Hi,
I have a 1995 Honda Civic (automatic). The following are the symptoms I see:
- When at a traffic red light (in D4 gear and with brake on), the car shakes/vibrates
- When in parking gear and I hit the gas pedal, I can sense a rattle
I recently got the car’s distributor changed. Someone mentioned that this could be a lubrication issue (due to cold weather in North East). Any thoughts on what I can do to identify the problem?
Is the car up to date with maintenance such as spark plugs and plug wires?
A poorly-maintained engine (particularly a small 4-cylinder) will tend to shake pretty badly. What can you tell us about the car’s maintenance?
Also, I would suggest that you have the motor mounts checked. The rubber in the mounts could have deteriorated over the car’s 15 year lifespan, particularly if the engine has a history of oil leaks. Bad motor mounts will allow a lot of engine vibration to be transmitted to the passengers.
The rattle that you hear could just be a loose or damaged heat shield on the exhaust system, which is an annoyance but not a safety or mechanical issue. When the car is up on a lift to check the motor mounts, be sure to have the entire exhaust system–including the heat shields–checked.
Hi,
Spark plugs/wires were changed in 2005. I have had 4 month oil changes on the car. Although, I think the oil filter hasnt been changed for a while. Could that be the issue?
Last major repair was for the distributor (in May 2010), when the car stalled abruptly.
About the rattle, I checked again. Its not actually a rattle sound, but it is the same vibration that goes away after 3-4 secs on the gas pedal.
After 5 years, I don’t think that it would be premature to replace those spark plugs!
(sarcasm intentional)
Frequent oil changes are a good thing, but they are not the panacea that many people believe them to be.
It seems that some folks do frequent oil changes, but they ignore other vital things like plugs, filters, transmission fluid changes, brake fluid changes, etc.
No, the problem is not likely to be related to the oil filter, but just for future reference, do yourself a favor and have the oil filter changed every time that you change the oil.
Have the motor mounts checked when you take the car in for spark plug replacement.
Thanks…I am now better educated when I talk to the mechanic.
Any idea how much the motor mount replacement would cost?
This will vary, depending on where you live, but I would assume a few hundred $$.
Ok…http://www.ehow.com/how_6388305_tell-motor-mounts-bad.html Are these good instructions to look for issues with the motor mount?
Thanks
How about a CV joint?