i hope you get it worked out before friday also. i wanna see what your car runs!!!!

 

Well, this sure is getting interesting and expensive. I took the car to Alan Cox Automotive in Marietta, GA. Jeremy, their S2000 specialist, has owned and raced our cars, and they are one of the few full repair shops who are willing to mess with FI installs and whatnot. Here are the highlights of our conversation:

1. The ECU is detecting knock at idle and retarding timing 7-8 degrees.
2. We pulled the plugs and took a look inside the engine with a digital video scope. The tops of the pistons were wet (likely fuel), and there seemed to be spots where the fuel is pooling. There seems to be too much fuel getting into the engine at low rpm.
3. This time, I was getting a different CEL for 'low voltage @ O2 sensor'. This CEL actually cleared itself while the car was idling inside the shop. A CEL came back when I started driving home; not sure yet which it is.
4. The clutch throwout bearing is dragging on the mainshaft collar. It probably needs to be replaced.

Jeremy thinks 70% of the issue is clutch related - the drag on the engine is stalling it mechanically. This makes sense to me because the starter motor has a very hard time cranking it after it stalls, yet it starts right up after a normal shutdown. It's like the engine is physically catching on something and can't turn over. The other 30% is fuel / tune / voltage related. Could be partly due to my battery relocation, so I need to check into that.

We also can't rule out, but can't confidently point to, a faulty O2 sensor or a faulty IACV. And I personally think part of it might be due to my lazy ass not installing my catch can yet, so the MAP, IACV, and throttle body are probably getting pretty gunked up again.

I think I'd have to be a total fool to try to run a car at the drag strip when the clutch is this messed up and the check engine light is coming on pretty much all the time, so I'm probably not doing that this Friday. I'm leaning toward replacing the clutch at the same time as I do the throwout bearing, because it feels like it's slipping (after 5 months!!). They recommended Competition Clutch stage 2, though I was thinking ACT. Gonna have to do some research on that.

We also had the Hondata vs. E-Manage discussion and it might be time for me to make that investment. I'm not excited about doing that and the clutch at the same time, but if I need to re-tune the car to fix the fuel issues, there's not a lot of point doing it on E-Manage and then going Hondata again later.

Discuss!

 

So, I turned the idle set screw (on the TB) up a bit and set the idle at 1,100 rpm. It doesn't stall anymore, and I haven't gotten any CELs. In the meantime, here's a vid of the car trying to "idle" last night. I had just started the car and was sitting there in neutral, feet off the pedals...

http://www.flickr.co...N06/6292022614/

Took the IACV off today to see if it was dirty again but it's still clean. (I cleaned it a few months ago.) So I ordered a new one from Majestic.

 

Vacuum leak
Bad iacv
Or tuning for iacv if emu can which I don't think so

This would happen to me here and there. Was bad tuning for iacv but I'm aem ems.

 

Update - we've got the transmission out of the car and just took a look at my SOS clutch. The shop who installed it apparently didn't use ANY grease, so the throwout bearing is bone dry and dragging like crazy on the collar. They also didn't tighten the pressure plate down evenly, so the clutch was only grabbing on half of the flywheel. (I took pics, which I'll post later for your amusement.)

The SOS clutch looks fine. We could put it back in, but I'm either at or above its torque rating already and I'm going for more power next year. So I'm going to put in the ACT HD SS since I have it sitting here and the transmission is out of the car.

I think this explains why the car felt like it wasn't putting power down, and why the clutch was so tricky to engage smoothly.

 

Just drove home. Took me a couple tries to get used to the way the ACT feels, but after 20 minutes in the car it's as natural as anything I've driven. I can't remember what stock actually felt like, but this seems just like it. Night and day difference vs. trying to engage a clutch that is only grabbing half the flywheel with metal-to-metal contact between the bearing and the shaft. It's buttery smooth, super easy to drive and - OMG - I can slip the clutch again! What joy!! Jeremy said that after driving the car on the old setup, he expected to find a 4- puck clutch when he pulled the transmission out. Haha.

Then, best of all, I received a gift while driving home - another CEL! And yes it's a gift, because it's a P0505 - Idle Air Control. Since I had already ordered a new IACV and am just waiting for Majestic to deliver it (damn snowstorm!), this makes me feel a whole lot better that I might be able to fix the idle problem. (Speaking of, it's going nuts now, constantly revving when in neutral. My IACV is dying a long and painful death.)

But wait! There's more. We had the car sitting there idling in the shop and I mentioned to Jeremy that my 928 Motorsports boost limiter valve was pretty much seized up and I couldn't loosen it. We took a closer look at it and noticed it was letting out a huge amount of air - at idle! Blipped the throttle on the TB and a ton of air gushed out. The BLV has been letting all my boost out! Haha well now between the clutch and the BLV I think I know why the car felt a lot slower. It had never done this at idle before, so maybe the spring is getting weak, I don't know...

We tightened it up as far as we could (1/4 turn; the threads are really seized) which helped a bit, but it's still letting air out. If I can't get it shut, I'm just gonna wrap like 10 layers of duct tape around it. I had thought it needed to be loosened to blow off excess boost above 14psi, but it's letting air out at idle and throughout the rpm range instead! Fail.

So, if my idle problem was caused by the IACV, the clutch problem was due to poor installation, the shuddering / shaking is due to CV buckets, the lost power is due to BLV boost leaks and clutch installation, then that leaves... The fuel issue. Which, honestly, might be caused by the boost leak because not all the air is getting into the engine. Now the question is whether it was leaking air when it was on the dyno. I don't think it was, so the tune was based on having all that air in there, and that might account for the extra fuel we saw in the motor. Hard to say. Forged is having an open house tomorrow so I'll go chat with Sharif.

 

Which portion of your work was done by Forged/Sharif?

Glad you got it all figured out.

J

 

Forged wired in my wideband and tuned the car on the E-manage. Everything else I've done myself or used local shops for.

 

IMO: Thw ACT Heavy Duty Pressure Plate usung the OEM Disc is one of the best Clutch / Disc setups...very streetable, holds well. Feels alot like stock with a quicker enganement.

I ran the ACT / OEM disc for over 30-k mikes on my Comptech SC setup and never had an issue. Kept it with my current set-up @ 351 lbs torque.....Holds Great.

If I remember correct, I think it's rated for 370 - 390 ft-lbs of torque. Probably similar to the ACT SS Disc you just added. I think you made a wise choice that really gives you the best of drivabilty / hold power...tha's good to about 550 WHP.

 

Thanks! It's sooooo easy to drive compared to the mess I had going on before. Buzzes a bit sometimes on decel, but I can live with that.

So, update time. I replaced the primary O2 sensor and the IACV because I've been getting CELs for both of those. No luck. In fact, it seems to be getting worse. It just threw CEL P0505 again, and every time I stop at a light I have to turn the engine off to keep it from revving up and down, up and down. Now it's fast paced, like rev-rev-rev-rev-rev-rev-rev.

I've run out of normal stuff to fix, so I'm going to pull the ID1000's, disconnect the supercharger and yank the E-manage over the weekend. If it calms down, then we'll know the E-manage was going nuts. If it doesn't, then at least I can take it to shops and say, here, it's NA, fix it!!

I find myself thinking more and more about buying a C6 Corvette... But I'd be happier if I could just get this sorted out.