Please Help

[civicgeek]

I need help with my 96 civic. I was driving down the road at about 55mph when the "check engine light" came on and the vehicle suddenly lost compression. The vehicle wouldn't go over 40MPH or so because the engine would shudder and the engine light would keep on flashing. I drove to the nearest parking space and the engine seems to shudder a bit more than usual when driving. I turned the car off and waited a few minutes and I started the car again, the car started and it idled but there was some irregular "bump" or shudder coming from the engine there was only one shudder at irregular intervals. I opened the hood and It smelled slightly like burned plastic. I would like to know what can I do and kind of have an idea how much it will cost to repair it. The car is a DX with the 1.6 16 valve engine, it is not a V-tec and it has 129000 miles. Your help is greatly appreciated!!!

[bluevp00]

Originally Posted by civicgeek

I opened the hood and It smelled slightly like burned plastic.

Look closely for actual plastic in the engine that is burned, if there is any. This could be signs of a short in the electrical system.

Get the code for the check engine light first. I know AutoZone checks engine codes for free, and any garage should be able to do it for you. Once you have the code, you can work from there.

The "bump" could be a blown spark plug. If you know how, remove all the spark plugs and inspect them (it says how to do it in the owners manual).

[civicgeek]

Finally figured out what it was, it was my timing belt that almost snapped on me I was lucky it didn't if not I would have had to buy a new engine my mechanic told me.

[civicgeek]

Finally figured out what it was --It was my timing belt --. I was very lucky it didn't snap on me otherwise I would've had to put a new engine on it. Thanks a lot !!