I’VE HAD THIS SAME PROBLEM FOR ALMOST TWO WEEKS NOW . . . AND MY SANITY HAS LONG GONE!!! So excuse the lengthy post-up, but maybe my recollection of my problem might HELP you somehow, and also hopefully help me too!!!
It’s actually funny because it first started back in January. I was driving to school (my first day too) and I was at a stop sign. I put the gear into first and slowly let the stepped on the gas pedal BUT let go of the clutch a little too soon! You know how that goes, the car kinda chokes and shuts off. WELL, my car turned off . . . for good. I cranked and cranked . . . and cranked but no luck. I ended up pushing it to a safe spot, then me n my automechanically-enclined friend had it towed back to my house. There, the fun began.
First thing I checked was the fuel pump, and I heard it the way ur supposed to hear it the sec. u turn the switch to the on position. Then I checked for sparks. . .and I got 'em . . but they were mediocre!! Ok, they looked blue, but that really “doesn’t help” according to my friend. So we opened up the cap and found a lot of corrosion-like build-up which showed signs of a “burnt” coil. Then the coil itself was burnt visibly. So, I ended up changing the dist. cap, coil, and the ignition module too . . and voila. . .the car started.
Drove it for 3 months . . . until same thing happened. Now I was confused because I had just changed everything. But a friendly mechanic told me that the “below-acceptable” ignition parts I got from Kragen Auto Parts were the cause. I took the ignition module out and compared it to the old one I kept and WOW it was so much lighter in weight. But knowing that I had already spent a good $70 on it and had a warranty, I got a replacement for all the parts, and changed them all. But again no start. So having no other solution . . . I had AAA tow it to a local Honda shop. I was sad that I couldn’t fix it myself, although I had pin-pointed it too the ignition system. But then again, I HAD a broken engine mount I had to fix, so the shop was inevitable. Anyhow, they did three things: 1) They told me that the rotor was somehow loose and that THAT wasn’t good. . .it wiggled for some reason! So I got another one put in. 2) They told me that the igniter had gone out YET AGAIN. To my astonishment, I had changed it before taking it to the shop and yet it went out again. So that made me wonder what was causing this!!! This is when 3) comes in: 3) They told me that the wires weren’t making a good contact to the spark plugs and gave me genuine Honda ones BUT used ones that they had lying around. VOILA THE CAR STARTED!!!
They told me to change the WIRES and the “cheesy” ignition coil/module ASAP!!! But I went off with my car and drove it for six months with no probs. Then this past September 28th, my car went quiet again. First thing I did was take out both the ignition coil and module (igniter) and took it to AUTOZONE to get tested. They said they’re both fine . . . but I don’t know whether to test them. Visible, at least the coil looks fine. The cap has no residues at all . . . and the little spring/carbon like thing in it is still intact. So I don’t know what to do. So busy with school, I left my car at the parking lot of Target for almost a week. I had it towed back home about week and a half a go, and it’s just sitting there. I haven’t even bothered with it. I plan on working on it today and that’s why I decided to pay g2ic.com a visit to see if anything relevant was on here. I was surprised to find this to be a common problem. Somehow I know we’ll get through this BUT I JUST DON’T KNOW WHERE TO PINPOINT!!! Right now I am suspecting the wires, and I’m going to buy some new ones after finding someone else other than AUTOZONE to retest the ignition coil/module. Other than that, I’m pretty much lost. SO if there’s someone who can help . . .please do so. I’ll let u know what happens later on tonight. Good luck
SORRY FOR POSTING THIS AGAIN . . .BUT MAYBE SOMEONE MIGHT SEE IT AND HELP!!!
damn man i feel your pain. im going through the EXACT same problem but mines an auto. i changed my igniter and it worked for a bit so me and my friend tried to advance/retard the timing to get it perfect. it was less than perfect then i tried to swap in my old igniter then when i put the “new” one in it didnt even start. that really pissed me off. my spark plug wires arent creating that good of a spark even though i jus got them maybe 2-3 months ago straight from HONDA. the OEM kinds. i havent changed my cap and rotor YET because me and my friend were to busy playing with the timing. i guess im not the only teg owner with this problem. sooo yah can anybody help usssssssss not driving your teg for so long can make you go crazy
does it start and shutoff right away? my car broke down and i found out it was just the ignition switch key …i had to keep on holding the key on the “on” position
What do u mean u had to keep ur key in the ON position? Before my car completely went. . .I remember that the initial symptoms were that after a crank, the car would start, then the idle would come back quickly down down down and shut off.
I understand! I have a feeling though that urs is also not related to the fuel pump system either! I think we both are dealing somehow with the ignition system. Because I went through everything the last time this happened to me . . . and I ended up suspecting the fuel pump. Even though I heard it operating just fine, I ended up going through the whole speel starting with removing the fuel filter. I put the IN hose inside a MILK container and just turned the ignition to the ON position to see if enough fuel was coming through. Everything turned out fine and it ended up being the ignition system. I think it’s almost a given now that HONDA’S/ACURA’S definitely have some kind of an unreliable record when it comes to the ignition system. Or at least more favoring that than the fuel. So before you do anything extreme really try to inspect the ignition system. . .coil/igniter/wires/sparkplugs . . .I don’t know what else to tell ya. I would do the same. . .but its the 3RD TIME ITS HAPPENING TO ME and I’m a little BUMMED OUT! I don’t even want to think about no more. I also feel bad because I kind of are to blame because after last time it happened, I promised I’d get genuine honda parts or at least performance parts when replacing the parts. I didn’t and so I don’t know if that has anything to do with it! Anyway. . .good luck. . .I guess to us all!
well i had a problem with my key switch…it would not stay onto the on postion…so had to hold it to keep it running…i just changed it today. its cause our car is old and it wears out. i not sure if thats ur cars problem…
Here’s ONE possibility… It might be that the igniton spark is jumping from some wire to a ground. I don’t know how this could be, or why it would cause the car to studder when the engine warmed up, but this was the problem for me. And I couldn’t see or detect it either, so tell yur mechanic to check this out.
I was gonna ask the mechanic who fixed my car to show me which wire it was when I went to pick up my car, but when I got there he’d already left for the day.
the only reason I’m suggesting this is because you said you noticed that you’re ignition coil was visibly burnt? Well, part of my coil crumbled to ASHES the moment I opened up the dist. cap., so maybe something is causing the coil to overheat or draw more current than it’s supposed to.
BTW, it cost me a little over $100 to get this fixed… and that was labor only, no parts replaced. (I replaced every ignition part BEFORE taking it in just to be sure)…
Well, I did all the research my mind was capable of. . .even as far as going to the ACURA dealers service center and harrasing for info! I came to a conclusion yesterday; instead of buying replacement parts for every single ignition part in hopes of my car starting, I decided I’d go the smart way. The problem in doing that is that there are no visible signs on my coil that show it’s burnt out and the ignition module tests fine too. But both are misleading.
SO, I found this one local shop that deal exclusively on distributors/ignition related problems! The owner told me to tow my car into the shop (free with AAA) AND that he’ll diagnose and tell me the EXACT problem for $35 !!!
Much cheaper than any other place I’ve seen! SO if there is anyone out there still waiting eagerly on an answer to our “COMMON” problem. . .have no fear . . .I will get the ANSWER by today’s sunset!
yah i chose the easy way out…found a deal on a distributor for 60 flat…so im going to jus go with that…but still share the info so i can atleast know what was wrong wit my old one
BUddy of mine was having the same problem. After changing out his whole fuel system it turned out to be his computer. What happened was, his computer was telling the fuel injectors to inject. so he found another one and had no problems
mine did the same thing,take all your plug wires and spray the in side with brake cleaner then take the distributer off and do the same, change your fuel filter its that simple,its about 17 dollars to fix don’t believe me tyr it
AND that he’ll diagnose and tell me the EXACT problem for $35 !!!