Good morning, everyone!

I hope you all had a nice holiday season.

I’ve been experiencing an issue with my Honda FIT for the past three or four months. The engine light has been intermittently turning off and on, so I initially thought it wasn’t a big deal since the diagnostic showed random misfires on cylinder 1, but the car was running smoothly.

Recently, however, the engine light has stayed solid. I had it checked, and the diagnostic revealed that the EGR valve needs to be replaced. Unfortunately, the person who usually handles these repairs for me is out of town for the holidays, and in a couple of days, I need to take a 500-mile trip to Oregon.

My main concern: Do you think it’s safe to drive that distance with this issue? Could driving all those miles at once lead to any serious problems, or is it something I can safely fix after I return? The car still runs smoothly and has always been well-maintained.

Also, I’ve noticed that genuine EGR valves can be quite expensive. Do you think aftermarket options would work just as well? If so, do you have any recommendations? I’ve seen some on eBay and Amazon for under $50—are those worth considering?

Thanks in advance to anyone who can share advice or suggestions!

 

Your kind of in a "it depends" situation, depending on how bad the EGR valve is leaking,
or sticking it can cause a check engine light, cause various drive-ability issues, ruin the cat converter, or it causes nothing.


<- just one of many videos on how to do it, this is a 1 banana job on the shade tree howler monkey scale... (1 to 10 bananas of difficulty), its right on top and 1 electrical plug, 2 bolts. Valve comes with gasket. No sealer required. I would figure about 20minutes.. Perfect 1rst time DIY...

 

@dwtaylorpdx Good video. Thanks. What do you suppose he is using to clean it? I always worry about solvents when used on or near rubber parts.

 

Carb cleaner, its all aluminum and cast iron and only discharges to the exhaust system, the carb cleaner wont hurt the cats.. Plus it evaporates in a minute or two if you let it sit before re-installing. Many come with self sealing gaskets that are super high temp so no sealers and such required normally.

 

Hello and Happy New Year to all.

Thank you for your reply. I just returned from a 1,200-mile round trip. Despite having 175,000 miles, the car ran remarkably well, almost like new. At one point during the trip, the engine malfunction light went off and I drove the entire 500-mile return trip in 8 hours without further issues.

A Honda mechanic I know mentioned that it's unusual for a car with my mileage to experience this particular problem. He has never encountered a similar situation. Since the light has flickered on and off intermittently in the past, I'm concerned that the issue might not be a faulty valve, as initially suspected.

I suspect a malfunctioning sensor might be triggering false fault codes. I'm hesitant to replace the valve that I've already purchased, only to discover the problem lies elsewhere.

At this moment I'm unsure of the exact cause and would appreciate any insights or suggestions.

 

FYI there is a plate on the engine that covers a series of channels that provide the path for each valve for the egr, those chambers are small and can fill up with carbon over time, IIRC you have to remove the intake manifold to get at it, its not a hard job, I did it on my last GD when I had the head off to do a head gasket. (Was a kind of basket case sport that had not been treated well and the PO had hit a curb or something and cracked the radiator so it over heated and blew the gasket. ) The car had about 125K and the channels were packed full of carbon. once you have it off its a can of carb cleaner and a plastic brush to scrub it out.. (ALways wear gloves when using car cleaner ..

I found a pic in another post that shows the plate, you don't have to pull the intake to clean the egr channels,,

The egr plate is the one on the front of the intake held on with the small bolts. If I recall its a metal gasket so I re-used it when I had the plate off my GD. Cheers.

 

I haven't been on this forum very long but I have already learned a TON of useful stuff from you, dwtaylorpdx, thanks so much!
It's a blessing to have come across such a great source of info having recently purchased a high mileage 2009 myself.
(I'm an even older geezer also living in OR).

 

Thank you again for your kindness. Do you believe someone with limited manual dexterity could perform this type of operation?"

"I just noticed you're from Portland! The trip I mentioned earlier was to Mt. Bachelor. Oregon is a state I truly admire and would love to call home someday."