# I repent! **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** civic, honda\ **Created:** [March 20, 2014, 5:39am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/i-repent/84260 "2014-03-20T05:39:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![TwinTurbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8baadc/32.png) [@TwinTurbo](https://community.cartalk.com/u/TwinTurbo)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2014, 9:00pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/i-repent/84260/21 "2014-03-21T21:00:18Z")
> It could be plugged up because the oil drains are plugged and all the oil gets trapped under the valve cover. OK, so once most of the oil is trapped in the top end, what happens to the rest of the engine while you’re waiting for it to clear the head drains (based on the pics, good luck!)? I can see what you’re saying if this thing had no overt signs of a problem and they just happened to stumble upon the sludge while doing something else. But I got the impression it was having specific issues related to starvation and that’s why they started digging into it. It’s already damaged goods then… ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2014, 11:20pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/i-repent/84260/22 "2014-03-21T23:20:29Z")
> A flush isn't going to work on an engine that's already plugged up because the fluid can't circulate. I suspect there has to be some circulation going on or the engine wouldn’t be running at all. It would be completely seized up. ---
**Author:** ![Whitey](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/whitey/32/24680_2.png) [@Whitey](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Whitey)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2014, 11:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/i-repent/84260/23 "2014-03-21T23:41:17Z")
I think the same as MikeInNH. If you remove the drain plug and you get more than three quarts of oil draining out, chances are the oil passages are not completely clogged. ---
**Author:** ![keith](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/keith/32/5518_2.png) [@keith](https://community.cartalk.com/u/keith)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2014, 12:15am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/i-repent/84260/24 "2014-03-22T00:15:20Z")
TT, you could very well be right. The way I see it is that cleaning the drains and putting it back together is a low cost option. If it works, then fine, get as many miles out of it as you can. If it doesn’t work, then go straight to a quality reman, if the rest of the car is in good enough shape to warrant it. Usually if the engine is neglected, so is the rest of the car, but that would be the subject of another thread. ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2014, 12:33am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/i-repent/84260/25 "2014-03-22T00:33:37Z")
> Usually if the engine is neglected, so is the rest of the car, but that would be the subject of another thread. At may not be neglected. It may mean the owner followed the oil change recommendation (which is 10k according to some manufacturers). Personally I’d NEVER let my oil stay in past 5k miles. [Previous page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/i-repent/84260.md?page=1)