Diagnostics on 95 integra

Hi.

Can anyone say where I can find a scan tool will work with the data connector on the 95 integra ls (not a vtec).

I bought this car a few weeks ago and noticed that I am getting only 15 miles per gallon/city. I got black soot in the exhaust. I was told that it might be the O2 sensor so I want to put a scope on the white wire (.1 to .9 volts pulsating), but this means I have to take it to a shop to get under the car.

I asked the mechanic who is working on changing my timing belt but he did not seem to be too familiar with the theory of operation of the o2 sensor and how to test it. He said it was normal for a car that old to burn that much gas. I don't believe him.

I heard that this is an obd1 type of ecu, but I can't seem to find a scanner that can monitor the error codes and sensor info etc. Also, I tried to jump the diagnostic connector with a wire, but when I turned the ignition on, instead of the codes, the check engine light simply comes on and stays on. ( it's normally off since I don't have any trouble codes as yet).

Any assistance will be appreciated. Thanks.

Can you read the words that are comin out of my mouth? :D

I guess the answer to this question must be a big secret.... :D

Well first welcome to the boards, second be paitent, it was over a holiday that you posted so alot of people including myself where out of town. And third to answer your question you have to wait for about 15-20 seconds before the MIL will start to blink. If after about 1 min if it is still on then you must have a faulty ECU. Does the MIL(check engine light) come on when driving? If it does then try to stop the car and jump the wires on the service connector, does the MIL blink? If so what are the codes? If it stay on steady then the ECU needs to be replaced. Try this and post back and let me know.

Thanks for responding Whtteg,

Sorry about the impatience, but I did not want the post to get lost and considering that there was no reply after over 300 views, I would admit that I was a bit worried. Thanks for the welcome! I'm quite happy to be a member of the integra clan here!

The only problem I noticed with the car is the bad fuel mileage. Everything else works pretty well and there are no error lights or any problems while driving. I just changed my resonator assembly at Meineke (305 bucks!) and the car runs real smooth. I have to look at the tach to know if the engine is on! :D I think I feel a slight loss of power going up a hill or when there are four people in the car, so maybe that has something to do with the default fuel delivery and timing caused by the default program settings that occur when the O2 sensor is not working right.

I can recall the last time I jumped the service check connector, I waited a long time but I am not sure if it was over a minute, so I will check it again later and let u know. As I mentioned, I don't have any error lights coming on so far while driving so I am not sure what the light is supposed to do if there are no stored errors in the ecu.

What about actual diagnostics that can be done at the service check connector. I see some import code readers on ebay and elsewhere, but they just cause the MIL light to flash. Do you know of any scanners that will pick up sensor info etc for import obd1 cars? I see some scanners for obd1 GM and Ford but will those work with the integra?

BTW, I only started learning all this tech stuff when I bought the car. I know nothing about cars really. I am an electronics/computer tech, not a mechanic. Thanks!

I was reading about your problem and was wondering about the t belt replacement.
Are you sure that the belt was installed properly?
I made that mistake once and found that 1 tooth makes a big difference in running of car.
Next you said something about black soot.
is there black smoke comming out when you drive?
Does this happen all the time? If not when?

Rover2,

I haven't gotten around to changing the timing belt as yet. The car was at around 96k miles when I got it and the guy quoted me around 350 for the timing belt and water pump replacement. I plan to do it before it snows...or worse, breaks! :D

There's no black smoke or anything, I just get black soot if I rub my index finger aroung the inside of the exhaust. I was told that this means that the car is burning too much fuel. 15 miles per gallon sure sound like that is true.

Is the engine hard to start when cold? When hot?
Are you the one that is going to be working on your car or are you going to have shop do work?

No starting problems under any conditions. The only work DIY work I plan to do is any minor electrical work such as the power antenna, locks alarm system, remote start or stereo system. I want to do the ecu diagnostics myself so that I can have a fair idea of what's wrong before I take it to a shop where there is great potential for being ripped-off.

I can relate a simple example of why I do not trust too many shops. When I took my car in for inspection I was expecting to pay $35.00. I ended up paying over $200.00 to replace both tie-rods. The mechanic also told me I need to replace both my rear brake rotors because they were beyond repair, he wanted an extra $200.00 for that. Instead I took it to another mechanic who told me the rotors were simply rusted from the car being unused for a while. He sanded them for 20 bucks and they are as good as new. Needless to say I will never go back to the first shop for anything!

There are no scanners that i know of because the sevice connector just simply completes a circuit to the ECU to tell it to go into diagnostic mode. If the car is gettong poor fuel milage then I would try to give it a basic tune up. You can do this yourself. Get a new rotor button, new distriubutor cap, new wires, some NGK spark plugs and a new air filter. Change these things and then reset the ECU by pulling the fuse in the under hood fuse block that says ECU backup. Leave this fuse out for around 15-20 seconds, this will reset the ECU. Now try and see what kind of mileage you get now. You might also want to try and check the ignition timming, you will need a timming light with a inductive pickup (looks like a clamp to go over the sparplug wire) and put in a jumper for the service connector. Then shoot the gun at the crankshaft pulley and see what mark it lights up. There are different marks on the pulley there is a white mark and three other marks I think only one is red the red one in the middle of the three is the one you want to be lighted. You need to connect the inductive lead to the number 1 sparkplug wire (the wire all the way to the right side) before you do this. Also make sure that all electrical things are turned off and that the car is in neutral with the parking brake on and the motor is up to operating temp.

when you say "No starting problems under any conditions", about how many times does engine turn over before it will start hot or cold?
I also have not asked if you have a shop manual for this car?
I like to use factory manuals but I have a Haynes presently.(It has basic info needed) The person that recommended tune up would be a good place to start.
How long was this car setting before you got it?
Did the person that fixed your brakes check the front ones also. (I was wondering if calipers may be sticking).
How do you drive the car? (Hard Moderate Easy)
Is car auto or manual?

I changed the air filter a few weeks ago. The original filter was almost black (not sure if that was it's original color) and there were leaves and other dust all over it. I put in an STP filter I got from Autozone. It was a tight fit around the rubber seal and it didn't seem to make any difference in the fuel economy.

I had the mechanic check the plugs and he said they were ok, so I am not so sure about the next step. I guess I will do a full tune up after the timing belt replacement. All brakes were checked and confirmed ok. I drive this car mainly for fun and I would say that aside from the few short bursts between lights, I drive fairly easy. I guess I hit the gas a lot more than necessary though! :D

The engine starts after one or two turns. There is no problem there. I have a Haynes manual and they show the timing adjustment procedures too but thanks for the extra tips. I am not too clear as to what to do if the marks do not line up, but I will read the manual a little more before I do it. The transmission is automatic.

I took the battery out of the car a few times to check it and I am wondering if that will cause the ecu to reset also?

Too bad about the scanner. Do you mean to tell me they charge 30 bucks for those so called scanners when they are really only a jumper wire internally? What about those computer diagnostics shops? How do they monitor sensor and other diagnostics information on the obd1 imports then? How does the Acura dealer do it? Is that all they do? Short the service check connector? That sucks! :D

Too bad about the scanner. Do you mean to tell me they charge 30 bucks for those so called scanners when they are really only a jumper wire internally? What about those computer diagnostics shops? How do they monitor sensor and other diagnostics information on the obd1 imports then? How does the Acura dealer do it? Is that all they do? Short the service check connector? That sucks! :D

Pretty much LOL. They do have a thing that plugs into the ECu and then has a block with some other crap but it really does nothing for the codes in the computer. They mainly use a trouble shooting chart. Also the car beiong an automatic it is normal not to get great gas mileage, my Girlfriends 94 ls auto gets around 18-22 mpg. So I would say your car is about normal. The manuals get around 25-28 city and 28-38 roughly hwy.