93 Honda EX still shaking/missing at high speeds

automatic transmission on this car-For those who don't know from my previous thread last week while driving this car at high speeds the rpm gauge fluctuates and drops to zero at times. At 60 plus mph the rpm gauge would jump with a corresponding miss in the motor creating a noticeable herky jerky feel through the steering wheel and car. I can feel the motor doing it while driving at high speeds.One of the guys suggested replacing the fuel filter.I had 40,000 miles on that fuel filter and the book says replace every 30,000. I replaced the fuel filter,took the car on the fwy and it ran perfect. And then this past Saturday I was traveling on the fwy at 70 mph and it started it again. I slowed down to 60mph and it was fine. On my return trip I ran the car at 70mph and it didn't do it.
I notice when I pull away from a dead stop the rpm gauge won't fluctuate when it shifts from 1st to 2nd. The gauge jumps from 2nd to 3rd. If your pushing the gas pedal meaning running the rpm up to continue accelerating with the last shift it will fluctuate.But if I am just staying around 40 to 45 mph and it shifts for the last time nothing fluctuates.After each shift the rpm gauge obviously drops but it goes right back to a lesser rpm but is not fluctuating anymore.Everything that happens happens when the rpm is at 3000 or higher.
There is no herky jerky motion at the lower speeds I just described in the last paragraph. It only jerks around at 60mph and above.Someone suggested replacing fuel pump. I have 161,000 miles and have no records from previous owner showing they replaced that.And the previous owner gave me all work records.Like I said in the earlier thread I replaced igniter and coil 6 months ago. The main relay was replaced 25,000 miles ago.I took a look at the main relay and the solder appeared to be fine on the connections.

When they loose a crank sensor signal, they default to less than 3500 rpm limp mode...it won't rev any higher.

The signal could be breaking up, and it's going in and out of limp? That would affect the tach reading too, if it's not reading engine rpm/position correctly.

Just a thought.

Take the distributor cap off, and check for reddish/brown oxide powdering coating everything under there...the lower bearing in the dist was known for disintegrating, throwing powdered metal around in there, causing all kinds of problems. The position sensor is in there too...if it's dusted, the bearing will soon fail and break, and the distributor will have to be replaced anyway...

I have several questions in here I need answers to if someone can help.At around 95,000 miles the previous owner had the distributor replaced in March 2000. I have 162,000 now.This past March 2008 I took the car to an independant repair shop nearby because the RPM's were erratic at higher speeds. The motor cut out on the fwy and the check engine light came on. The motor was also cutting out at lower speeds on the city streets.The invoice states they found engine code "15 " which was ignition output signal,they tested ignition system and found igniter and coil was bad.Both were replaced. I looked for any reddish/brown powder coating under the distributor cap and inside the distributor.Everything is very clean.
I was thinking if the mechanic who repaired it last March found any of the powder you are describing he would not have just cleaned it out but he probably would have tried to sell me a whole new distributor. But who knows the dishonest ones are always thinking about an additional repairs if they just fix the current problem and not think preventative maintenance or long term.I have only put 4,000 miles on this car since the repair last March.When you talk about losing the crank sensor signal is that signal coming from the position sensor in the distributor?With a new $116.00 ignitor in there with only 4,000 miles does it make sense for me to try and piece meal the rest of the distributor back together with new parts?If the 1st disributor was replaced at 95,000 miles I am at 67,000 with this latest one. Do I need any special tools to do this meaning does the bearing need to be pressed in or can I replace that myself? What is left to replace?Majestic Honda shows a distributor housing kit for $114.00.It doesn't say what it includes but am I right thinking it has the angle sensor,o-ring,bearing and maybe some smaller stuff.It appears on their webpage showing the exploded view of the distributor. Obviously the fact that the kit costs $114.00 it would not include the igniter. And I already have a new one. If I take this car to the repair shop just trouble shooting it will cost me $85.00 labor an hour plus the higher priced parts when they fix it so I might as well roll the dice and replace parts. Once again do I just replace the parts and put the distributor back in. Will it have to be timed again or should it run fine as long as I have the distributor back in the right spot? Sorry about all the questions but a mind is a terrible thing to waste. Paul

A month ago I replaced a distributor housing on my son's 95 LX.

When I removed the distributor I found out that ALL wires insulation was cracked. Circuit for TPS was dead. Since we do not plan to keep this car for a long time we decided to buy a rebuilt unit. $165 + free shipping from Kragen.

In case you decide to rebuild your distributor on your own here is a link:

http://honda.lioness.googlepages.com/distributorbearing

Beware of rockauto's database. Their listing is incorrect. They sent me a wrong one, and held me responsible for shipping.
Distributor housing for F22B1 engine was listed as a distributor housing for F22B2.

Good luck,

Sam

Update - I went on a 100 mile drive in this car on 11-30 and it ran perfect. The day before 11-29 I did what Jeff suggested by taking the distributor cap off and looking for reddish/brown oxide powder inside the distributor and did not find any.I cleaned the rotor and contacts in the distributor cap and put everything back in its place.Today is 12- 01 and I have been making short trips with motor running perfect.The rpm gauge has worked perfect so far with no jumping.I don't get it.

You might see if you can do some research to see if your problem is related to the same type problem that the 95-97 Accord V6 has. The problem is a resistor in the coil that breaks down when hot and causes the tach to jump around and this messes with the speed sensor which makes the transmission go in and out of over drive. The result seems like a bad miss in the engine.
Check this link. The 4th post down has the answer.
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=187491&highlight=jgr7
Jeff

Like I said earlier the igniter and ignition coil (P/N 30520 - PT3-A02)were replaced 4,000 miles ago and the last two days it has not missed.I won't do anything until it starts missing again.I will check today to make sure everything is tight and in its place.I will take a good close look and make sure the coil they replaced looks new and that its not the same one and they charged me for a new one.
The tach is working perfect.before it was even bouncing around through the shifting of the transmission in the lower gears as well as high speeds.At lower speeds the rpm would bounce around but there was no change in the motor meaning the car was riding smooth.It was at the higher speeds that I would feel something missing/jerking.
My daughter has a car just like mine.If it starts doing it again I will switch ignition coils with her car and see what happens. Thanks

12-11 update - This car is still running perfect. After I took the cap off and checked for the reddish /brown oxide powder coating,cleaned the rotor,the contacts on the dist.cap and put everything back like suggested to me on Jeffcoslackers earlier thread of 11-24-08 it has ran perfect.In another thread someone suggested changing the fuel filter. I looked in my records and found I had 40,000 miles on the fuel filter.I actually found the new filter I had bought to change at 30,000 but forgot.Is the computer involved in any of this? For example I had an O2 sensor out on another car.I replaced it and it was a week before the idiot light disappeared on the dash.
Even though I changed the fuel filter on my Honda and it ran fine on the test run did but did start to miss again at high speeds a couple of days later would the computer on this car have anything to do with recognizing the fuel filter was changed and eventually straighten things out?

12-11 update - This car is still running perfect. After I took the cap off and checked for the reddish /brown oxide powder coating,cleaned the rotor,the contacts on the dist.cap and put everything back like suggested to me on Jeffcoslackers earlier thread of 11-24-08 it has ran perfect.In another thread someone suggested changing the fuel filter. I looked in my records and found I had 40,000 miles on the fuel filter.I actually found the new filter I had bought to change at 30,000 but forgot.Is the computer involved in any of this? For example I had an O2 sensor out on another car.I replaced it and it was a week before the idiot light disappeared on the dash.
Even though I changed the fuel filter on my Honda and it ran fine on the test run did but did start to miss again at high speeds a couple of days later would the computer on this car have anything to do with recognizing the fuel filter was changed and eventually straighten things out?
I do not think you need to reset a computer after fuel filter change.

People say that resetting a computer is a good thing to do anyway.
As far as I remember you need to disconnect your battery for probably a couple of minutes.
Reconnect it again, start your car and without touching any controls or pedals let it idle until your cooling fan will come on twice. Shot the car down.

I hope this helps.

Sam