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Losing power after 10 minutes of driving

Norv said:
Yeah no worries, can be about sat morning if you need any help. How about the spark plugs, have they been checked/changed in a while?

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I checked the spark plugs last weekend when I did the valve clearances and they look fine. I replaced them about 15k ago
 
They should be fine then. Give it a service and see how it goes. We can always try swapping bits about if that doesn't solve it.

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Norv said:
They should be fine then. Give it a service and see how it goes. We can always try swapping bits about if that doesn't solve it.

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Thanks Norv. I wont be able to do the service until next weekend as ill be out this weekend. Im looking forward to it though! I have an unhealthy need to literally replace everything on this car!
 
Azazl187 said:
Thanks Norv. I wont be able to do the service until next weekend as ill be out this weekend. Im looking forward to it though! I have an unhealthy need to literally replace everything on this car!
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Worst case just swap the odd bits and pieces from mine. As much as I hate spare parts diagnosis, it's so easy!

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Azazl187 said:
Cheers guys. Ive ordered everything for a oil and coolant change. Oil change is due and coolant hasnt been done in the 32k that ive had the car so I may as well do that.

Brakes are very unlikly to be an issue as had all 4 rebuilt professionally month ago. Thanks for the offer on compression testing Norv, ill take you up on it if this doesnt make a difference
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Let us know how you go. The sludge from my oil change blocked the filter in my funnel. Haha
She's responsive again now though

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kmateo86 said:
Let us know how you go. The sludge from my oil change blocked the filter in my funnel. Haha
She's responsive again now though

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Will do fella, only waiting on the oil now which should be here today. Ill update next weekend as i cannot do the service this weekend.
 
I've managed to do a full oil change today guys and flush the coolant as well as replace it. There were a few bits in the bucket of the coolant but nothing too really worry about and kind of expected looking at the state of my radiator lol. The oil was difficult to work out as it was so black and the chances of seeing any foreign objects was impossible.

I haven't been able to take her out yet so I'll do that tomorrow and see if there is an improvement.

I let the old oil drain for at least an hour so every last drop that could come out came out so the oil was as clean as possible when it went back in. One thing I did notice is that everyone seems to think 4.7L of oil is enough for the ep3 but I had to put in at least 5.1L to get upto the top dot on the dip stick, this is most likely due to me not prefilling the filter as it's impossible to do that and screw it back onto the engine without throwing oil everywhere.

The car also took all 5L of the coolant which suprised me, I even had to add a little bit of water to the reservoir as I ran out.
 
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You're dead on with the fluids - I've found just the same. I recon it's about 5.2 ltrs of both when you do a full flush.

Suppose the 4.7 comes from people who don't change the filter?! And with the coolant it depends if you get it all out, which is pretty difficult.

Good luck tomorrow!


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Mine took just under a 5l of oil when I changed mine. But the baffled sump might leave it with a tad less capacity I guess?

The filter and oil will have suspended any nasties, I'm sure it'll be fine now.

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So i was able to take her for a quick 15 minute drive today and i really do think that this has made a difference. It kinda makes sense if the oil is less sticky and new but i really feel she is noticeably performing better.

Maybe it was just heat soak before when the weather was really hot, time will tell i guess. The car feels better in regards to throttle response and torque. If you think your car needs a fluid change i recommend to you all that you stop putting it off and get it done :).

When ive taken her for a longer drive ill let you know if i have any lack of power again.
 
Glad it seems better Calvin, though I'd put the money on it being a placebo rather than the friction differences of the new oil!

If you're not sure it's 100% you can always compare it to mine if needs be. Though it is mapped etc but it can't make that much difference.

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The idea that changing the oil is only a placebo isn't quite accurate. Engine oil that's past its best can have a noticeable impact, especially on an engine like the K20 where oil is used also for VTEC etc. It's not just the friction of the oil, it's all the tiny particles of carbon and such that the oil cleans out. That said, if you're under 12,000/12 months modern oil shouldn't get bad enough to make you think something's wrong.

The other thing lots of short journeys and town driving puts a lot petrol vapour into the oil which totally screws it. Needs long journeys to burn off.


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Azazl187 said:
So i was able to take her for a quick 15 minute drive today and i really do think that this has made a difference. It kinda makes sense if the oil is less sticky and new but i really feel she is noticeably performing better.

Maybe it was just heat soak before when the weather was really hot, time will tell i guess. The car feels better in regards to throttle response and torque. If you think your car needs a fluid change i recommend to you all that you stop putting it off and get it done :).

When ive taken her for a longer drive ill let you know if i have any lack of power again.
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Hopefully you've just saved yourself some money. Good luck champ

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Cheers guys. Id say its been around 8 - 10.000 miles since the last oil change so it sounds about right. Norv is sounds like to me that you want some sort of drag race :). Im not sure how much it will achieve though as your EP3 is mapped.

At least i can now relax knowing that all the fluids have been changed and the car is in a state of good health. Thanks for all your comments guys.
 
Haha, doubt a drag race will help much with the problem! Just an offer in case you're worrying too much and driving mine would show you that it's the same.

Fresh oil is never a bad thing anyway, I'm sure it will happy now it's had some attention.

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Norv said:
Haha, doubt a drag race will help much with the problem! Just an offer in case you're worrying too much and driving mine would show you that it's the same.

Fresh oil is never a bad thing anyway, I'm sure it will happy now it's had some attention.

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Ha i know mate. Lets meet up some time and do a car swap for 10 minutes and im sure ill be able to tell if mine is down alot on power.
 
There's a reason machines are referred to as women. Need a bit of care and attention or they stop doing what you want. :lol:


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CTR_Nick said:
There's a reason machines are referred to as women. Need a bit of care and attention or they stop doing what you want. :lol:


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I couldnt agree more! The problem i have now is that the wife needs attention before she starts to go bad and breakdown on me ;)
 
So then guys, Ive had to top up the res a couple of times since replacing the coolant. Is this normal? I fill it upto the MAX level and then after a bit of driving i have checked and its halfway between the MAX and MIN levels. Is this normal? There are no leaks and the coolant level is right to the filler cap on the rad.....
 
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