I found the way to remove the pin easily! (starting at 5:20 of the video). I have a 1998 Honda Accord LX 2.3L with a Hitachi distributor. I had spent a few hours trying to remove the pin with a hammer and pin punches, but that pin wouldn't budge. So I did some looking around and found the right tool to get the job done. I used a "Heavy Duty Chain Breaker" from Harbor Freight (Item #66488). It's made to press out pins on motorcycle and bicycle chains. It worked like a charm and I was able to press out the pin, and press it back in within a matter of minutes. It costs about $15. Note that there are two adjusting screws - one inside the other. Both can be adjusted so you can press the pin out or press it back in. Use the outer screw for the heavy pressing, and the inner screw for the final press out. Just wanted to pass on this nugget of information in case it helps someone out there who is struggling with getting that pin out. Life is about helping others... Thanks for the video APDTY.
For those looking to replace the oil seal inside the distributor, the size is 12x22x5. make sure you get a seal that is made for engine oil. Typically labeled as hydrocarbon fluids. I got mine from the amazons. EAI Oil Seal 12mm X 22mm X 5mm TC Double Lip w/Spring. Metal Case w/Nitrile Rubber Coating. Also the HF heavy duty chain breaker works really well to easily push the pin out and then to put it back in.
that is great to hear, we get more motivated to do these videos when we know people get help and use them, otherwise it gets boring, so thanks for watching and especially thanks for commenting!!
I owned a Toyota Tercel. The car lasted 25 years and 300,000 miles. I never had to replace the distributor or tear it down to replace seals. I've had 3 distributors on my Honda Accord. Toyota's Nippondenso parts make all the difference.
Whenever using a hammer and punch or other hardened steel tools always wear safety glasses. The same applies when using a chain breaker or other pressing tool such as a vise because pieces can break off and cause a serious eye injury.
Before trying to do it yourself, please make sure to read comment from Rob Lim, to use the chain breaker tool from harbor freight to remove the pin. Don't use the pin puncher. It likely won't work, you will likely waste your time or damage the distributor. Overrall great video!
thanx. i was wondering why im still leaking afther changing that one outter oring. i missed the one with that pin. cool, this should stop that bad leak. great mechanic and thnx for not charging me 500 and then breaking more parts as previous mechanics done to me.
Thank you, my car, with this motor, is having this exact problem, seems to be a common problem with the F23As. I broke off a bolt on the cap, but 2 out of 3 is good enough. Ran a little better after I cleared out the oil in the cap but I have yet to do a replacements on the actual seals. Love the ending where you talk about remembering the firing order, messed that up quite a bit but thankfully there are only 16 possible positions. My solution for anything dealing with ignition in the future is color coded zip ties.
+Gene Friedman precisely in that location! Getting out the broken bit is gonna be a real b**** so I'm going to ignore it for the time being. Yeah, I get the lag between one and two also, think the trans is just showing it's age or the clutch packs are going. Honestly don't want to think about that at the moment. The check engine light came on for a torque converter issue about the same time I typed up my initial comment, but went off a few weeks ago, wtf?, and passed emissions. I will say this if you plan on replacing the pan, it is a bit of a hassle as you have to remove the portion of exhaust connecting to the headers and midpipe (me and my mechanic friend thought we could maneuver the pan around the exhaust without having to remove it, WRONG!). The pan has a windage tray which is strange considering the CL is not a performance car. This will involve an impact gun as those bolts in the exhaust are surely rusted by now and not easily accessible. When putting on the new pan, I used a dorman, get a better quality gasket (think this one was a Fel Pro), than what comes in the box, and scrape off all of the excess RTV. We didn't do this because it was about 2 in the morning when we placed it back on. It was either a low quality gasket or excess RTV that caused a leak in the pan again and is mildly inconvenient. My mechanic friend is competent and made sure all the oil pan bolts were torqued to spec. I am currently in the process of replacing one (or possible both depending if I take the aftermarket route) upper ball joints. So if yo like I can provide you info of what I got and tell you how it improved the ride quality, WHICH MY CAR NEEDS!!! All in all I think the CL is a good car, I haven't taken care of it properly and it has held up well with minimal issues. Just wish it wasn't grandma's beige. I bought mine after crashing my first car and decided to go with it because it was a good deal and ran well. What's the mileage on yours, I'm at 153k and change. If the trans goes I'm either going to do a manual conversion or get a car I really want depending on my financial situation at the time. A manual Cl would be super fun! Hope my blabbering has been of some use to you and if you have other questions about your vehicle I'd be happy to help diagnose. Just keep in mind I AM NOT A MECHANIC nor will I claim to be so my knowledge will be based off of things I've experience in my car and what fixed it.
I really like this video, very well explained and detailed. Mine leaks a little, about the same as this one. I'll wait until the weather gets warmer before I do mine. I was going to just buy the whole distributor but this changed my mine (cheaper) Great job sir
I just saw a video and he used a heavy duty chain breaker from harbor freight to remove the pin and it worked very well, because that pressed pin is no joke.
Ernest Hin this kit does include both size orings to fit the 2 different possible distributors in this particular engine, the distributor shaft thickness is different between the 2 possible distribs so this kits has both
@@brianodom797 the distributor has two bolt holes holding it to the head. If one of the holes is oblong then it is adjustable for base timing. Procedure for timing is with a timing light, and turning off the ignition advance if required. Some vehicles advance is not activated while in park and some are.
Hi, I replaced this distributor on mine same year and engine. Super dumb but i did not make a mark on timing or how the 2 slotted pins were. Now when i crank my car its just cranks not starting. How do i fix this?
my distributor is working, just leaking, but it would cost just as much to buy a new one, as it would to get the seals, tools, and parts for the current one. should i just buy a new distributor at that point?
I cant get the dang pin out of my distributor. I don't see a snap ring or c clip holding anything in place so idk. Distributor is identical to this one so idk maybe its just stuck in there good.
Sarah Gilmore those pins can be a pain and is probably the worst part of this job, you need a good punch tool that fits just inside the hole, then you need something to support the shaft of the distributor because tapping it out with a hammer and punch is needed
Trying to get the pin out broke my father in laws punch tool (cheap ones he had) luckily he bought ones from Snap On I think and they got the job done.
One question Sir...i took out my distributor to replace the oring..i did not pay attention to the fork tip and did not take cap off too see which way the rotory tip was pointed..i replaced oring on the distributor put it back and now my car won't start...so in order to fix my timing I would need to time the engine from the bottom up and just leave the distributor in where it is...will this fix the position of the distributor since I will be fixing the timing on the engine. Thanks for your time.
Nathan Brown ehh distributor replacement is probably the best option of the shaft is damaged or broken, luckily they are not too expensive anymore, look at the base of your distributor to determine which distributor is in your model
How come distributor only gots 2 bolt's into cylinder head but there's a 3rd bolt hole on top of the triangle looking bolt diagram with no bolt in it .. does it mean I got the wrong dizzy for my engine? Help please
Anyone have a problem with this kit? I bought this kit and did the repair exactly as detailed here about 3 years ago. Started leaking again a few months ago. I guess the aftermarket seal is far inferior to the OEM Honda part? Doing it again for $10 is still better than replacing the dizzy, but the job takes a couple of hours start to finish so kind of annoying. Just curious if anyone has sources a better part.
is that what you ended up doing? it would cost the same for me to get a new distributor as it would for me to get tools, and parts so I'm thinking of just buying a whole new distributor.
@@edisonvelasco8759 if one hole on that distributor is oblong, then it's adjustable for base timing, otherwise it wouldn't be oblong. I just can't say for certain if that one hole is or not though???
Those Acuras had problems with ignition switch.. mine used to do that to me until they replaced it under warranty. There's threads on this Acurazine dot cohm
Not a big deal just won't start...what do we do if we tried already to start engine and now it won't start..do we have to time the engine from bottom up
Hello, It's video is excellent but I've a problem because I don't know the number part or dimensions of seal, this seal not sale in Honda Parts... please I need the informacion and excuse me for my poor gramar... Thanks
ok you may have a different problem happening. 2 things come to mind right off the top, the first is make sure the check engine light is not on and the engine and pcv system are working properly. If the engine has enough blow by, then it can create too much pressure in areas that should not have that much pressure and it can push the oil out. The PCV system is the same as too much crankcase pressure can cause the oil to be pushed out. The other possibility is you have a different leak like a valve cover and it looks like the distributor. The worst case scenario is the distributor shaft is just worn out and simply resealing it is not enough, replacement may be required. If you have trouble pinpointing the problem and no check engine light is on, it may be worth letting s hop inspect it for you and then you consider if you want to do the repair yourself or not, either way you dont want to go on very long with an oil leak.
Diego Flores yeah if multiple oil leaks, then you may have too much pressure in the engine, PCV is a good place to start, no check engine light so it shouldn’t be a clogged cat converter but if high mileage, then piston ring blow by is possible, you could try experimenting with some of the different thicker oil products out there, engine honey or Lucas oil makes additives to help a worn out engine
I have the same problem 200K miles. It was a bad PCV valve. Honda forgot/neglected to put the PCV valve replacement in the maintenance schedule so I never thought about it. It should be replaced every 60K.
I uploaded a short clip showing how I steadied the distributor for anyone having trouble with the pin. Hope it saves some time! Link below. th-cam.com/video/CWUFKkoQck4/w-d-xo.html
I found the way to remove the pin easily! (starting at 5:20 of the video). I have a 1998 Honda Accord LX 2.3L with a Hitachi distributor. I had spent a few hours trying to remove the pin with a hammer and pin punches, but that pin wouldn't budge. So I did some looking around and found the right tool to get the job done. I used a "Heavy Duty Chain Breaker" from Harbor Freight (Item #66488). It's made to press out pins on motorcycle and bicycle chains. It worked like a charm and I was able to press out the pin, and press it back in within a matter of minutes. It costs about $15. Note that there are two adjusting screws - one inside the other. Both can be adjusted so you can press the pin out or press it back in. Use the outer screw for the heavy pressing, and the inner screw for the final press out. Just wanted to pass on this nugget of information in case it helps someone out there who is struggling with getting that pin out. Life is about helping others... Thanks for the video APDTY.
THANK YOU for this. If only I had seen it before hour 2 of beating on and cursing at a late '90s Honda distributor in my back yard.
Tried removing the pin for about half an hour, then decided to get this tool, why struggle any longer.
thanks this tool mde it a lot easiewr, still hard. The tool smells of heavy metals tho be careful
does the pin coming with the tool fit to the distributor pin hole or you need something more thin?
Worked! Did it just now with that tool. I can confirm that! Thank you Rob!!!!!
For those looking to replace the oil seal inside the distributor, the size is 12x22x5. make sure you get a seal that is made for engine oil. Typically labeled as hydrocarbon fluids. I got mine from the amazons. EAI Oil Seal 12mm X 22mm X 5mm TC Double Lip w/Spring. Metal Case w/Nitrile Rubber Coating.
Also the HF heavy duty chain breaker works really well to easily push the pin out and then to put it back in.
Gracias por tu información
We have a kit with Oil proof Orings and includes both sizes as Honda offered two different distributors (Hitachi or TEC): amzn.to/3UvdKVt
Extremely helpful video took me 40m to replace the gaskets and got it back on the ride running like a champ thank you for the video !
that is great to hear, we get more motivated to do these videos when we know people get help and use them, otherwise it gets boring, so thanks for watching and especially thanks for commenting!!
Great video. Also thanks to Rob Lim for suggesting chain breaker from Harbor Freight for removing the pin. That works well.
I owned a Toyota Tercel. The car lasted 25 years and 300,000 miles. I never had to replace the distributor or tear it down to replace seals. I've had 3 distributors on my Honda Accord. Toyota's Nippondenso parts make all the difference.
Low power and displacement engines dont wear out seals as fast , more power = more heat resulting in shorter lifespan of the o-rings and seals.
Whenever using a hammer and punch or other hardened steel tools always wear safety glasses. The same applies when using a chain breaker or other pressing tool such as a vise because pieces can break off and cause a serious eye injury.
this is the best video on redoing the distributer, thanks for the good video
thanks for the comment and thanks for watching
Before trying to do it yourself, please make sure to read comment from Rob Lim, to use the chain breaker tool from harbor freight to remove the pin. Don't use the pin puncher. It likely won't work, you will likely waste your time or damage the distributor. Overrall great video!
thanx. i was wondering why im still leaking afther changing that one outter oring. i missed the one with that pin. cool, this should stop that bad leak. great mechanic and thnx for not charging me 500 and then breaking more parts as previous mechanics done to me.
Thank you, my car, with this motor, is having this exact problem, seems to be a common problem with the F23As. I broke off a bolt on the cap, but 2 out of 3 is good enough. Ran a little better after I cleared out the oil in the cap but I have yet to do a replacements on the actual seals. Love the ending where you talk about remembering the firing order, messed that up quite a bit but thankfully there are only 16 possible positions. My solution for anything dealing with ignition in the future is color coded zip ties.
Yes always clearly identifying parts before removal can save lots of headaches, the stupid headaches that turn a 39 minutes job into a 2 hour jon
Like my oil pan, now on onto transmission issues...
Hahahaha, I broke off 1 cap bolt too. Is yours also the one near the front on the bottom (about 5 oclock)?
Hahahaha, I think our cars are twins. My oil pan is corroded to heck. The transmission lags between 1-2 gears up and downshifting.
+Gene Friedman precisely in that location! Getting out the broken bit is gonna be a real b**** so I'm going to ignore it for the time being. Yeah, I get the lag between one and two also, think the trans is just showing it's age or the clutch packs are going. Honestly don't want to think about that at the moment. The check engine light came on for a torque converter issue about the same time I typed up my initial comment, but went off a few weeks ago, wtf?, and passed emissions.
I will say this if you plan on replacing the pan, it is a bit of a hassle as you have to remove the portion of exhaust connecting to the headers and midpipe (me and my mechanic friend thought we could maneuver the pan around the exhaust without having to remove it, WRONG!). The pan has a windage tray which is strange considering the CL is not a performance car. This will involve an impact gun as those bolts in the exhaust are surely rusted by now and not easily accessible. When putting on the new pan, I used a dorman, get a better quality gasket (think this one was a Fel Pro), than what comes in the box, and scrape off all of the excess RTV. We didn't do this because it was about 2 in the morning when we placed it back on. It was either a low quality gasket or excess RTV that caused a leak in the pan again and is mildly inconvenient. My mechanic friend is competent and made sure all the oil pan bolts were torqued to spec.
I am currently in the process of replacing one (or possible both depending if I take the aftermarket route) upper ball joints. So if yo like I can provide you info of what I got and tell you how it improved the ride quality, WHICH MY CAR NEEDS!!!
All in all I think the CL is a good car, I haven't taken care of it properly and it has held up well with minimal issues. Just wish it wasn't grandma's beige. I bought mine after crashing my first car and decided to go with it because it was a good deal and ran well. What's the mileage on yours, I'm at 153k and change. If the trans goes I'm either going to do a manual conversion or get a car I really want depending on my financial situation at the time. A manual Cl would be super fun! Hope my blabbering has been of some use to you and if you have other questions about your vehicle I'd be happy to help diagnose. Just keep in mind I AM NOT A MECHANIC nor will I claim to be so my knowledge will be based off of things I've experience in my car and what fixed it.
I really like this video, very well explained and detailed. Mine leaks a little, about the same as this one. I'll wait until the weather gets warmer before I do mine. I was going to just buy the whole distributor but this changed my mine (cheaper) Great job sir
Ernest Hin thanks you and thanks for watching, also do it sooner rather then later, eventually the oil can damage the ignitor inside the distributor
May this new year be a blessed year for you and your family from God our Father in our Lord Jesus.
I got a whole new distributor do I need to get o rings as well? Would it be a good idea to replace them?
Best technician ever learned so much subscribing
Thank you for the video! its really helpful! I will be replacing my oring tomorrow and this is video is incredibly helpful
5 years later and worked amazing for me, Thanks to Rob Lim for the chain breaker idea
Thank you so much for this video. I was able to replace the seals and properly reinstall the distributor because of this well done video. Thank you!
I just saw a video and he used a heavy duty chain breaker from harbor freight to remove the pin and it worked very well, because that pressed pin is no joke.
Thankfully, the bearing is not pressed in
i purchased my o ring set from youre link . great commercial for amazon. they should give you a cut.
that can was a nice touch on safely cleaning the oily mess and gunk. what can did you usez?>
Will this kit work for the F23A1 engine Hitachi distributor?
Ernest Hin this kit does include both size orings to fit the 2 different possible distributors in this particular engine, the distributor shaft thickness is different between the 2 possible distribs so this kits has both
Way above my pay grade... Great video..
Does the oil need to be drained before any of this work is done?
Isn't there need to adjust the ignition timing after re-doing the distributor?
Ignition timing is not adjustable on this car. If the ignition timing was incorrect, you would need to replace the PCM
@@brianodom797 the distributor has two bolt holes holding it to the head. If one of the holes is oblong then it is adjustable for base timing. Procedure for timing is with a timing light, and turning off the ignition advance if required. Some vehicles advance is not activated while in park and some are.
Good video, what spay cleaner do you recommend?
Really Interesting Information. Thank you. For sharing your Knowledge.
Great video. What kind of spray did you clean it with at 4:02?
We used Brake Cleaner spray which is alcohol based, Any alcohol based automotive cleaner spray as the alcohol evaporates.
Hi, I replaced this distributor on mine same year and engine. Super dumb but i did not make a mark on timing or how the 2 slotted pins were. Now when i crank my car its just cranks not starting. How do i fix this?
my distributor is working, just leaking, but it would cost just as much to buy a new one, as it would to get the seals, tools, and parts for the current one. should i just buy a new distributor at that point?
How far down for that first seal? Mine took so much to get barely flush?
I want to know exactly what to mark so that the distributor is on time for when he puts it back after changing the seal
I cant get the dang pin out of my distributor. I don't see a snap ring or c clip holding anything in place so idk. Distributor is identical to this one so idk maybe its just stuck in there good.
Sarah Gilmore those pins can be a pain and is probably the worst part of this job, you need a good punch tool that fits just inside the hole, then you need something to support the shaft of the distributor because tapping it out with a hammer and punch is needed
Trying to get the pin out broke my father in laws punch tool (cheap ones he had) luckily he bought ones from Snap On I think and they got the job done.
Good morning sir,thank you for sharing that very need it information 😁👍
One question Sir...i took out my distributor to replace the oring..i did not pay attention to the fork tip and did not take cap off too see which way the rotory tip was pointed..i replaced oring on the distributor put it back and now my car won't start...so in order to fix my timing I would need to time the engine from the bottom up and just leave the distributor in where it is...will this fix the position of the distributor since I will be fixing the timing on the engine. Thanks for your time.
Hopefully you got this fixed, but I would think you would remove the distributor and rotate the shaft 180 degrees, then reinstall.
98 honda accord did the o ring replacements for the distributor without making any marks car cranks but wont start now. Please help.
I broke the retaining ring on mine trying to beat that pin out..do you know if it's replaceable
Nathan Brown ehh distributor replacement is probably the best option of the shaft is damaged or broken, luckily they are not too expensive anymore, look at the base of your distributor to determine which distributor is in your model
great video. how long did it take to get that pin out? I am having a hell of a time.
great video thanks for taking the time it really helped me out.
Fish Dodd awesome thanks for the comment and thanks for watching!!
How come distributor only gots 2 bolt's into cylinder head but there's a 3rd bolt hole on top of the triangle looking bolt diagram with no bolt in it .. does it mean I got the wrong dizzy for my engine? Help please
What's that green switch by distributer PLEASE HELP.
Anyone have a problem with this kit? I bought this kit and did the repair exactly as detailed here about 3 years ago. Started leaking again a few months ago. I guess the aftermarket seal is far inferior to the OEM Honda part? Doing it again for $10 is still better than replacing the dizzy, but the job takes a couple of hours start to finish so kind of annoying. Just curious if anyone has sources a better part.
thanks for this video so now i know to replace O-ringand rebuilt distributor. i hope you reload more video
fa es paz thanks so much for the comment and thanks for watching!!!
Can I avoid all that seal removal by just buying a new distributor and installing?
is that what you ended up doing? it would cost the same for me to get a new distributor as it would for me to get tools, and parts so I'm thinking of just buying a whole new distributor.
IF YOU know where or how get the part,the number or the site where you get it..thanks
Yes here is a link to the part we installed: amzn.to/2xNMuHP
KALIMAN R yes the link is in the description, this kits is now at amazon and is available prime
Do you need the second o-ring (Fel-Pro 72416 O-Ring) you linked to in the description or is the first kit enough?
The kit is enough. The second o-ring is just the kit without the two seals.
Joshua Thanks, this tutorial is great by the way!
Are you using brake cleaner?
Sarah Gilmore either brake cleaner or a carb cleaner, really just an alcohol based cleaner that evaporated quickly,
Awesome video, thank you!
What are you spraying on it to clean it dude?? Was waiting for you to say something but you never did
Brake Cleaner. It is a residue-free degreaser that quickly evaporates. Very popular as a quick and easy parts cleaner.
You gonna set the base timing?... I see you didn't mark the distributor.
You don't need to with 98-02 4 cylinder Accord's.
@@edisonvelasco8759 if one hole on that distributor is oblong, then it's adjustable for base timing, otherwise it wouldn't be oblong. I just can't say for certain if that one hole is or not though???
It's not adjustable. The timing is controlled by the PCM (Computer).
@@edisonvelasco8759 I've got the same engine in my accord and now I won't need to worry about the base timing... fantastic. Thanks for that info.
What's the stuff you sprayed on to it to clean it?
Brake parts cleaner
I could probably do this, but couldn't I just buy a brand new distributor? Just wondering
I finally did it, all good
muy buen video gracias
de nada
Hi,kindly share me the part no.of the repair kit,thanks
thanks for the helpful video sir
Thanks, great lesson
I have a 1998 acura cl that shuts off while driving does anybody know if the cause of it shutting off would be a bad distributor
Those Acuras had problems with ignition switch.. mine used to do that to me until they replaced it under warranty. There's threads on this Acurazine dot cohm
Not a big deal just won't start...what do we do if we tried already to start engine and now it won't start..do we have to time the engine from bottom up
back in the days . i would hear this. the part is hard to find. hear it comes. but i can get it for$80 i got a parts guy..... amazon rocks
Hello, It's video is excellent but I've a problem because I don't know the number part or dimensions of seal, this seal not sale in Honda Parts... please I need the informacion and excuse me for my poor gramar... Thanks
I Have a honda accord 2.3 4cl 1999 and i want do the same!
yeah pretty much the same repair.
Yeah brother, 😁 Regards from Dominican Republic! 🖐🏼
Thanks for teach us.
I did this and its still Leaking i replaced every gasket and rings
ok you may have a different problem happening. 2 things come to mind right off the top, the first is make sure the check engine light is not on and the engine and pcv system are working properly. If the engine has enough blow by, then it can create too much pressure in areas that should not have that much pressure and it can push the oil out. The PCV system is the same as too much crankcase pressure can cause the oil to be pushed out. The other possibility is you have a different leak like a valve cover and it looks like the distributor. The worst case scenario is the distributor shaft is just worn out and simply resealing it is not enough, replacement may be required. If you have trouble pinpointing the problem and no check engine light is on, it may be worth letting s hop inspect it for you and then you consider if you want to do the repair yourself or not, either way you dont want to go on very long with an oil leak.
Auto Parts Direct To You check engine isnt on im have multiple leaks . Im buying a new pcv valve and put yhem on when they arrive
Diego Flores yeah if multiple oil leaks, then you may have too much pressure in the engine, PCV is a good place to start, no check engine light so it shouldn’t be a clogged cat converter but if high mileage, then piston ring blow by is possible, you could try experimenting with some of the different thicker oil products out there, engine honey or Lucas oil makes additives to help a worn out engine
I have the same problem 200K miles. It was a bad PCV valve. Honda forgot/neglected to put the PCV valve replacement in the maintenance schedule so I never thought about it. It should be replaced every 60K.
@@gfriedman99 Haha, Kid, you get around :)
Thank you for your video
Como puedo Cambiar el Balero?
Thank you
Tung Nguyen thank you for watching!!
thank u very much !!!work for me!!
thank you for watching and commenting!!
Auto Parts Direct To You hi im a new subscriber. what did you use to spray clean the distributor?
Brake Clean. Its a good residue free chemical.
Joshua thanks for the quick reply. mine started leaking an this video proved to be very helpful. i will be fixing it soon as the part comes in. thx
👍
thank
I uploaded a short clip showing how I steadied the distributor for anyone having trouble with the pin. Hope it saves some time! Link below.
th-cam.com/video/CWUFKkoQck4/w-d-xo.html
Thanks sir that’s a short n sweet great idea on how to steady the distributor. Did that way work with the HFT Chain Breaker?
The mark left was very not funny to me