So running on 3 cylinders and i know why.....Sorta

[Grumpys93]

Ok so the other night i stopped at a gas station turned car of as normal then. When i went to start it back up it sounded like a boxer motor. So from past events i assumed an o-ring was blown. So i proceeded to do a compression test and it read like this 195,195,190,and 187. So i know the seals are still good. So i look at the spark plugs and saw this.




The one on the left is from cylinder 4 which i assume is firing and the one on the right is from cylinder 3 which i assume is not firing. So i have no clue why 3 is not firing but the rest are.

I just replaced the wires and spark plugs. Could it be the tube seals have blown and is just coating 3 with oil?

[chessboxer]

Possibly. Did you change your plugs? If so, did it help anything?

[d112crzy]

You need better pics. Can't really tell if that's a fouled plug or a plug that is slightly richer, or a cylinder that leaks oil through the valve seals.

How have you confirmed it's not firing in that cylinder, besides looking at spark plugs? Do you get spark or fuel from it?

[Grumpys93]

well i replaced the spark plugs two days ago. So i hope it didn't foul in one day especially since i didn't beat on it. As for confirming i was not able to check for spark since it was just me and i only know the way of having two ppl. But i took the one on the left and put it in cylinder 3 and ran it for about a min. Took the plug out and came out looking like the previous one on the right. I have more plugs i can put in to see if it is fouled.

But i can smell the fuel on it so i know its getting fuel.

I'll try and get better pics tomorrow.

[N9netwoAccord]

while its idiling, pull the plug wire off each cylinder, you should hear a drop in idle... if a cylinder doesn't drop in idle thats the one not firing.

also, you can leave the spark plug in the wire and run out and check if real fast to see if its sparking. not the best way, but it works.

[d112crzy]

Or..to check timing in that one cylinder, turn on car, have an extra plug handy, pull #3 wire off, then with some pliers(with rubber fitted handles) install spare plug. it'll spark if you get spark.


is the smell of fuel strong?

[Grumpys93]

ok so i did the spark test. And it didn't die when i pulled the plug on 3. However when i pulled the plug and wire and stuck it next to the manifold it threw a nice silver spark. I can smell the fuel. Its not strong strong but i can smell it. I bought valve stem seals today going to replace them tomorrow. So i hope that will fix the problem. It seems it is not getting spark when it is in the combustion chamber. So could it be that there is oil being poured in by the seals and coating the spark plug?

[d112crzy]

You are aware that you need a valve compressor tool to replace valve seals?

I'd check your cap and rotor next, the contact on #3 might be extremely worn that it gives a weak spark.

So pulling the plug wire while the car was running made absolutely no difference in the way the car idled?

[Grumpys93]

i am refering to the seal under the rocker arm assembly. Spark plug tube seals excuse me/
But yes i pull the wire while car is on and makes no difference the rest do but 3 doesn't. Ill check the cap tomorrow. The rotor is fairly new. The cap on the other hand is not.

[wed3k]

resistance test the wire.

[Grumpys93]

even though its brand spanking new wires?

[wed3k]

even though its brand spanking new wires?

it doesnt hurt, what brand?

[Grumpys93]

the ones i use to have where NGK blues. The just the other day i bought autolite. Just to see if it would fix the problem

[Grumpys93]

ok so the accord is running perfectly fine. This problem appearently was the cause of the breaking up in boost. It was in fact the distributor cap. Here is a pic of what the inside of the cap looks like. Nasty. But i put the new cap on and it cranked up perfect and is boosting as strong as before =)

[chessboxer]

Blowing that spark out! Glad to see you got it solved.