darkkaaos

Morning/Afternoon all

Wanted to get some opinions or maybe advise from some of ya'll with the same model and year that I have.

My ride has about 125k miles on it ...purrrs like a kitten, its a 5spd 2.2 1997 ... regular oil changes, I've owned it since 96k in about a years time ...pretty sure the car was pretty taken care of prior to me owning the car, and treated like a baby since I've owned it.

A) Check Engine Light keeps coming on ... first time was about a week after I received the Emissions recall, so I took it to Acura and they put all new stuff in it (EGR, wires, plugs, etc.) so about a weeks time passed and the light came back on ...took it back to Acura and got an oil change while I was there, light stayed off for about 4 hours and then came back on ... what does this mean ???

B) What can I do to ensure that everything is going to remain running clean ?? I don't want to end up with all these miles on my car and have something BIG go out on me ...what precations can I take to keep the engine clean and running in good order ?? Additives to oil? Gas? what ?? If there are things that are SAFE to add to our cars, what are they ?? I've heard mixed things about those Fuel or Oil additives. Could somebody break it down for me ??

Well lemme know guys ...I'm new to this board and I've been learning mad shit 'bout my car ...which is the reason I signed up!! Keep it comin' guys

Thanks -DaRk

bana6450

check your fuel cap for starters ... i have had the same thing happen to mine.. if your cap isn't at least 3 clicks tight it will do that a times

darkkaaos

The fuel cap will trigger the Check Engine light ?? Is that what you were referring to ?

jttoombs

Yeah thats what he was talking about if you dont get at least three clicks the light comes on. Also sometimes you just need to disconnect the ECU for a while. Remove the negative terminal from the battery which resets the ECU. When You put it back on youll have to re-enter you five digit code to turn your cd player on and reset your chanels and clock. But your car will re-tune itself and the light might go away if it doesnt take it back to the dealership. Do you have any mods or aftermarket stuff? Also make sure you know your 5 digit cd code before doing this. It came on a plastic card the size of a credit card, and should be with your car manual

darkkaaos

Ya man ...when I took it to Acura, I found out about needing the code AFTER I had left the dealership ...fortuneately I have all of the original literature including the window price sticker ...so I have the code, but I will definately try to disconnect the neg and also tighten the fuel cap ... any suggestions as far as high mileage additives to help keep my engine clean on the inside (where ya cant see)

jttoombs

Yes Restore, thats the name Restore good stuff, also STP fuel injector cleaner. You add restore with new oil when you get your oil changed. Remeber your car runs best on 87 octane also.

SmoothD

Haha...is that a unity I.D. I see?

jttoombs

Damn right

darkkaaos

Is this something I can find pretty much anywhere ?? There are alot of parts stores, track auto, local places and then other performance places ... -dark

Acura3.0CL

I have a 97 3.0 and ive got 83k miles on it. :-( My checkengine lights been on almost 1 month. I went to Acura and they said the EGR thingy was on recal but was also on back order. Ive been waiting for almost 2 months now!! How long does this damn thing have to be on recall???!!!?? They also told me my ignition is on recal too...ahh!! stressed!

niedejb

You can find out what check engine light your getting very simply.

I have instructions on my website with all the codes. All you do is short out the connector in this pic and watch the light flash. The coresponding codes tell you what the problem is.



Click here for instructions and codes

mbuna

Don't run 87 octane piss through it first off, I'm tired of seeing people harp on that! Just because the manual says its alright doesn't mean you shouldn't run cleaner gas, i.e plus or premium. The manual says that about 87 so people in new mexico and the like don't run 85 or 86 octane thru their cars, not because its THE PERFECT gas. Regular is always dirtier and less refined!

niedejb

You will get more power out of the 87. Gauranteed.

Fuel filters (theres two in our cars) will take care of the dirt.

jttoombs

87 Isnt dirtier or less refined damnitt, theres just less of a certain organic molecule called octane which is an 8 sided carbon chain. which isn't as chemically unstable as heptane, meaning that it doesn't ignite under higher pressure like heptane does.

87 is refined just as much as 93 its just 87% Octane and 13% heptane whereas 93 octane is 93% octane and 7% heptane. The Octane rating is a measure of knock resistance not a fucking measure of purity. If your car knocks then hop up to 89 if It doesnt knock your wasting your money on anything besides 87. The gas all gets shipped in the same containers, they all get the same detergents packs added to them according to company to clean your injectors, and they all burn during ignition. If you go to high with your octane your engine cant burn all of it because the compression is to low and you get shit buildup throughout the system.

darkkaaos

Thank you for the pic and instructions. I'm going to check it out tonight when I get home. As far as the fuel, I never hear a knocking in my car weather I use high or low, but I primarily use the mid-grade stuff just so its not too low or too high ...I get round about 400 miles to a full tank ...sometimes 450 if its ALL highway driving. Anyways, thank you all very much for the helpful tips and advice! -dark