I bought an O3 type S 6 sp manual used--only to find it had bent valves from over revving. Courtesy of the prior owner.
The Acura dealer knew the car and had previously denied warranty coverage for abuse.

After many false starts, I replaced the engine with a supposedly low mileage engine imported from Japan--but no specific information available on engine.

after installation, I had a leakdown test done on engine--which showed what I think are very good levels--1-2% on all but one cylinder that was 3%.

My questions are:

1. Are these levels consistent with a low mileage engine--20,000 miles or less?

2. Could I expect another 150,000 miles with major engine problems if the car is correctly driven and well maintained?

I like the car and don't want to take the financial hit of trading

thanks in advance for your input

John

 

Sounds OK to me, also you can switch to synthetic oil like Mobil 1 which will result in nearly zero additional wear as time goes on.

 

the fact that someone damaged the original engine is amazing. the new one you got should be fine. those are good #'s but its hard to say wether its a low mileage or not by those with a honda. i had those #'s at a little over 70k when i checked mine. im going to check mine again at 200k to see where it is

 

How did you find an 03 type-s 6 speed manual? None were made, the old owner swapped the CL 6speed tranny in it?

 

i forgot to ask that myself. is it a CL-S

 

hey John why did you replace the engine instead of pulling the heads and replacing the valves, it's usually an exhaust valve that is damaged and leaves the car with a rough idle but totally drivable.

 

Yes, the car was an 03 CLS 6 sp Manual. When I had a leakdown test done before repair it showed leakage past rings so I chose to get a used engine rather than trying to repair the one I had. Being a used engine was a horrible experience and recommended only for your worst enemy. A couple of bad engines, big delays and labor costs--a nightmare. I thought it was the cheapest and best way out but I learned my lesson.

John

 

well, thats a pretty rare car since the 6spd was only made 1 year. (2003) and most came with automatic. I'll put it like this in the last two years I've only seen 3 cls 6spd at my shop and one of them is there now, did a leak down test on friday bent exhaust valve #4 cylinder. but the car is really fast. only idles rough.

so you had bent valves plus bad piston rings?

if you enjoy driveing the car i would hang on to it with proper maintenance it should last a long time.

 

Not that amazing that the engine was damaged ... Do a downshift from 3rd -> 2nd when you meant to do an upshift from 3rd -> 4th, and you've got yourself a blown engine.

As far as the engine is concerned, I wouldn't worry too much about it. If you maintain it properly, even if it already had 50k on it, you can still probably go 150k with no problems. The J series engines themselves are pretty damn good. Its that damn automatic transmission that is the weak point in the car which you luckily don't have to deal with

 

It seems a lot of work to replace the engine. May I ask how much you paid for it? It seems it would have been easier/cheaper to find another CLS.

 

ok why is this in the TL forum?

 

your joking right?