Phateless

with the distributor off the car, that might be kind of awkward. yeah, what about that home depot $20 impact driver i mentioned earlier?

gsr2k

There are electric ones too.

Where are you at? Maybe there is a nice member on the board that will take care of it for you....

buffalobill

My kids gen2 Teg stranded him one day on the side of the freeway, and it turned out to be the very small allen head screw that secures the rotor (to the shaft in the distributor) had somehow worked loose. The car had just started to sputter and then died, and at first we thought the worst had happened (broken timing belt), but thru the process of elimination it turned out to be something simple and free to fix. (he always has the proper sized METRIC allen wrench in his toolbox now !)

Also - was the gas tank's level really low when your car died? If so, I'd check the fuel filter. Definitely chenge the fuel filter every 30k miles even if the car is running okay at the time. It's an easy DIY on gen2 Tegs - right against the firewall. . .Stock Honda injectors will last 250k miles or more if you periodically use quality (not necessarily costly) fuel injector cleaner.

When you pulled the plugs, what 'color' (shade of gray) were they? Did you check the gap (although that should be okay if they have less than 30k miles on them provided it was ok when you installed them)?

Buy yourself a $2. continuity tester and check the conditon of your plug wires - OEM Honda wires - if not manhandled when disconnecting from the distributor or plugs - are the best bang for the buck available - no need for fancy aftermarket wires - Honda wires last way in excess of 100k miles. . .

If you have an Autozone near you they can check out most electrical components - free of charge - before you start replacing this and that without knowing what is really wrong. . .

And, unless you can be sure that a timing belt has been changed at the proper intervals, always budget for one whenever you purchase a used Honda/Acura vehicle. Should cost $400.-$500. at a Honda dealer - and unless you know a non-dealer shop is competent (and honest!) stick w/ the dealer until you're confident to do the job yourself. And when the timing belt is being changed out, do the other belts too, and especially the water pump, which is right there and a real inexpensive part to replace when the timing belt is also being changed out since the same bits need to be removed/replaced with either repair.

I disagree re: NOT doing routine maintenance/repairs such as the timing belt or other costly maintenance procedures on an otherwise decent but old Honda/Acura. Routine maintenance - including a clutch job, timing belt, f&r brakes incl rear caliper replacements, CV boots on remanufactured axles, etc. have kept the $3300. Teg reliable, safe, and fun to drive for 100,000 + more miles than when the kid first got it 4 yrs ago. (w/ over 100k miles already on the odometer).

Buy yourself a Helms manual - check eBay for a used one to save money, as new ones from Helms are not inexpensive. And get a decent set of metric combination wrenches (box at one end and open at the other. And, get a set of decent quality 3/8" drive metric sockets (6 pts preferred over 12 pts) w/ a couple of diff. length extensions. And also get a set of metric allen wrenches (actually the L shaped keys) - Toss in a pair of wire cutters, a pair of pliers, various flat-bladed and phillips head screw drivers, a 6-8" length of approx 3/8" diam rubber hose (to slip around your spark plugs when you need to reinsert them into the 'tube' that extends thru the cam cover to the spark plug's hole), and you'll have a basic, but reasonably well-equipped tool box. An inexpensive multi-meter will be handy for diagnosing electrical gremlins, for that diagnosing process can get real costly if you're paying someone else to do it. . .The Helms manual makes it easier than you think, btw.

If you don't try to, you'll never be able to. . .