Hello,
I just recently bought a very used 1995 Honda Accord DX 2.2 L 4Cylinder automatic
Im not sure if it has VTec because the previous owner ripped the engine sticker off. Theres no Vtec branding any where on the car, how can I know if it has VTEC?

Anyway thats not what this thread is for. I bought the car on monday, and as expected there are a few problematic things that are worrying me.

•When im cruising in a parking lot or barely touching the gas pedel my rpm gauge shoots up quickly to about 2 or 3. This only happens when im trying to drive slowly. If I push the pedel down harder it seems to act normal, but it still seems that the rpm gauge is moving much to quickly for how fast Im actually going.
•Another problem is when i turn on the car in the morning it idles very high 2-2.5. If I try to shift into reverse before the rpms drop I feel a giant shake. This may be normal, but this is kind of my first car.
•Another thing, when im driving and the car goes to shift up I feel a little jerking movement. The rpms will rise rather quickly like I said before and then there is a jerk and the rpms drop.
•Last thing the gas mileage on the car does not seem right at all. I put 20 in on Monday and by Wednesday I was on E. My moms chevy gets better mileage than that, but maybe the gas prices are just really high 3.80 per gallon. Anyways I was just wondering if maybe the low mileage and the other problems are all related...
I havent changed the spark plugs yet, and I do have a couple of bad motor mounts. Could the spark plugs be the entire reason for all of this trouble?

I would take it to a mechanic, but everyone near me wants to charge a bunch of money just to check the car out...
Thanks for any help

 

It would say VTEC across the top of the engine if it was. The DX did not come stock with a VTEC engine, so unless it was swapped it is not.

Most of your shifting problems sounds like the transmission is slipping. You could try changing the transmission fluid, but this rarely ever helps. Usually replacing/rebuilding is the only option.

As for gas mileage its hard to say only knowning how much money you put in, and how many days you drove. I don't now if your daily commute is 2 miles or 100. Fill the car up, reset the trip meter, and get what the actual gas mileage is. Bad spark plugs can cause very poor gas mileage.

 

In my opinion, if the transmission fluid is low, it can cause it to come out of gear and it can cause it to take more time than normal to shift gears, and to go into reverse and drive. While driving slowly in your car, the transmission goes out of gear when you let off of the gas to keep the transmission from slowing the car to a halt. So when you give it gas while at a slow slow speed it has to go back into gear (as i call it) but if the fluid is low it will make the RPM's go up as if it was in park or neutral because there is not enough fluid for it to work properly. Check the fluid in the transmission, while the engine is on and the transmission is in neutral with the parking brake set. This is somewhat common in older automatic transmissions that have not had the fluid topped off or changed.

This is what I have experienced several times in repairing cars.

 

I checked the fluid and it seems fine. The stick has two lines and the fluid was up past the second line. :/ I hope my transmission isnt going out...

So the spark plugs could have an effect on my gas mileage issue but not the rpm issue?

 

I believe the correct method to to check the trans fluid with the car off not on.

 

I read somewhere that it wod have a little green plug by the distributor cap in the older models. "If it has the green plug then it has vtec" is what I read. Is this true? Or do they all have the green plug by the distributor ?

 

Bumping because I need more answers!
I don't want my new car to die!

 

What is written on the valve cover?

As for the transmission, I would change the transmission fluid. Use only Honda automatic transmission fluid. Just a drain and refill.

 

Okay after some research it seems the logical first step is to change the transmission fluid. Is this something I can do on my own or do I NEED to take it to a shop?
Does it have to be Honda fluid? Would other fluid mess it up? I also read that changing the transmission fluid can actually hurt the transmission more than help...is this true?

 

Download the service manual if you haven't done so already, it will show you how to change the fluid