Hey Gang,
Recent new member here. I joined to learn about electrical issues on my Jeep, and while I've been watching videos, I began to think about another project that has been on the back burner for about a year.
I have a 2005 Honda Odyssey with the 3.5 V6 with just under 300K. It was running perfect with no issues until the Amazon counterfeit timing belt snapped. I had both heads off. I replaced the rear head with a remanufactured one and had my local machine shop fix up the other. I put it all back together with a new crank position sensor (the old one was damaged by the broken belt jamming into it). While it was apart I cleaned the the carbon from the intake manifold and the throttle body.
I read on the Honda Odyssey forum (
www.odyclub.com
) that cleaning the throttle body may require a relearn procedure, so I bought a Foxwell 530 bi-directional scanner. I was also advised to do a PCM relearn and Crank Position Sensor relearn as well. I performed these functions as required.
When I fired the engine initially, it started immediately and sounded good...for about 1/2 of a second, then it stalled and would only crank. After letting it sit for a while to rest the starter, I cranked it again and it did the same thing...immediate start and then quickly died. Rested it again and then started it again but with about 1/2 throttle and I was able to keep it running at around 2000 rpm but it didn't sound good. If I tried to let it idle, it would still die. At this point I pulled the plugs to look at them and I found the front bank plugs looked very wet and fouled looking. The rear bank plugs on the other hand looked completely white and dry, as if the rear bank was not getting any fuel at all. All plugs were brand new, so it really looks like it was only running on the front bank.
Another part of the story is that this engine has a VCM (variable cylinder management) system in which the rear cylinders are disabled at cruise speed and low throttle settings. This system is supposed to be inhibited until the engine comes up to normal operating temperature, but since it appears that I'm not getting fuel or any combustion in the rear bank, I wonder if this system is being activated when it shouldn't? The other part of the story is that there are no codes present. I don't know how long it takes to trip the DTC's, but when I checked, there weren't any.
One last point...I know that many folks will suspect that the valve timing is off, which I also suspected since that was the trickiest part of the job. However, I have triple checked the marks and do believe that they are correct. While I am human and certainly prone to mistakes, I am not new to engine overhauls. I have rebuilt engines big and small, from a weedwacker, up to a 6.7 Ford Powerstroke. The weak link in my skill set is definitely the computer and electric stuff.
Has anybody in the group had experience with this VCM system? I'm interested in suggestions.
Thank you!
