'96 Civic CEL codes: what to do?

[mrpepsalgado]

I have a 1996 civic , the very basic model and need an 02 sensor but see there are upstream and downstream , which one do I need ?


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[whitesedan]

What CEL code are showing up on a scanner?

Upstream would be pre-cat
Downstream would be post-cat

 

[mrpepsalgado]

Gonna get scanned now - I'll get back to you in a few


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[mrpepsalgado]

Ok, so i got scanned. What are these codes and what should my next moves be ?

P0301: cylinder 1 misfire detected
Spark plug suggested

P0420: catalyst efficiency below threshold ( bank 1 )
Valve cover gasket suggested ( failure will cause leaks )

Thing is , I have no leaks ....
Any tips ?


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[xxBLOOD88SHOTxx]

Who the f**k suggested the valve cover gasket for a faulty O2 sensor code?

 

[HeX]

First off, your previous title was a question and not a title, so I moved it into your first post where it belongs.

Secondly, you did not post any information about your car or engine. I had to look at your profile info just to get the year and model.

Thirdly, this is not at all within the category of 'Engine Tech / Drivetrain DIY How-To's' as you originally posted this, so I moved it to where you post issues. Had you even bothered to look at the section, you would've easily realized this.

Fourthly, I noticed after the previous 3 points that you had already created a thread about the exact same codes so there was absolutely no reason to create another one. I merged it into this one and will tweak the comments for this to make sense. This is not the first time you've done things like this.

Pay attention to where you post and always make sure to provide the basic information needed to accurately respond. You continue to make mistakes clearly due to a lack of attention or care. This will get you blackballed to the point where other members will begin to ignore your posts. Please make a better effort. Otherwise, you only work against yourself and any chance you may have at resolving your issues. Don't make it where members have to search for the info you should've provided, because no one other than a moderator, likely me, will go that far.

 

[HeX]

What are these codes and what should my next moves be ?

P0301: cylinder 1 misfire detected
Spark plug suggested

P0420: catalyst efficiency below threshold ( bank 1 )
Valve cover gasket suggested ( failure will cause leaks )

Thing is , I have no leaks ....
Any tips ?

Who made these suggestions and did you bother to ask why? You should also try searching online for each code on Google. You'll be amazed at what you find in the first two results. The second one gives you a list of what to consider. I'd post it for you, but I've noticed you have a bad habit of not researching, which you need to break. Learn to research before asking basic questions that have answers galore all over this forum and the internet.

 

[mrpepsalgado]

The suggestions come up on the autozone results - i really don't know much about the engine and specs - it's a 96 and very basic - yeah the gasket doesn't make sense but hat what the tester detected -


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[HeX]

The suggestions come up on the autozone results - i really don't know much about the engine and specs - it's a 96 and very basic - yeah the gasket doesn't make sense but hat what the tester detected -

DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH. First off (or should I say 5th), No tester used by an auto parts store suggests parts to change. The stores takes the codes and look them up in their system and read from a list of suggestions. It sounds like the guy you spoke to is an idiot and read or looked up the wrong info. Read my last suggestion and follow it. Think about it, research more, use our search function, then when you feel you have a reasonable idea of what may be going on, come back here and ask an informed question.

Unless someone removed it, all you have to do is look at your trunk lid to know the trim. If not, open the hood, then your eyes, then look at the engine by the transmission and you will see your engine code. Take that engine code and... GOOGLE IT or search here to figure out what you have.

This is yet another thing your could've figured out if you did even the slightest bit of research. Are you noticing a common trend yet? Sorry to be so sarcastic, but its a regular issue with you.

 

[mrpepsalgado]

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[mrpepsalgado]

Looks like suggested parts to me - I don't believe so I ask in the forum - I've researched and find many suggestions so I thought I'd ask - it's a forum , didn't think there was anything wrong with asking


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[HeX]

Looks like suggested parts to me - I don't believe so I ask in the forum - I've researched and find many suggestions so I thought I'd ask - it's a forum , didn't think there was anything wrong with asking

Then AutoZones system is far dumber than I thought. But thats is still a list, selected from multiple suggestions on their computer, that was printed out by one of their employees and not straight from a "tester" as you said. Either way, if you did in fact research then you should have said so and written what you concluded. However, based on what you've written so far, its clear you have not legitimately researched anything. A p0420 code is one of the most common and well covered codes anywhere. P0301 is not far behind. You made the decision to blindly accept their print out without reasonable research. Literally type in p0420 or p0301 on google and the entire first page results for each will give you easily understandable answers. Its better to just admit your faults than lie to the people you go to for assistance.

I know for a fact that both codes have been covered and covered well within the last year on this forum alone. Yes, its a forum, which is a useful research tool full of information from already asked questions, such as all of yours. Its not about re-asking the most repetitive and best covered questions, by researching first then asking what you cannot figure out. Therefore, I will respectfully decline to post here any further until you research it yourself. Otherwise, you are not contributing anything of value to this forum and the members who have helped compile all the helpful information you choose to ignore.

 

[mrpepsalgado]

The car has Plugs, cables and cap and rotor that were replaced less than a year ago - it's always had a light on since I bought it , the guy I bought it from said it was an 02 sensor yet the scanner at autozone didn't detect it .


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[Diana Nam]

your catalytic converter might be clogging up triggering a p0420 code

 

[XpL0d3r]

@mrpepsalgado P0420 is most likely related to a bad catalytic converter as @Diana Nam said. Basically, your car has two o2 sensors, a primary and secondary. In between these sensors is your catalytic converter (cat). The purpose of the cat is to reduce emissions. So, the primary sensor gets an initial reading of the exhaust gases, which is then passed through the cat, and then read by the secondary sensor. The readings between the two sensors should differ because of the cat. If the readings are identical, this means that the cat is not doing its job properly, and that will trigger the P0420 code.

 

[Diana Nam]

i don't get how the machine associates leaky valve cover with bad cat. when they entered it in to print it out for you.

 

[xxBLOOD88SHOTxx]

Someone entered the wrong diagnosis into the system, and the idiot behind the counter doesn't know the difference.

 

[mrpepsalgado]

I went to a different autozone yesterday and same thing came up.


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[xxBLOOD88SHOTxx]

They all use the same system dude. They are only good for identifying the codes, not diagnosing them. You either have a clogged cat or a bad O2 sensor. That's all it is.

 

[98civex]

It's possible a bad o2 sensor left unfixed making the ecu run in limp mode which generally causes the mixture to be more rich caused the cat to go bad as well.

If the codes just came up at the same time then you need to determine which is faulty as one is probably causing the other to appear bad.