way I'd prefer it but this was my best average adjustment with the cams and rockers in their current condition. Still shouldn't have any ticking sounds once everything gets good and warm but I'll keep an eye on it.

Getting my head around that problem ate up a couple of days but I was now finally comfortable enough with the final adjustment to close it up. Cleaned the valve cover up added the new seals and applied Honda bond to the 90 degree corners as recommended once again in that great assembly video.

Cover snugged down then added the plugs and wires. Can't tell you what a relief it was to finally get that head capped off.

Reinstalled the original cover with new cap nuts.

Also kept the old cap but installed a new seal. That old seal was as hard as the plastic cap itself.

Now that the technical aspects are complete other than setting the timing the more relaxing and straight forward part of bolting on components can begin.

Bolting on the intake and accessory brackets next.

Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 223

Great work!

 
Rep Power: 0

Thanks! This is my first Honda motor so I am obsessing over if its right or not and if I've covered all the bases. Shadows of doubt remain as I'm constantly going through it all in my mind and trying to think of anything that I might have missed. Right down to things like, did I use enough Honda bond there? Anyway, only one way to find out if its going to leak or not... Thanks again...


A big mistake I made before I sent it of to the machine shop was not taking all the sensors and fittings off the block and head. I got some back but not all. The Knock sensor did not come back.. a very pricey mistake.

Knock sensor installed and intake manifold ready to remount. After all those miles a very thick layer of carbon and deposits built up around the injector heads and completely lined the intake runners and the rest of the inside of the manifold. It took several rounds to finally get the inside of this unit clean. This one of those chores you'll only do yourself. The dealer just put it right back on all gummed up and hastily removed the old gasket remains with a roloc wheel. I had to hand block the flange to eliminate the grinding marks and clean the surface up as best as I could but some surface scars remain. It should seal up fine though.

Intake installed. Still amazed about how much room this intake occupies in the engine compartment

. Ready for the accessories and brackets.

Again, many an hour spent here cleaning all these components for reinstallation. Corrosion is not an issue out here so all the original coatings on the parts have survived as well as all the gold zinc plating on the hardware.

Began with the alternator mounts.

These two were actually left raw and unpainted from the factory. They did flash rust so they were soaked in acid and once clean were treated in black oxide and coated in a thin coat of clear to preserve the surface.

Then it was onto the AC/motor MT. bracket, the power steering mounts and finally the little heat shield for the timing belt cover. Gone about as far as I can on the engine stand. Dismounting it next to install the flywheel, clutch and finally the transmission.
Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 0

Transmission:

The trans was not leaking but while I'm here I went ahead and purchased all the seals that are offered for it. Axles, shifter and cover boot, fork boot, speed sensor O-ring. Surprised that there is no main input shaft seal...

Release fork removed so I could clean the housing down in behind it and of course it has never been cleaned. The T.O. bearing was just slapped on at the dealer along with the old grease which I found impregnated with lots of granular impurities. The operating sleeve does show some mild wear. New axle seal ready to be installed.

I purchased the recommended Honda Urea grease for this application.

Not worn or old enough but am replacing the dealer installed generic T.O. bearing with a factory Nachi unit.

Release fork cleaned with pivot point packed with the urea grease. Operating sleeve also coated in it for the new T.O. bearing to run on.

Much to my relief it operates smoothly with no detectable wear or slop. Just have to install the new fork boot to seal with area out.

Clutch assembly:

When I had the Head done in '19 I also had them install a new clutch while it was down. It felt fine and wasn't slipping but we were still on the original clutch at 250K miles. They showed it to me and it still had some life left...Damn!

After I got the car back I did notice that if the revs weren't high enough that the clutch would now chatter! I was hoping it would resolve itself after some time but it never did; I just learned to operate around it, most of the time. When we broke this clutch down I was expecting to find greasy residue on the clutch surfaces but they were clean. I can only attribute the chatter to the quality of this generic clutch assembly that was installed.

I have no confidence in that unit so it was never going back in. Taking my cue again from that EM1 assembly video I followed their lead and purchased the same Street version ACT pressure plate. I didn't buy their kit as I already had a factory T.O. and Pilot bearing.

I was going to buy the ACT's street disc but I found this new C.C. disc for half price from a guy online. Motor is off the stand and am installing the fly wheel and this new clutch assembly next.

Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 223

Clutch chatter probably caused by cheap pressure plate/clutch disc as well as the flywheel not be resurfaced or replaced. Had the same thing on a CRV I purchased a few years ago. Previous owner replaced the clutch for as cheap as possible. This Honda dealership really took advantage of you.

With everything you're doing, your Civic is going to run flawlessly for another 300k miles.

 
Rep Power: 0

They screwed me big time Bro. The only thing positive I can say is that it ran without a major issue up until last year. I never really studied my bill up until recently. They were very late in getting my car back to me and on one call with my service rep he mentioned that the tech took it out for a test run and it quit on him on the highway. That must have been true because after finally looking at my bill closely they charged me for the tow WTF! 70 bucks!! A very expensive lesson learned and all because I just didn't want to be bothered with fixing it myself. I agree, I think the chatter was just due to a cheap clutch assembly. I had them send the fly wheel out for surfacing. It has a bit of a glaze on it now and I did take it in for surfacing once again but my machinist looked at it and said that it didn't need it. Thanks! I am shooting for no more major issues for as long as we own this car.

Clutch install:

Motor off the stand and fly wheel installed with new OEM pilot bearing with bolts torqued to spec here. Even the pilot bearing that they installed was garbage as it didn't spin smoothly. Again my machinist recommend no resurfacing at this time.

Both surfaces cleaned thoroughly with thinner and now time to put this unit together.

Really like the quality of this assembly versus the one that was in there, no comparison. Shouldn't have any issues with chatter now. All set and ready for the transmission.

Trans installed. This unit is surprisingly light so my one man installation went very smoothly. Now onto adding all the various accessories and systems.
Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 0

Engine harness rehab:

Sections of the harness sheathing have given up but the wires have survived fine.

The conduit is readily available so I replaced the sections that needed it and rewrapped all the leads with electrical tape as done originally.

I had repaired it several weeks ago so it was ready to remount on the day I needed it. It was a bit of puzzle laying it back on and routing it correctly as I had initially installed the main run upside down but fortunately becomes self explanatory as the fitment progresses.

Shifted gears and went back installing some new fittings and sensors. Again I could not get a new thermostat housing but the cap is still available. The neck of the old one shows some electrolysis so I bought a new one along with a new fan switch sensor while I was at it.

The heater hose fitting on the back of the cylinder head also needed replacing. That sucker was in there tight and I was down to a pair of vise grips and dead blow hammer to get it out.

All the new fittings and sensors back here now installed.

More accessories installed like the starter motor which further confirmed the routing and fitment of the harness.
Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 0

Power steering pump rebuild:

The pump has been a leaky pig for quite a while. My initial plan was to take it into Honda for their rebuild and exchange program like I did for the alternator and the starter years before. Much to my disappointment they no longer offer the service for a car this old. I can't even get th Alternator exchanged with them anymore. Nothing wrong with mine now but I thought what the hell, lets do that too while I'm in here. I looked around at other exchange programs but found nothing that seemed trust worthy. There was one outfit offering an EM1 version pump priced at 300 plus the core. My red flag with them was their rebuilt unit was spray painted flat black. I surmised that it was camouflage for the old grease and grime they left behind. If they can't be bothered to clean housing thoroughly what kind of rebuild quality could I really expect?

I could still order all the seals and main bearing from Honda for this unit so I decided I'd rebuild it myself. Its the original unit this car came with and while it has nearly 300K on it, it never made any noises, just leaked.

I was all set but I soon ran into a snag with this housings back cover. There is a pressed bushing in it that the end of main shaft rides in and I found that it had worn through the hardened surface coating of this bushing.

I was stuck. I could put it back together but how long was that really going to last with the bushing worn through like that? I was hoping to find an NOS EM1 pump but nothing ever came up. As I searched I did find this NOS pump for an 02-04 Odessey. I studied it and studied and other than housing configuration everything else looked identical. The seller was firm at 375. I could have a partial mystery rebuild from that shop for 300 bucks+core or I could take a shot and have a "new unit" in the end for 75 bucks more? I decided to roll the dice. Took delivery of it here and things were looking good!

Once I pulled the back cover off everything was confirmed; it would all transfer over. On the right is the original cover with the worn bushing and on the left is the new cover with a nice evolutionary upgrade. Needle bearings in place of the previous bushing. Problem solved!

While the donor unit is "new" the seals in it are over 15 year old so I decided to go ahead and order the entire seal kit for it.

Technically I only needed the back cover with its new bearing but I decided to switch out everything and start fresh. The pump unit itself, the main shaft, internal valving, all of it.

Reassembled with all new guts but with the old hardware.

But other than that the main housing and the pulley are all that remain of the original pump.

My "new" power steering pump ready to install.
Thanks for looking.

 
Rep Power: 0

Adding on more accessories:

I assume the V-Tec solenoid still works so just resealing for now.

Same the idle module. Cleaned and blew out the inside of it and just reseal. Will only replace either one of these if I absolutely have to.

Added those on along with the alternator and few other parts. The harness was slowly simplifying.

Onto prepping the exhaust manifold mating flanges for its reinstallation.

Rear shield installed and Confirming the gasket fit.

I almost didn't separate the header pipe from the manifold this time around as the original exhaust manifold cracked and was dealer replaced only a few years ago. The original catalytic converter partially plugged and created back pressure that eventually cracked the manifold. They were both replaced just right around 2019. I assumed the dealer replaced the seals on the header pipe but it looks as if they have never been replaced and the right one shows a crack. So glad I separated these two.

Flanged all cleaned with new seals installed and it too is now ready to remount.

 
Rep Power: 0

Shifter assembly:
After all these miles you can imagine how many times that shifter lever has gone back and fourth. I decided now was also the time to replace any bushings and seals related to the shift linkage.

The leather cover on the **** gave up years ago. While I was ordering the other lever related parts I went ahead bought a new OEM replacement.

Once I got the pivot assembly apart I was shocked to find all the internal seals and bushings in great shape with no excessive wear or slop. The pivot boot had dried up a little but other than that it could have been reassembled as it was. I didn't do that as I had all the new parts on hand but just one more example of how great Honda engineering is.

New OEM boot, pivot ball cage and seals all ready for reassembly.

Pivot assembled and ready for re-installation into the base housing. BTW I also purchased a new rubber mounting base for the tail here and also the donut bushing for the front. Both are still in excellent shape so I'll keep them on hand until they need replacing.

Shifter unit ready to install. Had to throw a couple of tack-weld on those studs as the shouldered holes hogged out on me. One more step closer.
Thanks for looking.