cvcrcer

Problem #1-Last week I went out to the car to go to work, put the key in the ignition, turned it and nothing happened when I hit the start position. All the normal MIL's litup but the starter didn't crank. it didn't even do the click thing. so I checked to make sure I didn't leave something on that would have drained the battery. it all checked out. I tryed the starter again and still nothing. out of frustration I just stayed on the start position and suddenly it cranked over and started. Weird, I thought and just went on. Nothing else happened with it for a few days then the same thing again. Then nothing. Now the last 4 times I've gone to the car it has done this.

Problem #2- A day or two after the starter thing I was driving down the highway and the check engine light pops on. I get home and check the LED on the ECU. 17 flashes, VSS is the code. I reset the ECU and it came up again a few days later. So I pulled the cluster out and did the check on the speedo. I then saw one of the wires imprinted on the circuit sheet is burned through. Anyone know how that might have happened?

Problem #3- yesterday I was heading to work and looked down to see the temp gague pegging out on the H. But it dropped right back down to normal then bounced right back up to H. It bounced back and forth for a few seconds then went to normal and stayed. I'm baffled.

I don't see how these are related but they all have happened in the last week so they might be.

Any help anyone could provide would be greatly appreciated.


Modified by cvcrcer at 7:40 AM 9/12/2005

cvcrcer

Bump

redryder

Problem #1) check the grounds
1)valve cover ground, thermostat ground, and the ground from your neg side of bat, to the starter. The starter ground got me 2 weeks ago.

Problem#2) Dont know.

Problem#3) Thermostat going out, doesnt know whether to open or stay closed.

This is what i think, but i'm sure someone else will throw in 2 cents

NikoZai

yeah it's all related to an electrical short, what wire burnt EXACTLY.
I'll look it up on the wiring schmatic and tell you where it may have crosssed.

cvcrcer

Here are the pics I took of the back of the cluster. You can see the burnt wire just below the plug socket.

cvcrcer

I traced where this wire goes on the circuit board. It is a ground that connects to half of the things on the back of the cluster. It Y's just above where it is broken so it looks like the speedo its self overloaded the ground.

cvcrcer

No one?

mrtoastyjr

problem #1) most likley not going to be a ground, unless you have been screwing with the motor. hondas have VERY good wiring and i doubt its the wiring. let me ask you a question, when you hit the start position, did all the lights on the dash go out or did they stay on(note: im asking about the START position) reason im asking is that on my car the start position in the ignition switch is starting to burn up and every now and then when i turn it to crank it nothing will happen, no lights will go out or anything. if they did go out then it probably going to be your starter. when it acts up agian, have somebody hold it in the start position and go tap on the side of the starter with a hammer. if it is the starter then it will most likley crank.

problem #2)not really sure, was you speedo acting up???

problem #3)i would not be so quick to blame the thermostat. agian my car did the same thing, i went out and bought a thermostat, went to check my coolant, noticed it was low so i filled it and it hasen't do it since and i still haven't don't the thermostat and that was like 6 months ago. i mean my coolant was low, like a half gallon or so.

DieMaster

iTrader: (1)

it seems that the burning VSS is common in hatchies i got a cluster that that very wire is burned too.

EDIT thats not the vss. thats the ground to the cluster that burned. so that would explain ypour lites going out too. follow the other wire to the solder pad thats a jumper over that group and then it's 4th over from right

magitekkn

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> EDIT thats not the vss. thats the ground to the cluster that burned. so that would explain ypour lites going out too. follow the other wire to the solder pad thats a jumper over that group and then it's 4th over from right</TD></TR></TABLE>

What cvcrcer is trying to say is that the wire that burnt is the ground line that is directly associated with the VSS (I know it looks like the whole A1 pin is fried, but that doesn't seem to be the case from what he's told me)

(the circuit seems to be as follows

ECU (+5v) via A4 (or A5) pin on gauge cluster --- diode --- VSS (as attached to the speedo) --- ground wire to A1 --- Chassis ground

The burn that is shown in the above pictures indicates that some overcurrent condition occurred through the VSS. Either the ECU pumped too much current through the VSS, or the strange amplifier board that leaches off of the +5v from the ECU sent current backwards through the VSS to ground.

Does anyone know anything about the (amplifier) board that's piggy backed onto the gauge cluster? It attaches through a blue connector which is separate from the 2 harnesses (A and B) for the gauges. My service manual says nothing about it.