I have a 1989 Honda Civic that is giving me fits. Engine runs fine for the first couple minutes then bogs down and acts like its missing and then the check engine light comes one. I also noticed that the exhaust manifold right near the oxygen sensor was getting red hot. I thought maybe the catalytic converter was plugging up. I replaced the oxygen sensor and disconnected the exhaust line just after the manifold. Problem still persists and behaved exactly the same way. Below is what is displayed on the passenger side floor error code display window.

1 blink
pause
1 blink
pause
4 blinks
pause
8 blinks

From what I understand the TDC sensor is not replacable on this vehicle. Does anyone have any suggestions on what and how to test to narrow down exactly what the problem is? I'm on a super limited budget and really need to get this vehicle going again.
Thanks for all your help.

 

Is it a DPFI system (Throttle body injection, says "Dual Port" on the air box)?

Manifold getting red hot suggests the engine is running really rich.

When you have more than one code, reset the ECU and see which code(s) re-occur shortly. Some of the codes may be spurious and have been saved for a long time.

The TDC and CKP sensors are inside the distributor but not sold seperately. You generally have to swap the whole distributor to replace them. Check the sensor resistance and wiring back to the ECU before deciding sensor is bad.

 

Yes, it is a dual port.

When checking the resistance of the sensors, is there a basic procedure I should follow?

The engine will run fine for about five minutes before it begins to run rough. All four cyclinders are firing but it won't run higher than about 3000 rpms sitting still in neutral holding accelerator down. If I hold down the pedal and try to rev the engine it run for about 2 seconds then drops off then returns to previous rpms. rrrr x rrrr x rrrr x rrrr. (Graphical interpretation of mouth noises.Lol.) It does this at an even cadence continuously. If you turn vehicle off and let it cool down completely and start it up it will run fine for about five minutes and then the problems will start again.

 

I cleared the error codes and now I only get 4 flashes. Crank angle sensor?

 

Have figured out your issue

 

Mine is better than yours; I can rev it to 3,500 before it dies. But I've got 9 flashes for TDC woes. Haynes which was written many years ago says it's a replace, no fix problem. I hope someone has perfected a fix, though.