94 VX valves - Need adjustment?

[jshelton441]

VX with close to 300k miles, picked it up a month or so back. I am going to replace the timing belt and have done a lot of other general service to it like fluids, plugs wires cap, coolant flush, fuel filter, injector cleaner. The valves seem really noisy. Is this common to these 1.5L engines?

[Danronian]

From my experience these motors have a lot of whine in the valve train but I think it's mostly due to the roller rockers. The factory does call for the valve lash to be adjusted quite often.

[GasSavers_Ryland]

I believe the shop manual tells you to adjust the valves every 2 years or 30,000 miles, although on the 4 Honda Civic's I have owned the valves have never been very far out of adjustment, Honda motorcycles seem to fallow this trend as well of telling you to adjust the valves but not needing it, but with 300,000 miles it does seem like something to check, and that timing belt should be done right away as well! every 100,000 miles is a good idea.

[Loserkidwac]

My VX was a little noisy and so was Dan's both of ours had similar miles on the motors, I am gonna check the them when I swap my D15z1 into my Del Sol, download a HSM (Honda Service Manual) for the 92-95 civic it shows you have to check them its very simple just need a box end wrench a flat head and a feeler gauge to check and adjust them...

[Gary Palmer]

If your going to replace the timing belt, I would recommend that you replace the water pump as well. You have to remove the timing belt to replace the water pump and if the engine has that many miles on it, then the water pump is almost as highly a potential problem as the timing belt.

[monroe74]

Originally Posted by Ryland

I believe the shop manual tells you to adjust the valves every 2 years or 30,000 miles

The book says 12 months/15,000 miles. Although when I checked mine recently, they needed very little adjustment. And I think they hadn't been checked in a long time, maybe never. So I agree with you that they probably tend to not need as much attention as what the book says.

timing belt should be done right away as well! every 100,000 miles is a good idea.

The book says 6 years or 90k miles.

[mini-e]

Originally Posted by Gary Palmer

If your going to replace the timing belt, I would recommend that you replace the water pump as well. You have to remove the timing belt to replace the water pump and if the engine has that many miles on it, then the water pump is almost as highly a potential problem as the timing belt.

I would add the timing belt idler bearing since your in there and its cheap. i adjusted my valves and it was amazing how much noise went away when I tightened it up. it is really easy to do a valve adjust on these little guys. Buy a new valve cover gasket while you are at it too. 12 bucks or something.

[dkjones96]

They seriously didn't use hydraulic lifters on those engines?

[GasSavers_Ryland]

Originally Posted by dkjones96

They seriously didn't use hydraulic lifters on those engines?

It's rather hard to do hydraulic lifters with an over head cam, much easier to do with out of date push rod engines, with an over head cam there is much less weight being pushed around, less to wear out and with the design that Honda uses even tho they tell you to adjust them every 15,000 miles my civic hadn't had them adjusted in 100,000 miles when I bought it and the only reason I adjusted them at all when I checked them last was that I had the tools in my hand.

[suspendedhatch]

I wouldn't mess with a high mileage motor. Just get a low mileage JDM equivalent and use that one for spare parts. You can get one for less than $500. How much to rebuild that engine?

Valves should be adjusted once a year.