97 Civic LX
My check engine light will not go off, and my inspection is out!!

p0301
Cylinder one misfire

p0303
Cylinder three misfire

p1300
Manufacture control ignition system or misfire

p1399 "pending"
Manufacture control ignition system or misfire

I understand that these are all misfire codes, I have replaced the wires and plugs, and checked the distributor and rotor they looked good,

When I reset the computer sometimes the light will come on instantly blinking at first, when it does the car idles very low.

And then other times when I reset the computer the car will run for a day or two with no light, when it does the car idles above normal,, after those few days the idle eventually goes back to very low and the light comes back on,



Work done well I owned the car...
I pulled the motor to replace the tranny and Throw out bearing
and clutch
Alternator
Timing belt
Water pump
O2 sensors-four years Ago
Cadillac converter-four years ago
Adjusted valves Clarence
Also repaired a broken wire in the intake wire harness<-[this fixed a O2 trouble code i had and stopped my lights from flashing],

 

If you're sure the ignition system is OK the next thing would be to check the fuel pressure. Make sure the vacuum hoses are hooked up properly. But I would consider a new cap and rotor anyway just in case there is a tiny crack or similar hidden problem with them.

Setting the valve clearance too tight can cause misfiring at idle. The valves don't close all the way and compression is lost. A compression test would be useful anyway to rule out internal engine problems.

 

mk already has some good suggestions.

Also have the ICM and coil in the distributor tested.

Purchase a $3-$4 engine stethoscope to listen for whether all fuel injectors are clicking.

Check whether the vacuum hose attached to the fuel pressure regulator is leaking or disconnected.

Do a Seafoam treatment of the gas tank and IM.

 

I started to check what I can at home but got sidetracked when i started pulling spark plugs wires while the car was running to double check for spark,,

The car was doing it's normal low RPM BS ATM
When I pulled cylinder one the car did not die down!! When I pulled cylinder one's power to its fuel injector the car did not die down!!

But there was a big difference in power if I drove the car like.

I swaped spark plugs swapped fuel injectors and the problem stayed in cylinder one..
I even tried different plug wires and test it for voltage at the fuel injector wire.

So then I pulled the valve cover off to check the Clarence, but immediately realize there was almost no compression at cylinder one while I was spinning the engine by hand, you could hear the pressure coming back out of the intake WTF
The valves did seem loose but the car was still hot. ill have to recheck that tomorrow morning.

So I put the car back together restart the computer are idles higher than normal and now when I pulled the plug or injector it bogs down now like it should,
But I know in a day or two the idle will drop back down. Like I said before sometimes it does it right off the bat and sometimes it takes a few days. But either way the light always comes back and with it low idle,

I'm going to have the compression test and fuel pressure done.. Where should I go to get the ICM and coil tested?

Thanks again for the help

 

An auto parts store like AutoZone will test the ICM and coil for you.

 

That temperature sensor has help with my problem, I have been driving around all of this time without the light coming back on, so I decided to have it inspected too day,

But while it was on the machine the car overheated and they canceled the scan,

Told them if they gave me 5 minutes I would be able to stop it from overheating and they said they would scan again,

So I put a jumper in the relaying switch to keep the fan on when the ignition is on,
But after I started the car and I realize that Check Engine Light was blinking, so I reset the computer and drove over 50 miles and came back to the shop but they had closed.

Im goingback to first thing tomorrow morning to hopefully get my sticker,,

I did not do the pressure test yet I was afraid it would affect the checking engine light,
it has been doing good all week ever since I replaced the temperature sensor,,

But obviously there is another problem,

What would cause the back up fan not to turn on automatically? I've checked the fuses and relays,

It's probably not good for me to keep that fan running all the time is it?

 

The radiator fan is controlled by a thermal switch on the thermostat housing. Put the relay back in, then unplug that switch and jumper the two pins in the plug for it. If the fan now runs all the time the key is on, replace the thermal switch.

You don't want to keep running the fan all the time because the motor will wear out. But you can do it for a while until you get it fixed.

 

Good new is i got my car inspectated!!!

Ok i think i know what sensor your talking about but not sure, i replaced this with a used sensor about 2 weeks ago and i did not work,

I just tryed what you said mk378, i jumped the plug [pic] and the fan did not come on,
All i got was a P0118 code,[Engine coolant temp circuit high input]


Jumping the relay like this is the only way the fan will come on...

 

That is the wrong sensor. Follow the lower radiator hose back to the thermostat and the one you want is on there. (on a Civic, the thermostat is in the lower hose, not the upper one as is typical on American cars.)

 

"So then I pulled the valve cover off to check the Clarence, but immediately realize there was almost no compression at cylinder one while I was spinning the engine by hand, you could hear the pressure coming back out of the intake WTF
The valves did seem loose but the car was still hot. ill have to recheck that tomorrow morning."

Isnt adjusting the valves with engine hot a big no no?

Ninja Edit: Arent you only supposed to turn counter clockwise too correct? could cause misalignment?