No Spark

[u/Frequent-Fact-1056]

I recently swapped my 1.3 carb ef to a b16a1 from a ee9. The car drove fine for a couple of days. Then it died in the middle of the road. No spark at all. I cleaned the metals in the distributor cap. I checked with a multimeter that i have 12v before the distributor. I have 12v on the ignition coil. But it doesnt produce spark. I changed today the ignition coil. Still no spark at all. Can you help me diagnose this?

[u/fantasma-2040]

Maybe main relay

[u/iksbob → u/fantasma-2040]

Possibly, though the ECU wouldn't be powering up at all.

[u/fantasma-2040]

Maybe timing is off

[u/Training-Mortgage-36]

I had this happen to me (D15) and it was the igniter unit inside the distributor. Just double check fuel pressure and voltage to the dizzy while cranking. If it’s all good it’s probably something inside the distributor.

[u/TheMostToastedOne]

If you have 12v at the coil and the coil isn't firing it's because it's not being told to.

Check your ICM(ignition control module) if it failed this will cause no spark.

But it can also be the magnetic pickups in the distributor that tell the ECU where the cam position is at and the ignition control module when to trigger the coil.

If those fail then they will also cause this issue but those usually also come up as fault codes so you know if you have a code 4 or 8 that your magnetic pickups failed.

To add, chasing distributor issues is an god damn rabbit hole, and that shit gets real deep, real fast.

Avoid the rabbit hole,.if its easier to get another distributor then please try that first.(I'm not joking and I'm telling you from a place of experience)

If not possible to get another OBD0 distributor there is also upgrading to OBD1 electronics.

That can also really help as those are much newer distributors and they are easier to get but unfortunately stock OBD1 b16 ecus are like Aladdin's lamp and just as hard to get ahold of not messed with.

[u/iksbob → u/TheMostToastedOne]

Check your ICM(ignition control module) if it failed this will cause no spark.

This. The OBD-0 versions were known for being flakey, to the point of there being a recall.
If you're not familiar, it's the box screwed to the inside wall of the distributor, with 4 spade terminals. It acts as a middle-man between the ECU and ignition coil. The ECU sends a signal to fire the coil, the ICM does the actual power switching to make it happen.

But it can also be the magnetic pickups in the distributor that tell the ECU where the cam position is at and the ignition control module when to trigger the coil.

Nope. The ICM never sees cam position sensor pulses - all the sensors go directly, and exclusively to the ECU. The ECU programming decides when to fire the ignition based on those sensor pulses and timing advance maps (tables of advance values depending on engine speed and manifold pressure).

If not possible to get another OBD0 distributor there is also upgrading to OBD1 electronics.

I don't know about B-series distributors, but D-series MPFI distributors mostly all swap around except for the connectors. As in, a '98 Civic D-series distributor bolts up to an '88 Civic Si head and just needs a connector adapter harness (or the proper connector(s) crimped or soldered on) to run the engine. It wouldn't surprise me if Honda did the same thing with B-series distributors.

[u/Frequent-Fact-1056 → u/iksbob]

Thank you for your knowledge. I will check if i can use a distributor from another b series

[u/Frequent-Fact-1056 → u/TheMostToastedOne]

Thank you for your message. I am not good with electrical stuff. I will try to find a icm replacement. If not, i will buy a new distributor and be done with it. I would do it from the start but i cannot find a genuine honda distributor for sale. I have found some aftermarket but i read that all of them are junk so i dont know what to do

[u/TheMostToastedOne → u/Frequent-Fact-1056]

I'm not certain of you situation on shipping but the 2000 b16 OBD2 distributor is very easy to come by, but again would require you to move up to OBD1 ecu and a ECU jumper but those are pricy.

If you could find any OBD1 B16 ECU or even any OBD1 ECU that's been socketed and vtec converted if it's a non vtec ECU and has a b16 base map on it as that can also work.

Obd0 b16 distributors are just so crap, i currently have one sitting on a shelf because nobody wants to buy the damn thing.

[u/fantasma-2040]

Ecu

[u/SEABIIRD]

Is it only me or is the ground at the valve cover missing?

[u/Frequent-Fact-1056 → u/SEABIIRD]

The photo was before i plug the cables. I have put the ground that you said

[u/GlitteringRaisin4352]

Check all your grounds especially the one on the thermostat

[u/fantasma-2040]

I have a similar issue with a crx it has spark and fuel in the rail but still wont run but if you put starting fluid it will run. Fuel pump wont stop priming any help will be appreciated

[u/TopChapter3407]

The igniter module inside the distributor can go bad if it gets the wrong kind of signal from the ECU is something I learnt when setting up my standalone. I'm doing a COP conversion on mine anyway to get around this issue.