BenjaminJeffers

im having this problem with my 95 honda civic 1.6 automatic (about 185,xxx miles)

originally started to cut out while sitting at an idle. I changed the spark plugs, spark plug wires and valve cover gasket. Immediately after doing the work i started the car to test that all went well, started up fine .. then died within 5 minutes of idling. After the car would die the engine would crank but not start immediately. Let the car sit a few minutes and it would start up fine. As time progressed the car started to die while turning. it was not specific to left or right hand turns. it did it on both.

I Changed the Fuel filter ... still experienced the same problem. I changed the fuel pump relay .. no prevail. Finally i changed the fuel pump hoping this was the answer to my problem. Drove it around with confidence all day only to have it die at an idle while waiting to pick up my fiancee from work. Had to let it sit a few minutes before it would actually start.

I continue to drive the car in order to see if i can pin point what causes it to die or what immediate symptoms does it show before dying. One day as i approached an intersection i slowed to stop for a red light and as the car dropped into first gear it felt as if it misfired and then the engine died. took a few minutes to start back up.

as of the past two days ive been experiencing something a little different. The cars engine dies while accelerating going straight. The first time i was on a slow moving industrial street and luckily i was able to let it coast into a nearby parking lot. I threw the car in park and it started up immediately. Got me home with no further problems.

Second time i was entering the freeway, just made it through the curve of the on ramp. Accelerated on the gas to bring the car up to speed. Once i hit about 55MPH the engine loses power as if it has ran out of gas. i pumped the gas pedal about 3 -4 times and the engine regains power and the car takes off with a burst of speed.

Heres my additional comments. All the dash lights, headlights, radio ect. work as the engine dies and even after the engine loses power the car attempts to turn over it just doesnt ignite. Therefore ive ruled out the alternator or battery.

my original focus was on the fuel system, hence changing the fuel filter, fuel pump and relay. But now im thinking its a distributor problem due to the fact that the car seemed to miss fire as i slowed to a stop. A thought is still lingering in the back of my head though that i should try changing the injectors now that the car is having problems accelerating going straight.

The car belongs to my fiancee, shes had the car about 5 years. distributor cap looks as if it was changed recently before she bought it. I havent taken it off though to see how it looks inside.

Iginition control module has been suggested. Maybe ill try that next.

Rick1t

if it were the coil or module would that throw a code?

BenjaminJeffers

I'm not throwing any codes either.

I finally got a couple days off so i plan on solving this problem. Possibly getting the coil and module changed today

Former User

Open distributor cap and inspect the internals.

Also Ohm/resistance test the coil - see FAQs sticky.

AutoZone will test the igniter unit free of charge. They don't generally test coils.

BenjaminJeffers

opened the distributor cap and luckily, no oil. i was worried about that. The distributor cap looked slightly worn, nothing serious but the rotor was rubbed down to a nub. the SOB had ones of those screwless mounting systems where i had to pry it off.

New cap and rotor put on today. we'll see if this is it or if i have to dig further into the distributor

NameGoesHere

Haha this guy is replacing everything.
More diagnosing would save you some money. Just google symptoms you are having and see what people say it could be.
I have heard someone say a ignitor can have the car on then after it heats up the car will die and won't start again until after it has cooled off. I'm not sure though. Just skimmed through your post, too lazy right now, will check back later.

Just caught a glimpse of some more, could possibly the dizzy. Still too tired... Any improvement after replacing the cap and rotor?

HondaPartsHero

Also check out section 2

http://techauto.awardspace.com/ignition.html

BenjaminJeffers

changed cap and rotor and still not much improvement. I dont notice the problem to occur while turning anymore. Now i notice that it tends to happen on the highways. Died on me today actually while i was entering the freeway. Took about 60 seconds before it would start back up. Then got me to work without problems.

Sometimes on the freeway the car will go from roughly 2500 RPMS drop to zero and then back to 2500 RPMS within a few seconds. just long enough for me to start pulling over. The car seems to regain power as i get about half way out of the lane.

BenjaminJeffers

thanks .. that was helpful. Sounds like its time to have the igniter checked. especially if its free at autozone

BenjaminJeffers

Doesnt bother me. Im starting to learn my way around a honda after this whole .. "experience". Not to mention the car has close to 185K miles. Most of these parts needed to be changed soon anyways.

.. Google has been my best friend with this (any many other) topic(s). Ive gotten to the point im at now with the help of google, honda-tech and youtube

BenjaminJeffers

just replaced the igniter. ive come to realize that the whole distributor was replaced at some point with an aftermarket distributor and that could be why parts are starting to fail.

not sure if ive resolved my problem yet. time to drive it around for a while and see if my symptoms reoccur

ShahroseKhan

I wish you had come back to this forum and posted what it turned out to be! your problem sounds awfully similar to what I'm experiencing.

92ehatch

Bumping an old thread won't help you. Honestly if the guy never came back then he probably fixed it. However since you found this thread then you should be able to follow the trouble shooting tips posted and figure it out. At that point if you can't then make a new post with all required info about your vehicle, engine, mods etc.

Former User

The large numbers of members not posting final outcomes in threads is disappointing to say the least. I am working to solve this problem. In the meantime, troubleshoot as mentioned.

ShahroseKhan

Just found the answer!!! 99% sure it's the ignition switch! There was a recall for it! I'll work on that and if it didn't turn out to be the problem, I'll come back here and update this thread.

Here's the thread that I started:
https://honda-tech.com/honda-accord-.../#post50044651

BenjaminJeffers

The problem turned out to be the ignition control module. After replacing that little chip in the distributer i never had the problem again

92ehatch

holy crap. what are the chances he came back and posted the answer he found.

thanks for doing so OP

crvtectim

Hahaha wow! This thread is now full of win!

Former User

leillox88

I saw he posted recently and pm'ed him, im glad he came back, its the first time someone mentions that module...

BenjaminJeffers

Two people pmed me actually. Sorry for not posting earlier. This site has helped me out a lot along the way and its only right that i post my winning results.

Aftetmarket distributers are a lot cheaper than honda parts but the chances of something failing in them is pretty high.

Sad news with this whole subject .. this honda was my girlfriends car and after doing all this work to it, plus 4 new tires .. she totaled it in january. No more 95 civic ex

So i bought a 95 accord ex for $900 130K miles

ShahroseKhan

Another sad news... my professor is convinced it's not the ignition switch

Check attachment. I removed no.41 fuse and then checked resistance from there until No.6 fuse in driver's underdash fusebox. Got only 0.5 ohms. The key was in 'II' or 'on' position. Excessive corrosion as described in the recall is unlikely to be the reason behind this vehicle's failure.

I replaced the EVAP solenoid about 24 hours ago and reset the check-engine code (P1457). It hasn't come back on and the car ran fine for 2 trips. On 3rd trip it had the worst failure so far. The failure (engine stalling without warning) also seems to happen when the car has been driven for less than a mile.

I'm planning to test the ignition control module next. All successive updates will be posted in my thread.

Aw125

That's the same problem happening with my car its 95 dolphin with D13B carburator Auto transmission.
before I was facing this same problem because of faulty ignition, changed it was working fine after being parked for about two months I started it, it was
working fine on idle but with some missing in between so
I was keeping up the tempo by accelerating a bit.
it was working fine for idle for about 30 mins. But when I got out on it, it just shutoff at 50km/hr speed withing 3 kms of radius from my home I tried to start it eventually it didn't cranked then I had to leave it there - I assume people know how difficult it is when it comes to Auto Transmission everything just stops working even the pedal brakes are jammed. So at the end. I'm waiting for morning get the battery charged and try to get a mechanic in order to get it started and diagnose.
I was mainly looking for some kind of hack that a person can do when he or she gets into this kind of situation, that a person can do on the spot himself. But it was worthy reading the thread. I have idea of what I'm getting into so one can fool me and make easy money with useless diagnostic.