RPM's dropped to zero and car won't start (long)
09-08-2004, 07:16 PM
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RPM's dropped to zero and car won't start (long)
OK, bear with me here, it's going to be a long story.
My 93 Accord LX began to sputter below 2500rpm but was fine above that RPM. It stalled out once or twice, but would start back up after a few minutes of cranking.
Took her home, pulled the plugs, and they were covered in oil. Found out this was due to the spark plug seals. So I changed the upper plug seals and valve cover gasket. Also, due to an oil leak and a missing lower screw on the distributor cap cover, the rotor button was covered in oil/grease and the contact points were all corroded. So I replaced the dist. cover and rotor.
Fired it up, and it still sputtered below 2500rpm.
I had a bottle of Seafoam handy, so I figured it couldn't hurt to try some. So I sucked a 1/2 can into the PCV vacuum port and produced a good smoke signal. Fired it back up, and it seemed to run about 75% better. So I dumped the rest of the can into the fuel tank and drove around a bit. After a while it went back to the same old problem. So I parked it for a while and drove my truck. I figured maybe the EGR ports were clogged and causing the stuttering since the car has 308k miles on it.
Skip ahead one week to today. I decided to go to the gas station and fill up the tank. Car started right up, and was running normal. After a few minutes the problems re-appeared and it stalled out on me. After a minute or 2 of cranking, it fired back up. Drove it home, and on the way there, while coasting downhill at about 35mph, the RPM's DROPPED to zero, while the engine was still running and I was coasting in 3rd gear. I gave it gas but the engine did not respond, nor did the tach come back to life. As I got to the bottom of the hill and began to go uphill, the car died. I sat there and cranked and cranked and cranked for several minutes, until finally the battery nearly died. The motor sort of stumbles while I'm cranking it, as if it's trying to fire up, but is not getting a good spark.
What the heck is the problem? I don't think it's the EGR anymore. That wouldn't cause it to not start and all of the sudden drop the RPM's to zero while I'm still driving!
I have no idea where to start. Could it be something electrical? Distributor? What? Please help, gas for my truck is killing me.
My 93 Accord LX began to sputter below 2500rpm but was fine above that RPM. It stalled out once or twice, but would start back up after a few minutes of cranking.
Took her home, pulled the plugs, and they were covered in oil. Found out this was due to the spark plug seals. So I changed the upper plug seals and valve cover gasket. Also, due to an oil leak and a missing lower screw on the distributor cap cover, the rotor button was covered in oil/grease and the contact points were all corroded. So I replaced the dist. cover and rotor.
Fired it up, and it still sputtered below 2500rpm.
I had a bottle of Seafoam handy, so I figured it couldn't hurt to try some. So I sucked a 1/2 can into the PCV vacuum port and produced a good smoke signal. Fired it back up, and it seemed to run about 75% better. So I dumped the rest of the can into the fuel tank and drove around a bit. After a while it went back to the same old problem. So I parked it for a while and drove my truck. I figured maybe the EGR ports were clogged and causing the stuttering since the car has 308k miles on it.
Skip ahead one week to today. I decided to go to the gas station and fill up the tank. Car started right up, and was running normal. After a few minutes the problems re-appeared and it stalled out on me. After a minute or 2 of cranking, it fired back up. Drove it home, and on the way there, while coasting downhill at about 35mph, the RPM's DROPPED to zero, while the engine was still running and I was coasting in 3rd gear. I gave it gas but the engine did not respond, nor did the tach come back to life. As I got to the bottom of the hill and began to go uphill, the car died. I sat there and cranked and cranked and cranked for several minutes, until finally the battery nearly died. The motor sort of stumbles while I'm cranking it, as if it's trying to fire up, but is not getting a good spark.
What the heck is the problem? I don't think it's the EGR anymore. That wouldn't cause it to not start and all of the sudden drop the RPM's to zero while I'm still driving!
I have no idea where to start. Could it be something electrical? Distributor? What? Please help, gas for my truck is killing me.
09-09-2004, 12:52 AM
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Re: RPM's dropped to zero and car won't start (Adam_F123)
what make you feel that you are not getting a good spark??
308k miles?#$#@%! hot DAMN!
Have you checked the fuel filter.. maybe fuel pump is taking a ****??
09-09-2004, 12:20 PM
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Re: RPM's dropped to zero and car won't start (desolate)
Ok, did some testing.
Rotor cap spins while cranking.
Did the old screwdriver in the plug wire and grounded it. No sparks. Tried 2 plugs.
No voltage in the plug wire while cranking. I put the positive test lead in the spark plug wire, and the negative to the negative battery terminal. No spark while cranking.
Tested spark plug wires for resistance and they all had resistance.
So....new distributor? Someone said AutoZone can test distributors? Will I have to have the timing re-set after removing the distributor?
Rotor cap spins while cranking.
Did the old screwdriver in the plug wire and grounded it. No sparks. Tried 2 plugs.
No voltage in the plug wire while cranking. I put the positive test lead in the spark plug wire, and the negative to the negative battery terminal. No spark while cranking.
Tested spark plug wires for resistance and they all had resistance.
So....new distributor? Someone said AutoZone can test distributors? Will I have to have the timing re-set after removing the distributor?
09-10-2004, 01:19 PM
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Re: RPM's dropped to zero and car won't start (Adam_F123)
Did some more testing.
Did some tests that my repair CD suggested. Here's what it said to do, and what I found.
Ignition coil power source- disconnect ignition coil primary leads. Turn ignition on. Using voltmeter, check voltage between ground and black/yellow wire terminal of ignition coil harness. Battery voltage should be present.
There are 2 wires on the harness, a thick yellow one, and a skinny black with yellow stripe. Battery voltage was present on the thick yellow one but not the skinny black/white one.
Igniter power source- Turn ignition off. Disconnect harness connector at distributor. Turn ignition on. Using voltmeter, check for battery voltage between ground and black/yellow wire between ignition and harness connector.
Now here is where I'm sorta confused. Which connector exactly do they mean? There are 2 connectors close by....one multi connector one, and one 2 prong connector. I tested both, and found voltage on the thicker wire of the 2 prong connector (forgot which color) and voltage, although 2 volts lower than battery voltage, on the yellow with green stripe wire on the multi connector.
Ignition coil resistance- Remove primary and secondary leads from ignition coil. Using an ohmmeter, check resistance between primary terminals A and C of ignition coil. Resistance should be .6 to .8 at room temperature.
Here is a pic of the terminals
click to see
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/...ls0In
My meter beeped for continuity and read .01. So does this mean it is bad? I probed around and found .8 on some other terminals, but I don't know what that means.
Check resistance between terminals B and D of ignition coil (tach circuit). Resistance should be about 2090-2310 ohms at room temperature.
I got NOTHING.
Check secondary resistance between terminals A and secondary output terminal (coil tower). Resistance should be 14,400-21,600. Check for continuity between terminals A and B. Continuity should exist. If readings are not within specification, replace coil.
I got 18.32k. And had continuity.
So what does all this mean? Bad coil? I might go to AutoZone and test out a new one they have and see what specs I get.
Did some tests that my repair CD suggested. Here's what it said to do, and what I found.
Ignition coil power source- disconnect ignition coil primary leads. Turn ignition on. Using voltmeter, check voltage between ground and black/yellow wire terminal of ignition coil harness. Battery voltage should be present.
There are 2 wires on the harness, a thick yellow one, and a skinny black with yellow stripe. Battery voltage was present on the thick yellow one but not the skinny black/white one.
Igniter power source- Turn ignition off. Disconnect harness connector at distributor. Turn ignition on. Using voltmeter, check for battery voltage between ground and black/yellow wire between ignition and harness connector.
Now here is where I'm sorta confused. Which connector exactly do they mean? There are 2 connectors close by....one multi connector one, and one 2 prong connector. I tested both, and found voltage on the thicker wire of the 2 prong connector (forgot which color) and voltage, although 2 volts lower than battery voltage, on the yellow with green stripe wire on the multi connector.
Ignition coil resistance- Remove primary and secondary leads from ignition coil. Using an ohmmeter, check resistance between primary terminals A and C of ignition coil. Resistance should be .6 to .8 at room temperature.
Here is a pic of the terminals
click to see
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/...ls0In
My meter beeped for continuity and read .01. So does this mean it is bad? I probed around and found .8 on some other terminals, but I don't know what that means.
Check resistance between terminals B and D of ignition coil (tach circuit). Resistance should be about 2090-2310 ohms at room temperature.
I got NOTHING.
Check secondary resistance between terminals A and secondary output terminal (coil tower). Resistance should be 14,400-21,600. Check for continuity between terminals A and B. Continuity should exist. If readings are not within specification, replace coil.
I got 18.32k. And had continuity.
So what does all this mean? Bad coil? I might go to AutoZone and test out a new one they have and see what specs I get.
09-10-2004, 02:59 PM
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Re: RPM's dropped to zero and car won't start (TxTuner)
yeah, your problems sound like symptoms i've read about in other post
when it is running is it sluggish and unresponsive at all?
when it is running is it sluggish and unresponsive at all?
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09-12-2004, 04:32 PM
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Re: RPM's dropped to zero and car won't start (Schmitey)
Had some good luck last night. I was at a friends house at a party. We decided to make a run for White Castles :barf: and we go out in the parking lot and one of my friends gets into an Accord just like mine......hmmmm.... :D so I find out it is a 1993, and i look under the hood and it's got the same distributor/coil setup as mine.....so I asked her to come over tomorrow and I would swap her good parts for my bad parts. 
So I began swapping parts, starting with the part I figured was bad, the coil. Installed it, and it still wouldn't fire. Next up, the igniter. I noticed her igniter was a different make than mine, and shaped a little differently. Installed it, and she fired right up! Yeeeeehaaaaw! That saved me $70 that I would have wasted on a coil. I love having friends!
Now I just have to wait until payday to buy a new igniter. They go for about $75-$90 bucks at the parts stores. I'll call around and find the best deal!
Man, am I relieved! 308k and she's keeps on tickin! :kewl:
So I began swapping parts, starting with the part I figured was bad, the coil. Installed it, and it still wouldn't fire. Next up, the igniter. I noticed her igniter was a different make than mine, and shaped a little differently. Installed it, and she fired right up! Yeeeeehaaaaw! That saved me $70 that I would have wasted on a coil. I love having friends!
Now I just have to wait until payday to buy a new igniter. They go for about $75-$90 bucks at the parts stores. I'll call around and find the best deal!
Man, am I relieved! 308k and she's keeps on tickin! :kewl:
09-12-2004, 06:27 PM
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Re: RPM's dropped to zero and car won't start (Adam_F123)
glad you found the problem. i'm having a similar problem and suspect it might be the ignitor, too, from what you said. but i'm a bit of a novice and don't know what the ignitor looks like or where to find it. my accord is a 92. would appreciate your help.
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