I have a '94 Accord LX that I enjoy wrenching on. I also like tools and have a tendancy to collect tools I think I might have a use for someday. The other day, I was talking to a buddy and he mentioned he just purchased a vacuum gage... hmmmm... Does a vacuum gage have a place in someone who works on Honda's toolbox? Where would you connect it? How do you interpret it?

Thanks!

 

I would put the vacuum gauge on the line that goes to the brake booster. Really, any port where the pressure is not regulated by a valve will work.

A vacuum reading can give you some information on the condition of your engine, but it is not definitive. There was a writeup about that in my haynes manual what different readings and responses could indicate.

 

I use a vacuum pump for brake bleeding/flushing. You can also use it to test EGR valves, and suck fluids out of reservoirs (brake/power steering).

 

I'm more interested in a vacuum gage. I found a great web site that shows how the gage will act if there's say bad rings or leaky valves etc... Just wasn't sure if it applied to a fuel injected honda or where it would be connected.

 

A vacuum hand-pump (MityVac) has a gauge on it. For a "tool" it'll work as a vacuum gauge as well as a pump. But for something that you'd install & drive around, it's more convenient to have just a gauge.

I've got a MityVac with worn/leaky O-rings. Gotta fix that...

Anyway, rings & valves work the same way on a carburated or fuel-injected engine. So that stuff should be the same.