I have a problem with my 1994 216Sli auto with the SOHC Honda unit, 85k miles. I'm getting quite a harsh rattle under acceleration which I believe is coming somewhere from the engine bay. I can't tell exactly where it's coming from since it does not occur in neutral.
I've replaced the centre section of the exhaust and removed the remains of a knackered heat shield from the cat but the noise remains - I'm now thinking about the timing belt tensioner (I'm pretty sure its not a knackered cam shaft/valve gear noise). Has anyone come across a similar problem or does anyone have any suggestions?
I have a deep note coming out of the engine compartment. New cat fitted a while back, and I got the exhaust co. to check the whole thing out. New cam belt not long ago> All of the fittings seem to be OK in the engine area, and I don't think that I have any problems with the engine itself.
Curiously, when parked in neutral, if I turn the steering right as far as I can, the noise sometimes starts up again.
It's a bugger when I start off, because I've got an intermittently juddery clutch. So now I get the benefit of judder plus noise. I also get the same vibration (like a deep noted reed) on the overrun. I'm not sure, but I'd guess this is at about 1800/2000 rpm.
The only thing that springs to mind is that it's related to an incident, when someone very nicely front ended me last autumn. I did ask the panel company if they could anticipate any problems but, WTH, they know eff all about anything but panels.
This is the only fly in the ointment. Low mileage, all of the cosmetics immaculate, engine seems bloody marvellous. What a lovely car it is - quick and a beautiful handler - apart from the occasional unwanted offer, I get the occasional envious stare and have surprised the hell out of a few owners of continental sports cars.
If you or anyone else have any ideas I'd appreciate a pointer. It's got to the point when I'm thinking of recording it and taking the recording to a dealer. :(
It seems all manual Rovers get a juddery clutch - I did the whole lot (clutch, resurfaced flywheel, release bearing) and managed to get rid of it.
My last car was a Honda Civic that had been repaired after a front-nearside incident and the repairers failed to fully tighten the left wing *and* bonnet screws (accessible from the engine bay) thus creating a god almighty vibration at around 2000rpm - might be worth a try with yours. Another problem I've found with all 3 of my previous 214's/216's is loose windscreen wiper nuts - mine were so loose the wiper arm was making contact with bonnet and making a noticaeable vibration at certain rpms.
What model do you have? If it's the 220 Turbo (even the 216GTi) then yes, I'm sure you did surprise them : )
Yeah, I heard about this. I also heard that trying to cure the problem does not always result in success. :(
Ah, thank you for this. When I say front end, the wings were OK, and I didn't think to check, as there was supposedly no work to be done. Sadly the bonnet no longer sits properly flush with the wings, but seems to be secured properly.
I too have had problems with the wiper arms!
It's the 216GTi, and it is incredibly quick for what it is. Normally I'd prefer a bike, but this is the first car that I've ever loved. I've spent a small fortune on looking after it.
Story; When the Honda CBR 600 came out a friend hired one, and took it up the motorway to the NEC.. ..being used to very large twins and older fours, he twisted the throttle as he looked over his shoulder, prior to overtaking. Not wise, because he had a near miss. As he said, no 600 has the right to be that powerful. Hardly any throttle lag compared to his experiences.!
Fast forward to now; I got off the M25 at J20 (I think), and went up the long hill on the A41. Some bloke was trying to deep throat my tail pipe, so I let it rip. Power wobbles in third. I didn't know cars this size did that. :)
I also didn't think that a car with that engine capacity had such a high top end. :P Now I've decided to behave myself and, besides, it's not how fast you can go, but how fast you can get to the limit. Unless you don't like your licence...
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