got three CEL's. all related?
 

Hello all

well im finally able to sit down and do this repair on my moms accord thats been needed to be done for a while.

For a bit now, we have had the P0401 code and I cleaned out the egr ports and even replaced the valve without success.

While at AZ the other day I had them check the CEL to see if anything else was there and I had P1491 (valve lift insufficient detected) and P1259 (vtec system malfunction).

I was planning on pulling the intake manifold for a while now to clean out all the gunk in it and I feel like that should cure the P0401 and P1491, but maybe not.

Also I got the oil light on today and checked the level and it was wayyyy low. I plan to also clean the vtec screen to try and fix that problem.

So should those two plans of action fix everything or should I try something else? Im not sure which connections to check or how to check them really since the autozone printouts do suggest open/short circuits for two of the codes.

It sounds like you are losing oil. Look for an oil leak.

Also read the sticky at the top of gen tech help. Especially the part about what vehicle you are talking about.

whoops, thought I did. 2001 accord ex sedan mt.

ive been searching much of the forum and all i can find is the repair for this for a v6 or for the previous generation. I believe ive determined removing the upper intake manifold and throttle body and cleaning them but Im just looking for verification now or other suggestions

it would help cleaning intake but i would suggest to adjust the valve lift, if the lift is off it could be letting oil through the guide into the cylinder, would also explain why vtec is having problem. Also, taking the valve cover(s) (not sure if four or six cylinder) would give you a chance to inspect the valvetrain for issues.

Its a 4 cylinder. How do I adjust valve lift? We are finally getting the chance to work on the car this weekend to hopefully take care of everything.

Would you think I need to pull off the whole manifold or just the upper portion? And also, do you know where I can find a how to on doing this or should I try and get the haynes repair manual.

i really have no idea how to adjust valve lift on these engines, but i believe its not very hard. i think that there is just a nut on top of the rocker arm. a haynes manual would definately have it in there though. and honestly, i wouldnt even bother taking the manifold off unless the problem persists after lift is adjusted.

That is the wrong valve lift. The error is for the EGR valve, and NOT an exhaust/intake valve.

Did you clean the port that goes through the intake manifold? For a 4-cylinder, the port is on the passenger side of the lower part of the intake manifold.

So does that mean I need to pull of the whole manifold and clean it all out?

ive cleaned out the port right below the egr valve the best i could. even started up the car with the valve off and we had plenty of air blowing out of that port so I would assume that it isnt clogged up there.

How would I check to see if its an electrical issue? ive got a multimeter but not sure what to check for voltage or current and which prongs on the plug to use.