I bought my '02 S2000 used w/ 39k on it. I wish I had done a leak-down & compression test before I bought it, but I didn't even know it was important till after joining this forum. I want to get the tests done, but I wonder if I get a bad result, what will I be able to do about it? Will there be a fix besides replacing the block and or pistons/rings? It almost seems futile to pay for the tests if you can't do anything to fix it.

 

Compression test tells you how much pressure your cylinders are holding, and the leakdown tells you where the compression mixture is escaping.

Where can it escape? Piston rings, valves, valve stem seals. So a leakdown test can tell you what exactly needs replacing, so no you do not always need to replace your pistons/block. In fact you never have to replace your pistons/block, just maybe the piston rings and a re-hone of the walls.

 

Leakdown will not tell you WHERE the leak is going directly.

Valve stem seals will not be a cause of a cyl pressure leak.

The cylinders are FRM and not honeable.

 

Billman250,

So what can I do if I have a leak?

 

Rebuild or replace the motor.

 

That's what I thought, so getting the test done is futile unless you have thousands to burn.

That sucks

 

This is great news! I don't have to replace my piston or block!








And Jason, I wouldn't go so far as to say it's useless. Some smaller problems left unattended can lead to bigger problems.

 

Low compression could be a tight valve. But out of 100+ s2k's, I've yet to find a single tight valve. This would likely only come into play if the valve clearence was improperly set.

 

IIRC honing the cylinders is possible but, it takes special equipment to do it...

 

The FRM bores have very specific honing procedures. They are difficult enough to hone, it's not worth the risk of trying. The only oversize piston available are .5mm oversize. Most scuffed bores will require more than .5mm to correct.