ECU & VSS replacement failed, What else? 97 Civic DX Automatic?

Question

1997 Civic DX  D16Y7 Automatic Transmission. 
(This car does have performance parts(Head, Header, SRI, Exhaust, & Plenty of Replaced parts.))
IAC valve has been malfunctioning since we got it. Doesnt really effect much.
O2 sensors malfunctioning. Same ole same ole. 
When we replaced the head we got a manufacturer OBD code for cam displacement. Did a few tweak and it went away.

So thats 2-3 OBD errors. Car had driven fine for quiet a while. Eventually started loosing power, then one day the speedometer started going crazy. Then the transmission started bucking/jerking when trying to shift gears. Let it sit while at work, then when I had a chance to look at it, I drove it home and on the way D4 started flashing on the dash. So I used D3. Let it sit over night, Moved the car the next day & D4 was fine. Speedometer still acts crazy. Car still jerks here and there.

OBD scanner then gives me like 13 Error codes. My oh gee, No way they all could have gone bad that fast. Bought an ECU, Didnt change anything. Speedometer wasnt working as much perhaps? Still jumped around of course. After I changed the ECU, OBD scanner gave me like 8 errors. Ok. . . 

VSS seems to be a reasonable problem. Replaced it, Worked . . . ok . . . for a few seconds. Back to the same jerking/bucking. So I decided to flush the transmission and all that. Car drives 100% better, Speedometer works decently untill about 20-25 Mph then it jumps. Car barely jerks/bucks anymore, Normally only happens now, when you get on the accelerator. Transmission mount is intact, kinda dry rotted, but the other 2 are brand new. So that shouldnt be a problem with the jerk. Its more than less, the cars RPMs jumping around when it happens.

I have no clue what else it could be. Do I have to replace a transmission, or should I just be looking for a new Honda? Lol this time a standard.

SoCal · Accepted Answer

Well first off....
"IAC valve has been malfunctioning since we got it. Doesnt really effect much.
O2 sensors malfunctioning. Same ole same ole. "
Fix your IACV and O2 sensors, they are crucial to the car running correctly.
For one your O2 sensors send signals to the ECU so it knows exactly what the Air/Fuel ratio needs to be. If you have no O2 sensors and cat because of the exhaust your running I suggest you switch out the exhaust. Without O2 sensors working correctly the ECU will only run the car in closed loop meaning it's running off preset factory settings - and no that's not a good thing. Second the IACV is what controls your idle, that needs to be operating properly.

Pull out your VSS and make sure it is securely in place and the connections are good, if it all seems fine replace it.

"P1298 - Control Fuel Air Metering"
P1298 is a code for Electrical Load Detector....
Most commonly caused by a blown fuse. Read this: http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/tsb/civic/x99-029e.pdf

And P1362 is Camshaft Position (CMP) Sensor A (Top Dead Center (TDC) Sensor)
Check your timing, it may be off. Also make sure the wiring for the sensor is all good and isn't bare wire anywhere. It could also be a bad distributor or the sensor has gone bad. You can also try replacing Spark Plugs, Plug Wires, Cap & Rotor, Ignition Coil.

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ECU & VSS replacement failed, What else? 97 Civic DX Automatic?

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