Well, the water pump and timing belt have been on the CR/V for several hundred miles, and the work is holding. The bad news is the Check Engine Light (CEL) still flashes. I am assuming it is the same misfire codes from before. So, it's not a timing belt problem. It needed replaced anyways, even though the old one looked good - 180k miles is a lot for any belt. The water pump replacement is just good common sense while the front of the motor is exposed. Oh - the distributor rotor and cap were replaced along with the plugs. The wires aren't very old - so I haven't swapped them out yet, but plan to as a simple $40 assurance that the misfires aren't related to their breakdown.
Perhaps I should have started by checking the valves. After doing more and more reading on the Honda CR-V Owners Club Forum, it appears there is a not so well known fact that the exhaust valves on this particular engine tighten* over time. The Honda owner's manual recommends 105,000 miles for the first adjustment of the valvetrain. Honda later changed this to 30,000 miles, but didn't work very hard to let owners know. If I had to guess, the valves had never been adjusted.
I pulled the valve cover and checked each intake and exhaust with a set of feeler gages. I took the time to check the intakes (.003" to .006") and made only a few minor adjustments. The exhaust is spec'd at .006" to .008". At least two valve clearances were below .001" - - terrible! And several had gone down to .003" to .005". Needless to say, it really needed adjustment.
After I put it all back together, I still have the CEL coming on, but not as often. The car has significantly more power where it should now. With a steady load on the motor, no CEL comes on. If I coast or idle, the CEL will start flashing again. From everything I have read, it sure sounds like the exhaust valves might be damaged. Ugh. Double Ugh. Here comes that cussing again!
Perhaps I should have started by checking the valves. After doing more and more reading on the Honda CR-V Owners Club Forum, it appears there is a not so well known fact that the exhaust valves on this particular engine tighten* over time. The Honda owner's manual recommends 105,000 miles for the first adjustment of the valvetrain. Honda later changed this to 30,000 miles, but didn't work very hard to let owners know. If I had to guess, the valves had never been adjusted.I pulled the valve cover and checked each intake and exhaust with a set of feeler gages. I took the time to check the intakes (.003" to .006") and made only a few minor adjustments. The exhaust is spec'd at .006" to .008". At least two valve clearances were below .001" - - terrible! And several had gone down to .003" to .005". Needless to say, it really needed adjustment.
After I put it all back together, I still have the CEL coming on, but not as often. The car has significantly more power where it should now. With a steady load on the motor, no CEL comes on. If I coast or idle, the CEL will start flashing again. From everything I have read, it sure sounds like the exhaust valves might be damaged. Ugh. Double Ugh. Here comes that cussing again!
