1994 ACURA INTEGRA OIL DISAPPEARING?

cborden
1994 Acura Integra

Engine Mechanical problem
1994 Acura Integra 4 cyl Front Wheel Drive Manual 175000 miles

ive had my integra for only a year and when my clutch blew out and I went out and just decided to check my oil and the dipstick comes out completely dry but when I change my oil I got the recommended amount in there and when I got my valve stem seals replaced the technician told me my exhaust side smelled alot like gas like it wasnt burnin it all off and on the front side of the engine some oil seems to be leaking oil front the head gasket area but ive also already replaced the head gasket another mechanic said it may be the fuel regulator is bad and is dumping too much fuel in and washing down the cylinder walls or I was thinkin the piston rings were bad or going bad any ideas?

51 Replies

KHLow2008
Expert
41,994 posts

Hi cborden,

Thank you for the donation.

Honda engines would not have any problem with oil leaking from the head gasket. If it is from the front end, ie near the timing belt side, most likely source would be the camshaft seals or valve cover gasket near the camcarriers. During installation, sealant have to be applied at the corners of the valve cover gasket to prevent leaking.

For exhaust fumes to smell strongly of gas, there are many possible causes.

If the injectors are dumping in too much gas, the spark plugs would be sooty and you would have erratic idling issues. Starting would be affected as well.

A bad catalytic converter, O2 sensor, Throttle Position Sensor, clogged air filter, fuel pressure regulator ( this item seldom fails for Honda), clogged fuel return hoses are some of the possible items.

Piston rings can go bad at high mileages so is a possibility with your case but after replacement of the valve seals, do you still have oil consumption issues? Do you have a lot of grey exhaust smokes at high rpm?

If too much fuel is being dumped into the cylinders and cleaning up the piston rings, you would have compression and difficult or non starting issues.

Note : I have seen very few honda engines with problem on pistons rings.

Is the performance of the engine as good or better than replacement of the valve seals and head gasket?

Recheck the timing belt installation. A off time cog can cause erratic idling and strong exhaust fumes and performance issues.

The oil is leaking for the front end but not on the cam side its coming from where the head meets the cylinder head right where the head gasket is and im thinking when it was replaced maybe the head wasn t torqued down enough
and my spark plugs were getting sooted up but someone told me thatr bosch wasnt good for honda so I changed them out for ngk
and wouldn t a cat or bad o2 sensor throw off a check engine light?
Cause I dont got one
and I havent noticed black smoke coming out the back but the back of my car has a black trail coming up it from the exhaust side
and recently the car seems to pause for a moment before it wants to start
and the performance seems the same after the seals were redone I just wanted to get em done cause the engine was old
and the car has been retimed about three times within the last few months

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Saturday, May 1st, 2010 AT 9:37 AM

KHLow2008
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The head gasket is the steel type and if it is not torqued correctly, the engine would be running badly.

At the front there are no oil pressurized passages but if the cam seals are leaking, the oil would drip down and out to the front.

A bad cat might not throw any codes and if fuel is being dumped through the cat, it would run red hot.

Was the ignition timing checked?

The black trail indicates the cat is not working correctly.

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Saturday, May 1st, 2010 AT 10:21 AM

cborden
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What about when I go to check my oil the dipstip comes out dry?

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Saturday, May 1st, 2010 AT 11:42 AM

KHLow2008
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Does the exhaust emit grey smoke at initial start up, maybe a few nimutes after starting up?

Is the leak very bad?

How many miles have you driven the vehicle after oil replacement?

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Saturday, May 1st, 2010 AT 11:58 AM

cborden
Member

I havent really looked to see if the exhaust was emitting smoke and idk if the leak is bad but the oil slowly disappears i dont know what to do ive changed valve seals the pan gasket head gasket
i dont even drive the car 3000 miles before oil replacement and it seems the oil is gone after a month and i dont race the car i try to take it slow cause i know the engine s old and i dont need anymore problems
i probably did oil change early last month and thats whats left
and some sort of liquid is comin from the passenger side of the engine
whats ignition timing?
i have after market cam gears that i cannot get the specs on
and could all the oil loss be from cam seals?

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Sunday, May 2nd, 2010 AT 2:56 PM

KHLow2008
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Adjustable cam sprockets means the valve timing might not be accurate and that can cause the timing to be off and that can result in the incomplete combustion.

The liquid leaking from between the tran and engine area could be from the distributor or its O ring.

You might need a thicker grade oil if the one that you are using is being depleted too fast.

Ignition timing is the time the spark fires and is affected by the distributor position.

If the cam seals are not properly installed, it can leak quite badly. You would need to remove the valve and timing cover to have a visual inspection.

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Sunday, May 2nd, 2010 AT 3:19 PM

cborden
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Last time i got it timed the tech said everything was set to zero but since i cant get the spec cards to the gears theres no way to be certain that its 100 percent
i would have to remove the distributor in order to replace the o ring?
the oil im using is recommended for the engine what grade should i use?
could the distributor be off and cause a premature or delayed spark to occur and result in these conditions
how would i know if they were properly installed (cam seals)and how would i reinstall them properly
i have new replacements (cam seals) i just figured the old ones were still good because there were no obvious sign of leaking there profusely

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Sunday, May 2nd, 2010 AT 4:15 PM

KHLow2008
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You are right about the cam seals not leaking judging by the picture.

Ignition timing is adjusted by turning the distributor clockwise or anti clockwise. If the timing is too advanced or retarded, it can cause performance difference.

Yes, the distributor has to be removed to replace the O ring.

The recmmended oil is 10 W30. You can try 20/W50.

For the camshaft sprockets, they have to be adjusted to get the correct valve timing. Our database do not have the specifications for the valve timing.

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Sunday, May 2nd, 2010 AT 5:26 PM

cborden
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I removed the distributor the o ring looks fine and it doesnt seem to be leaking any oil from that side

i was lookin at the seal behind the vtec and it doesnt look to be seated all the way but would this cause all the oil to disappear

and doesnt 20w50 seem a little drastic?
and i figured you didnt have the specs its just my luck but how would i correct it without buying new wheels
i thought that the rotor on the distributor is supposed to be at the #1 plug while the gears should point straight up along with the crankshaft?
the aftermarket gears are not adjusted and are still pointed at 0

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Sunday, May 2nd, 2010 AT 5:40 PM

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1994 ACURA INTEGRA OIL DISAPPEARING?

51 Replies

What about when I go to check my oil the dipstip comes out dry?

Does the exhaust emit grey smoke at initial start up, maybe a few nimutes after starting up? Is the leak very bad? How many miles have you driven the vehicle after oil replacement?

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Does the exhaust emit grey smoke at initial start up, maybe a few nimutes after starting up?

Is the leak very bad?

How many miles have you driven the vehicle after oil replacement?