Spool Valve Gasket walk through (pics)

[R13]

I did search and I found several very good instructional posts (at least one of which I read through prior to doing this myself), but since I was swapping these things out anyway, I decided to take a few pictures. If this is redundant, please feel free to chastise me and post a link :biggrin:

Now, on to the fun:

Tools:
-ratchet (small/medium)
-ratchet extensions 1x 2ft section 1x shorter section (4-6in)
-metric sockets (10mm for most things 12mm for strut brace bolts)
-swivel
-phillips head screw driver
-teflon scraper/knife(to remove old gaskets w/o gouging valve assy.)

Parts:

2 each of the following:

Procedure:

1. Open engine compartment, and locate the spool valve you want to start with (there are two).

I started with the front bank. This one is visible just behind the coolant overflow tank and just below the front valve cover. (see red arrow)

2. It is not possible to remove the spool valve assembly without first getting a few things out of theway.

I was able to un-bolt the coolant overflow tank (3x 10mm bolts + 1 hose guide bracket), and just set it on top of the intake manifold cover without disconnecting any coolant lines.

2. Next, Unplug the two connectors indicated by the blue arrows (one is green, the other is gray), unclip the aft wiring bundle (green arrows) and move it out of the way, and then un-screw the wiring bracket from the spool valve assembly (1 screw indicated by red arrow). Rotate the bracket towards the front of the car and tie or wedge it somewhere out of the way.

3. You should now enjoy relatively unobstructed access to the Spool Valve assembly. I discovered that I was able to get access to all three mounting bolds (blue dots) with a standard issue ratchet handle and 10mm socket.

NOTE:. I highly recommend loosening the three bolts holding the halves of the assembly together (red dots) while the assembly is still attached to the car.

4. Once you remove the assembly from the car, finish separating the upper half from the lower half, and remove both gasket-filters.

NOTE Keep the valve assembly in the upright position as things will fall out/off otherwise.

5. Reverse the steps to reasemble. Be sure to reconnect all plugs/harnesses, and do not over-torque the bolts.

On to the rear Valve.

 

[davidf]

Thank you, thank you, thank you. I been putting off this job for months. The gaskets are setting on the shelf. This was my inspiration to get off my lazy butt.:smile:

 

[R13]

Rear bank:

This one is a PITA.

EDIT: Suggestion from LarryB: Remove the black control box (looks sort of like a fuse box) in the rear drivers-side corner of the engine bay (two wiring plugs and a few screws). This makes access much easier.

1. Remove rear strut brace and find someone with skinny/long arms. The assembly's are identical, so I will skip some steps as they are the same as with the front bank. As with the front assy. un-plug the two connectors, and unscrew the bracket (1 screw). Since there is not another harness attached to this bracket it should just come off.

2. Find your swivel, and assemble a few extensions. My setup is below:

3. Locate the rear Spool Valve assembly. It will be in-line with the strut brace and just aft and down from the throttle body.

4. (Remeber to loosen the upper bolts (red dots again) Using this setup, you will have to stick one arm down in the compartment to guide/brace the socket, and the other will be applying torque to the ratchet. Using this method, remove the three mounting bolts (blue dots). The forward two are visible, but the rearward bolt you just have to feel around for, or find with an inspection mirror.

5. Repeat process as before for replacing gaskets, and re-attaching valve assy. to head.

If I missed anything please feel free to amend/correct as you see fit. This process (doing for the first time) took me about 1.5 hours taking my sweet time about it.

 

[R13]

Thank you, thank you, thank you. I been putting off this job for months. The gaskets are setting on the shelf. This was my inspiration to get off my lazy butt.:smile:

I do what I can :biggrin:

 

[Doc308]

Thank you--excellent pictures and instructions!

 

[enkrypt3d]

what are the spool valves used for? thx!

 

[VBNSX]

what are the spool valves used for? thx!

http://www.nsxprime.com/FAQ/Reference/1991_svcman/1991servman.pdf

pages 51 & 52 / or 5-7, 5-8

cheers,
x

 

[sparky]

Nice work.

So how did your NSX drive afterwards?

Excuse my curiousity but that engine bay has a lot of corrosion going on. Has this car been residing close to the sea? (sea spray corrosion)

 

[R13]

Nice work.

So how did your NSX drive afterwards?

No difference in how it drives (the VTEC system was working properly prior to this particular maintenance). The car does leak less oil now though, which was the goal.

Excuse my curiousity but that engine bay has a lot of corrosion going on. Has this car been residing close to the sea? (sea spray corrosion)

I purchased the car in White Plains, NY, where it had been driven daily since new. Road salt sucks. Most of the car is not too bad, but there are a few places (driver's side headlight bucket, exhaust, some places in engine bay) that have suffered worse than others.

 

[nikey22]

Agree with LarryB and R13, removing the "Control Box" (vacuum chamber box) helped a ton. I had the exact setup and could NOT access the spool valve otherwise, just remember to put the gray tubes back in into the correct fittings! I think there were 5.

 

[RON98]

what are the spool valves used for? thx!

do you like vtec? :wink:

 

[NSX GT]

Changed mine a couple of months ago. Did know about the top part gasket?

 

[Ryuji]

Hi,

Here is my humble contribution to that very good D.I.Y. as
I just ended to do the job

For the front spool valve, nothing else to say... thank you
very much R13

For the rear spool valve, I thought it would be the hardest
one but in fact it was the easiest , thank you LarryB :biggrin:

You were true, just remove the strut bar, then the black
box near the intake box (3 sockets, 2 bolts and 6 little hoses) :

When done, there is plenty of space to work :

I only had to use a swivel and a 22cm long extension to
unbolt the spool valve :

@+

 

[nikey22]

why does the manual say NOT to disconnect the vacuum lines from the control box or the throttle body? Also, in the replacement of clutch DIY by Cspeed, again they say the same thing, do not disconnect the vacuum lines from the throttle body?..

obviously vacuum lines were disconnected here inorder to get the control box out of the way to get at the spool valve?... any issues here? Does the car run roughly after you reconnect them? is there any 'memory' loss from the control box that happens? I don't understand their concerns, maybe they just think you will connect them back wrong and they say dont do it?.. I don't know..

 

[R13]

NSX GT: Yes, I replaced both filter/gaskets on the valve assembly.

Ryuji: Thanks for the additional pictures. I did not take many of the rear location since I had trouble accessing it (because I didn't remove the 'box).

nikey22: I hadn't noticed those instructions, but then again I didn't remove the box when i did mine.

Just on physical principles, it shouldn't make a difference. As long as the car is not on, they are not under vacuum, and as long as no debris gets into the hoses or connections, they will work just the same as long as the are properly reconnected.

That said, my word is by no means Honda engineering gospel.

 

[nsxotic911]

Dude, hope you're not offended by me for saying this, but that's one dirty engine.

 

[Ryuji]

why does the manual say NOT to disconnect the vacuum lines from the control box or the throttle body? Also, in the replacement of clutch DIY by Cspeed, again they say the same thing, do not disconnect the vacuum lines from the throttle body?..

obviously vacuum lines were disconnected here inorder to get the control box out of the way to get at the spool valve?... any issues here? Does the car run roughly after you reconnect them? is there any 'memory' loss from the control box that happens? I don't understand their concerns, maybe they just think you will connect them back wrong and they say dont do it?.. I don't know..

I don't know why they say that... In fact I didn't know that
I shouldn't do it

I disconnected mines, changed the gasket, reconnected them
and started my engine and... it works just fine (3 starts
and 100 km later) :smile:
If the motor isn't running, I think no vacuum is created so
it must be fine.

ps : I reconnected them the same as they were before, it's
easy because there are # number (1,2,3,4,5) on each of the
5 hoses to the throttle body.

 

[goldNSX]

I don't see any reason why you should NOT disconnect the lines as long as you don't start the motor and reconnect correctly.

The manual is a little bit confusing here.

 

[R13]

Dude, hope you're not offended by me for saying this, but that's one dirty engine.

Nope, not at all :biggrin: (I will just assume you were talking about me since my engine is far dirtier than Ryuji's)

It looks a little better now, but is still nothing that will win a show. When I got it in October, the car had 212000 miles on it, suffered from several oil leaks, and had been driven daily in the Northeast. So yeah, it was filthy.

I have fixed all but one leak (rear-bank lower cam plug still dribbles a bit if I get into VTEC during a drive), and cleaned it a little. However, it is not a garage queen, and will probably never be. I drive it daily in TN, so I am far more concerned with mechanical soundness than i am with engine bay cosmetics. Only where those two concerns intersect do I really pull out the white glove.

Once I have my MR2 back in working order for daily use, then I will be able to expand my priorities a bit.

 

[nikey22]

Guys,

2 questions:

1. Is it normal for the new spool valve gasket to be "skinnier" than the original one that was inside the valve? I opened up my valve and the one that is in there is fatter and a little flatter. Does the new one eventually just fill the gaps or what?


2. the top gasket is very different from the original in my case (yr 1994). The original gasket doesn't have the screen and it has a slightly different shape, different enough that my new gasket didn't fit the contours...

any thoughts?

 

[Ryuji]

1. Is it normal for the new spool valve gasket to be "skinnier" than the original one that was inside the valve? I opened up my valve and the one that is in there is fatter and a little flatter. Does the new one eventually just fill the gaps or what?

The older is a little flatter for sure, crushed by the spool valve assembly.
The older is fatter, I didn't pay attention to it, sorry.
The newer is more flexible.

2. the top gasket is very different from the original in my case (yr 1994). The original gasket doesn't have the screen and it has a slightly different shape, different enough that my new gasket didn't fit the contours...

any thoughts?

If it doens't fit, it's not for your car... is it the right part number ? a picture of it ?

 

[R13]

2. the top gasket is very different from the original in my case (yr 1994). The original gasket doesn't have the screen and it has a slightly different shape, different enough that my new gasket didn't fit the contours...

any thoughts?

So your "upper" gasket looks different from the one in the first picture I posted in the first post in this thread? (smaller gasket in top of picture w/screen)

Mine is a '92, so the engines should be by-and-large the same, but I would not be the one to ask if they made some minute change or another like that.

 

[mercedesx7]

how about the 36172-PR3-005? where is it attached to if you dont mind im asking...



Great job!!!!

 

[R13]

how about the 36172-PR3-005? where is it attached to if you dont mind im asking...



Great job!!!!

Between the upper and lower halves of the valve assembly.

See if this exploded diagram is any help: (labeled #10)

http://www.acuraautomotiveparts.org...omp=List All&vinnoT=&trim=&trans=&view=normal

 

[Frank Spano]

If there is no leaks is there a certain time ( number of years ) this gasket should be changed? Thanks, Frank