valve adjustment question

[colleen]

96 accord 4cyl vtec m/trans

hey again everyone (doing lots of auto repair lately 🙂
I pulled my valve cover off today, and wanting to do a valve adjustment while its off (1st timer), was rotating this pulley (counterclockwise) you see in the lower left in my pic using a long handled 19mm box wrench:

just doing a few rotations with it, observing the valve operation so that I could get a definite idea of the ‘base circle’ location (opposite of cam lobe – thanks eric!), so I’d know when to put my feeler gauge under the rocker screw. anyway this was fine for about 5 cylinder rotations, there was a slight bit of tension on one end of the rotation it seemed, and then would ease up and spin more freely. anyway it got so it wouldn’t rotate the crankshaft anymore. I could see the belt on this pulley just staying put while I spun the pulley, so I pulled on the wrench with one hand and held the belt in place with the other, then I noticed a light clicking sound coming from within the pulley housing. then I stopped trying to rotate it. either there is insurmountable tension somewhere, or I loosened this bolt, don’t know.

am going to take my upper t/b cover off now and use the camshaft pulley to hopefully finish the valve job, but of course am concerned about what I did, so any input about this would be GREAT!

THANKS AGAIN!!@!

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[college man]

You may have loosened the fastener. Take the plugs out and
the engine will roll easier.

[Jane]

Ignore this… as you engine does seem to rotate anticlockwise.

[Its me]

I believe this Honda has a counter clockwise engine… It wasn’t until the early 2000’s that Honda made clockwise running engines… (I.E. an engine that ran the correct way 😛 :stick: )

-Karl

[EricTheCarGuy]

[quote=”Inverlass” post=86006]Never rotate the engine backwards! Cam followers need oil to open the valves. Turn the engine clockwise only (as viewed from the crankshaft pulley). Why? the oil pump needs to supply oil to all the parts. Turning the engine backwards takes oil away from them. You can move the engine anticlockwise for no more than 1/4 revolution only. Tip if an unknown engine, watch the direction of the crankshaft pulley as engine starter rotates to discover the correct direction.
Hope this helps.

Some engines did run anticlockwise such as the old tewter 1923 paraffin 2 stroke with moving cylinder liners and cylinders together required a stationary engine that could run both ways for farm tooling. This engine’s oil pump worked on a cam, lever and spring so it didn’t matter which direction the engine turned it would still deliver oil.[/quote]

Not always true, and defiantly not true in this application as it is a solid valve train. Meaning it does not use hydraulic lifters, hence the reason it requires periodic adjustment in the first place. That said, it’s not a good idea to turn an engine in the opposite direction of rotation for prolonged periods of time. However, if you’re not going a full revolution and you’re just trying to ‘fine tune’ an adjustment, you should be OK. And yes, the normal direction of rotation with the F series engine is counterclockwise as shown in the video that was referenced in the comment. In fact, here’s that video.

As to the original post. What you’re experiencing is normal. It’s much easier if you remove the plugs however. You can also put a little more tension on the power steering belt to make it rotate easier. In short, it’s normal for that to happen on occasion, and nothing to worry about.

Good luck and keep us posted if you run into anymore issues.

[colleen]

well the spark plugs were out from the get-go, I had watched eric’s valve adjustment video for accord, which I just pulled up again to try to locate a model year for the accord, which I couldn’t see, but its a 4-cyl vtec like mine in the video, and it looks old. he is rotating the power steering pump pulley counterclockwise in the video. after hitting a bump in the road I went to my Chilton which told me to take off the upper t/b cover and rotate the crankshaft in a counterclockwise position to tdc, so I know the counterclockwise is correct for this engine, which my model accord (EX) has the f22b1 engine but the Chilton doesn’t specify different procedures for other capacity engines (which it will if the procedure varies from the v6, etc.) so this should be an across the board procedure for similar model cars. the Chilton I’m using is a Honda accord/prelude 1996-00.

the car is on jackstands right now w/ only rear wheels touching ground, and I didn’t check if I set a gear, but I usually put it in 1st when I put it on jackstands. just a little more info, if relevant.

unfortunately didn’t get my t/b cover off, gotta go to harbor freight tomorrow morning (on my bike) 🙂 and get some offset wrenches cuz one of the screws holding it on has very limited access room, with the dipstick directly behind it.

THANKS EVERYONE for the info! very appreciative, being new to all of this. I’m going to watch the valve lash video again all the way thru and if it doesn’t have the model year for this accord I will try to personal msg eric on his g+ to let him know.

YAY eric wrote me back. I feel special. also very helpful cuz I was thinking, how the hell do I tighten this pulley bolt, googling the topic and seeing ‘pulley pliers’ to adjust tension on these bolts and all that. super, sounds like I didn’t break anything.

EDIT: according to the chilton, the valve adjustment specs are as follows:
1996, 2.2L engines (F22A1, F22B1, F22B2): IN: .009-.011, EX: .011-.013
1996 2.2L H22A1 engine: IN: .006-.007, EX: .007-.008
1996 2.3L H23A1 engine: IN: .003-.004, EX: .006-.007
1996 2.7L C27A4 engine: IN: .009-.011, EX: .011-.013

1997, 2.2L engines (F22A1, F22B1, F22B2): IN: .009-.011, EX: .011-.013
1997 2.2L H22A4 engine: IN: .006-.007, EX: .007-.008
1997 2.7L C27A4 engine: IN: .009-.011, EX: .011-.013

1998 2.2L H22A4 engine: IN: .006-.007, EX: .007-.008
1998 2.3L engines, (F23A1, F23A4, F23A5): IN: .009-.011, EX: .011-.013
1998 3.0L J30A1 engine, IN: .008-.009, EX: .011-.013

1999 2.2L H22A4 engine: IN: .006-.007, EX: .007-.008
1999 2.3L engines, (F23A1, F23A4, F23A5): IN: .009-.011, EX: .011-.013
1999 3.0L J30A1 engine, IN: .008-.009, EX: .011-.013

2000 2.2L H22A4 engine: IN: .006-.007, EX: .007-.008
2000 2.3L engines, (F23A1, F23A4, F23A5): IN: .009-.011, EX: .011-.013
2000 3.0L J30A1 engine, IN: .008-.009, EX: .011-.013

it looks like from these specs that
*all 2.2 and 2.3L accords in this year range are .010in .012ex
*the C27A4 engines use same .010in .012 specs, but there is no reference to this model engine after 1997, curious as to what this car was
*the prelude (guessing) is the H series and uses a slightly smaller clearance, but remains constant at .006-.007intake, .007-.008EX, from the transition from the H22A1 to the H22A4. the H23A1 model (different clearance) is not mentioned after 1996
*in 1998 we have the introduction of the J30A1 3.0L (v6?), IN: .008-.009, EX: .011-.013

ALSO WANTED TO ADD that the Chilton manuals don’t tell you everything about your car! so just because there’s only one valve adjustment procedure specified, doesn’t mean all these model cars have similar engines. it just means that there is no significant difference in the procedure between models. it may even assume that you already know which direction the crankshaft rotates for your vehicle.

there is a great amount of variation even in these accords. for example, (according to the Chilton 🙂 )the ignition systems on the 3.0L V6’s from 2000+ were significantly different than earlier models, switching to a ‘distributorless’ system where there is a separate ignition coil for each cylinder, and the signal to ignite is sent by the pcm rather than the distributor. ignition timing cannot be adjusted on these models, it’s purely electronic. just an example.

[Jane]

:S Hi Eric Just to say I changed the post on the Honda engine… I guess I learned something more about Honda’s engines in the 1990’s
Hey have you looked at the sidewinder tool http://www.wellforce-osk.com/Sockets.aspx?
Jane

[EricTheCarGuy]

Don’t bother taking the upper cover off. You can just as easily put a socket on the 19mm crank pulley and rotate it that way. Using the power steering pump is just a short cut.

Also, if you have it in gear, put it in neutral. If not, you’re also rotating the transmission which will create more resistance. You want to isolate the engines rotation so that it spins more freely if you’re going to use the power steering pump to rotate the engine.

One last note. If your engine isn’t noisy, then you might forgo the adjustment. If you get the adjustment wrong, you car really mess up the engine. Meaning you can burn up the exhaust valves if you get the adjustment too tight. It takes a bit of practice and experience to develop a feel for valve adjustments. Usually involving doing the adjustment more than once to get it right. In short, if you’re nervous, it might be best to leave well enough alone. The most you’ll gain from a valve adjustment is a smoother running engine. It won’t normally solve any performance issues.

Good luck.

[Heidi]

I’ve been meaning to do a valve adjustment on my Honda before it gets too cold outside. I’ve been looking out for possible complications so I know what to expect, since I’ve never done it before. This thread is useful. Thanks!

[Author]

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