96 S14.....troubles

[yes i am the muffin man]

Hello,

I have a stock auto zenki. Bought a month ago and first, replaced the fuel filter/pump to get it running. Ran strong except there was the dreaded "marble" sound. Took off the guides, cleaned the tensioner and put it back on. The timing chains never moved. Now it runs like a dog. A dealership wanted literally what I payed for the car to find and fix whatever was wrong, so I said NO. The distributor was marked when we took it off and put back on correctly. Only OBD2 codes are O2 sensor and fuel temp. No big deal. I was also told by the dealer that the distributor was at TDC with the crank, which also meant the exhaust cam was correct. (They wanted the money to look at the timing marks.) When I had the engine open, there was slack on the top of the chain, but none on the right side.

Could it be the knock sensor going beserk since the car shakes like hell with the motor? (I'm fixing a mount tomorrow to rectify this...)

Any other suggestions?

[fliprayzin240sx]

Yes, ECU could be putting it in limp mode if its sensing knocks or a bad knock sensor.

[yes i am the muffin man]

Let's pray that's it - after all, it'll get normal, strong power for no more than a second occaisionally.

[yes i am the muffin man]

No luck. Another symptom I've noticed is slowwwww as hell revving. Almost as if the throttle won't register that it's going past a certain point. It'll get all the way to redline though. It also idles at about 500 rpm.


Edit: Now it won't get past 4k rpm and I can hear some puffs of air when it gets up high.

Edit 2: Tried driving it on the road and it won't pass 5200 rpm, period. Brought it back, and the idle was shifting between somewhere near 800 and a place near 400.

Something glowed orange when I brought it back, too. I had closed the doors when I got out, and opening them back up a few minutes later greeted me with the smell of poorly baked goods and some smoke for a hot box - not thick, but still.

[idlafie]

Something glowed orange?? Where abouts?? If it was on the driver side of the engine by the steering rack / brake booster, then it could be your catalytic converter that's clogged. Try removing the catalytic converter from the exhaust pipe directly below the exhaust manifold & also underneath the driver seat area. Inspect the catalytic converter & make sure the honeycomb inside it isn't completely melted. If the honeycomb inside the cat is melted, then the exhaust gases aren't escaping thru the exhaust resulting the cat turning orange. That's NOT good for your motor.

If it's NOT your catalytic converter thats bad, then check for a vacuum leak. Your S14 should NOT be idling between 400 - 800 rpm. It should be a solid 750 rpm +/- 50 rpm.

Use the SEARCH function here on ZILVIA to find and download a FACTORY SERVICE MANUAL for your model year car.

Good luck...hope this helps...

ID