deutschdragon

I bought this '94 Accord four days ago. It's been giving me issues ever since.
Before I decide to go back to the previous owner, could I get a hand?
Here's what's been going on.

Purchase date (5/27): About 20 minutes out from the owners, I stopped to grab a drink at a drive-thru. As I started accelerating away from there, I noticed the speedometer and odometer were no longer working and the D4 gear light in the dash was blinking. Also suspected the fuel gauge isn't working. The car jumps a little when switching gears and I don't feel like I can really step on the accelerator as a result.

First day driving (5/29): Driving to work: No additional issues; the speedometer and odometer are now working. Fuel gauge stuck above "F", like on Sunday.
Driving home: The car stalls, but it's a familiar feel; she's out of gas. I coax her to a station and fill her up. No other issues.

Second day driving (5/30): Driving to work: no additional issues; fuel gauge still stuck. Driving home: The car stalls when I stop at a red light. I can't restart it unless I but it into neutral and give it gas. I coax it home by putting it in neutral at red lights and keeping the RPMs around 1250, then shifting into drive and letting off the brake. The D4 light is blinking again.

I look up "d4 blinking 94 honda accord ex" and come across this, where I go here to get a possible answer to the blinking.

Here's a video of what I found following the directions outlined in the second link above.

deutschdragon

So the CEL never turns on or blinks.
The D4 light blinks 4 short, 1 long, 4 short. Then it pauses and repeats. I think that's code 4 & 14. Confirmation from someone more knowledgeable than I?

4 CKP Sensor (Crankshaft Position Sensor) defective circuit or unplugged / defective sensor

14 IAC Valve (Idle Air Control) defective circuit or unplugged / defective sensor

I have no idea what either of these mean...

1997accordSE

If I'm not mistaken on the 94 Accords there isn't an actual CKP sensor. The distributor has pick up coils inside of it that perform the function of a CKP sensor. If that's the case, then your distributor may be bad. I would be 100% sure before you replace something so expensive though.

When people have problems with their IAC valve, typically a good cleaning will fix the problem. This isn't guaranteed though, but worth a try.

Let me know what you find out!

deutschdragon

So, could you dumb this down for me? I know how to change oil, tires... that's about it. OH, and I replaced an alternator once. Specific directions, pictures or video are really helpful when it comes to me and working on cars.

1997accordSE

Replacing the distributor is pretty straight forward. Is your car a 4 cylinder? One of the biggest tips I can give to you if you plan on working on the car a lot by yourself is to invest in a Haynes or Chilton's manual. They give step by step instructions for just about anything, plus pictures.

deutschdragon

Thanks for the advice. Yes, it's a 2.2L 4Cyl.

Haynes repair manual - $19.95
Chilton repair manual -$41.17

Why such a price difference?

MAD_MIKE

If the blinking is from the D4 lamp then it is transmission related. Not Engine which would use the CEL engine lamp.

If you did read the codes correctly then for the TCM/D4 lamp

4- Speed Sensor
14- Off. FAS wire, PGM FI unit.

I would suggest making sure the speed sensor wiring is not damaged or corroded. If there is a loose or damaged wire at the speed sensor or at the TCU/ECU this would cause the random speedometer issue. I am unsure of the logic programming in the ECU, but if the ECU needs input from the TCU for correct operation of the engine under load, then lack of the speed sensors output would affect engine operation at low speeds.

deutschdragon

Thanks for the info and diagram, MAD_MIKE!! Also, your avatar is awesome.
The diagram makes sense, but I don't have anyway to perform the testing that it suggests.
Did you happen to view the video link in my OP? I just wanted to see if someone could confirm I read the codes right.

MAD_MIKE

The video jumps a bit at the most inopportune moments.
I saw codes 2; 12; 3; 12. Which doesn't quite make any sense.

Normally Codes will be in numerical order 4; 5; 6; 7; and so on.
Not 2;12;3;12;4;12 etc.

Try jumping the connector again, make sure its the two wire blue not the three wire blue. Take a longer video. Watch it cycle a few times, until you see the same pattern repeated at least three times. That way you know you read the codes correctly.

deutschdragon

I'll definitely do that, thanks.
I dropped the car off at a shop to check any codes coming up and the charging system. According to them, their computer is reading no codes and the charging system is fine. So, I should be picking it up today and I'll do this myself and hope I'm right based on what I've read here and other Honda forums.

deutschdragon

The shop did say the terminals on the end of the battery cables need to be replaced. Any suggestions on where to buy those?

MAD_MIKE

Honda sells them, Rock Auto as well. They are multi wire cables. The local auto store may not have them in stock. Make sure to get the correct cables for your car, the AT and MT cars use different cables due to starter location.

deutschdragon

I replaced the battery cables in the Accord yesterday. The old ones were kinda fouled up and I figured I'd start there for maintenance. Found new cables at NAPA.


She seems to start better, however, I ran into issues again today.
I went out to get groceries. When I was finished in the store and tried starting the car, it wouldn't start. The engine sounded like it would begin to turn over, but as soon as I'd stop turning the key, it would die. I had to shift into neutral again and keep the engine revved at 1500 rpms or so for a few minutes before trying to but the car into drive.
Then, once I was on the road again, the speedometer and odometer stopped working again.
The fuel gauge still does not work.
The D4 indicator was blinking again, however, I'm only getting the 4 short pulse code now.
D4 indicator blinking
Actual D4 code

2stripeAccord

Im having the same d4 blinking 4 times issue with the odometer and speedometer stopping. They just stopped working altogether without the kinda sorta working, stopping.

I did just add an AEM sri this morning about 5 hours before this happened. May it be related to me hooking it up improperly??? (I followed directions and it was simple enough.)

Is this the future of me and my car??? The second I fix something or add some upgrade, something breaks.