1993 Honda Civic Idle Surging

HONDA CIVIC
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JOSER81
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  • 1 POST
HEY, I HAVE A 93 HONDA CIVIC HATCHBACK, I JUST HAD THE ENGINE SWAPED OUT AND REPLACED IT WITH A 1996 1.6 SOHC V-TEC ENGINEM, NOW MY PROBLEM IS THAT WHEN IM AT A STAND STILL, MY IDLEING IS JUMPING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN 1000 AND 2500 RPMS NONE STOP. NOW MY BUDDY THAT SWAPED THE ENGINE FOR ME SAID THAT ITS MOST LIKEY HAPPENING BECAUSE I DIDN'T CHANGE ALL THE 93 COMPONENTS TO 96 COMPONENTS (COMPONENTS MEANING STARTER, DISTRIBUTOR, ETC.) SO I WAS WONDERING WHAT I WOULD NEED TO DO TO MAKE IT IDLE CORRECTLY, I THINK MY BUDDY JUST ADJUSTED THE SCREW TO THE MAF SENSOR TO MAKE IT IDLE STEADY, BUT NOW IT IDLES VARLY HIGH AT 1500 RPM'S. WHAT SHOULD I DO???
Jun 23, 2006 at 6:44 AM
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BRUCE HUNT
  • ✓Experienced Mechanic
  • 3,754 POSTS
Your buddy just pushed the idle up and shouldn't have. That made the computer happier but the root of the problem still exists. The complete component swap could be an issue, but did you replace the intake manifold or switch them by chance? I suspect that there is an intake manifold gasket leak.
Jun 25, 2006 at 3:12 PM
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BENZ_GUY
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  • 28 POSTS
I'm with Bruce on this ...

Check for a vacuum leak, the intake manifold gasket is a pretty common place for a leak.
Jun 27, 2006 at 4:17 PM

Suggested Repair

Do not raise the idle with the MAF adjustment screw. Check for a vacuum leak, especially at the intake manifold gasket, and confirm the swapped engine's intake and related components match.

Conversation Summary

A 1993 Honda Civic hatchback with a 1996 1.6 SOHC VTEC engine swap surges between about 1000 and 2500 rpm at idle. Raising the idle with the MAF screw only made it idle high around 1500 rpm. Experts said that adjustment masks the problem and recommended checking for a vacuum leak, particularly at the intake manifold gasket, while noting mismatched swap components could also be involved.

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