my gf has a 98 civic lx 4 dr and i talked her into getting an exhaust. she got a greddy catback, dc headers and i think they but a cat for an ex in there. now the car boggs out at idle and hesitates off the line. i step on the gas and it does nothing for a few seconds then all of the sudden it takes off. it started throwing codes, one of them was saying the fuel was to lean. i called the shop and they said that was normal cause they had to put both o2 sensor infront of the cat. is this normal or am i just retarded?

 

both o2 sensors in front of the cat? theres one in the header and one in the cat..

 

one is at the end of the header and the other is at the front of the cat right behind the header. there only about 4 or 5 inches apart.

 

Running too lean is teh suck! No that's not normal at all. I suggest you ask them to re-think that set up. I don't think it's a good way to do it, but then again I'm no mechanic.

 

i didnt think it was right, just wanted to make sure before i go in there and start yelling at the guy.

 

There needs to be a primary O2 sensor upstream of the catalytic element and a secondary O2 sensor downstream. It is probably throwing codes because it doesn't see any change in the exhaust from the two sensors.

 

Shmoo--Do you have a tech manual tatooed to the back of your eyelids?

geez, man...you must be able to recite the damn thing in your sleep...

 

Yeah, pretty much. h:

I pretty much came here with no knowledge and through working on my own car and turning it from a stock GSR into a mildly modified turbo GSR, I have learned so much about how these motors work. It also helps that I have the whole 1400 page Integra service manual lying in my desk drawer. h:

 

that isn't right that shouldn't make a a difference in drivability if any thing it should increase you hp. sounds you shoud put your stock back on and see what happens and compare. i have the same car but i only have a apexi n1 no haeder but form what i know dx motor d16y7(non vtech) the cat and exhaust manifold are one piece and ex models d16y8 (vtech) are seperate maybe try running a cat and make sure the o2 sensor are hooked up correctly... and if your DIY double check your work.

 

are you talking about running the stock cat? it has a cat for an ex on it right now. i took it back to the shop they said they would move one of the sensor to the back of the cat where it should be, they even charged me for part of the labor. today i did an oil change and noticed that they didnt move the o2 sensor to the back like they said they did. i'm not sure but it looks like the o2 sensor was on the top of the cat, looks like they just moved the sensor onto the side but still in the front.