AP1Driver

So I just bought another 02 with a greddy turbo kit and all supporting mods. The car sounded and ran perfectly fine but had a very faint and intermittent knock at the front of the VC right where the timing chain gears are. I confirmed with a stethoscope that it was not coming from the bottom and pinpointed it. It's intermittent to the point that it only occurs every 6-7 seconds and only for a second or two. It sounds like piston slap or rod knock, but coming from under the VC. WTF would cause such a sound in the valve train and only at idle?? Sometimes it won't do it for 5 min...!? I'm lost here and worried that I may have just f@#ked myself into needing a new engine or head. Oil level is fine, no issues. I'm willing to pay someone to lead me to a resolution here.... Also, the car has tons of bottom end (for an S) but seems to not pull as hard as it should from 6-9k. Oil pressure is 30psi at idle and around 85-90 cruising at 4k. Could the seeming lack of VTEC kick while in boost be related? I'm pissed that I bought it now and may have just wasted a bunch of money.

AP1Driver

Just pulled the VC to find aftermarket retainers and possibly springs. Can anyone tell me if aftermarket retainers/springs are known for tapping loudly? And would it hurt to return them to oem AP2 retainers and springs? I'm assuming the internals were built on this car to handle the 17psi of boost that the kit produces, but that wouldn't be valve related, so why they were replaced is anyone's guess. Anyone know what these are?

AP1Driver

No one?

Billman250

To start, make sure all motion springs are in place. Just push the middle rockers down with you finger. They should spring up and down.

Then measure your valve clearance.

make sure your front camwheel bolt is tight.

Billman250

They look like Supertech Ti retainers.

A waste in my opinion, when gains are nil and AP2 retainers are bulletproof.

miloking

Retainers/springs should not make any noises... did you check valve clearances, since obviously some has been "f@#king" around under there? Also low frequency "klack" "klack" kind of noise would more likely be a TCT (would still sound/appear as coming from under VC)

MR.T

I have aftermarket retainers and springs and they're very quiet.

You're sure it's at the vc and not a bad pulley? Had a tensioner pulley make a "klackity" sound once.

Possible slight detonation??

AP1Driver

So it looks like I'm f@#ked. The knock is getting bad and it may very well be coming from the bottom end. The car is acting strange when in boost as well and hesitates in Vtec. I think I may need a new block. The techs at the dealer I bought the car from left the crush washer off the oil plug when they changed the oil and it loosened/leaked enough on my trip home to lose 2 quarts of oil after draining this afternoon and measuring. All over the subframe under the car and came directly from around the drain plug. I screwed the last 2-4 threads out by hand (which they stripped) when I jacked it up to drain it. I have no clue how it didn't fall completely out. I smelled oil a few times on my way home last night and just assumed it was spilled during their oil change or that it had a small leak. The car didn't make a a lot of noise when I test drove it, but they must have knew it was leaking a kept it topped of with oil. They are now telling me, after assuring me all fluids were changed when I picked it up, that they never changed the oil and never loosened the drain plug . They are denying all responsibility for the damage and pretty much told me too bad, that I can't prove it... I just got shafted hard core and don't know what to do now. I'm so mad that I could, have been, SCREAMING. I haven't even driven this car 300 miles and already may need a new engine, at ALL cost to me!?! This doesn't seem lawful at all. This is a big corporate dealershit, not a mom n pop used car lot. HELP. And unfortunately, the Ohio lemon law does not apply to used cars. How much for a used F20 or 22 with low(er) miles? Looks like I'm headed that route one way or the other unless this engine can be repaired (Billman, I will bring it to you ASAP as soon as I get this figured out; I sold my S and now have no S to drive. )

jkelley

I'm not one to usually recommend lawyering up, but in this case I would. At least get a free consultation with someone. Don't go for anything big, but just try to get some sort of settlement. You just start by gathering up any and all evidence to build a case and after a while they may just settle.

Not saying you'll get anything all, but in my opinion when it comes down to a corporation selling an individual an item of that value, I think the corp should take a good amount of this responsibility if approached correctly. The small fry (you) shouldn't get burned from something like this. A few thousand dollars to them is probably peanuts compared to most of the consumer population, where that amount of money is: to them

Billman250

Don't you have a receipt showing what work was done? Is the filter a new Honda one?

Dealers are complete scum.

2.0L is discontinued. 2.2L is still available.

I installed my last good used engine 3 weeks ago. I have many blocks and parts and plenty of motors to build, but my schedule is telling me it will be December before I can work with them. New 2.2L installed is all I can offer right now.