Tyson

1. Car will not start, especially on a hot day.

2. Brake lights will not turn off, even with key out of ignition. (also worth checking if your battery is drained in the morning).

3. Heater/AC blower will not work for some settings (like only #1, but not 2, 3, 4)

4. Blower works but no heat.

5. Car will not start but engine will turn over (starter works). Ignitor

6. Climate control faceplate is cracked.

7. Idle RPM cycles from high to low and almost blogs. Adjust the idle screw.

8. Dome light turns on briefly when driving, especially while turning.

9. Squeeky steering wheel.

10. Squeeky hatch. Tape the hatch striker.


Work in progress. I will edit as I see fit. Feel free to add suggestions, but I will be the final decider.

A separate "Common mechanical tips and tricks" thread will be started. So no "how to unstuck a balljoint" suggestions in this thread please.

Tyson

1. Car will not start, especially on a hot day. Starter will not turn over engine either. Electricity OK.

Answer.

The issue is the main relay. It controls the powering of the fuel pump and the starter. You can quickly diagnose the issue by turning the key OFF and (ignition) ON and listening for the *slight* hum of the fuel pump behind the drivers seat. You probably will not hear anything before you hear a *click* if the car does not start. This is a SURE sign the main relay is bad. Its easier to hear with the door open actually. If you are certain you hear the fuel pump priming for a few seconds and the engine turns over, then this is not the problem.

Fix.

You either must replace the main relay, or simply open the old one up and re-solder the contacts. NEW main relays are not cheap, and junkyard relays are no more reliable than your original one. It is not hard to solder the contacts, it just takes a cheap $10 soldering iron from Radio Shack. Find the relay right next to the HOOD RELEASE lever. There is just one 10mm socket bolt holding it to the side of the car. Remove and unplug the 10 (or 8?) pin harness. Then pry the cover off. Just heat the old solder to reflow it around the contacts. Reassemble and bolt it back (it can be a pain, very uncomfortable reach.) It helps to take the hood release lever off, and also the coin tray out to get a better look.



QUICK FIX on the side of the road or parking lot:

With the clutch depressed to start the car, and use your right leg to kick the area around the hood release lever and try to start the car. The vibration can help jiggle the bad electrical contact and get it to start. Or just wait perhaps 10 minutes.

Tyson

2. Brake lights will not turn off, even with key out of ignition. (also worth checking if your battery is drained in the morning).

Problem.

The brake sensor STOPPER broke apart and there is no longer anything to trigger the brake pedal sensor. So the sensor does not work and the brake lights stay on. This will drain the battery overnight or within a few hours and can be easily overlooked if you walk away from the car without noticing. There is almost no other reason for this to occur and you will likely see bits of blue plastic on the floor near the brake pedal. This was the old stopper.

Fix.

Replace the stopper. It should be located near the top of the brake pedal and the end of the sensor. The sensor looks like a big bullet and with the pedal depressed you will see the hole where the stopper should be. You can buy a new one, replace with an old one, or tape a penny or whatever else in place of the stopper.





more info
https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-crx-ef-civic-1988-1991-3/brake-lights-dont-turn-off-2094313/

Tyson

3. Heater/AC blower will not work for some settings (like only #1, but not 2, 3, 4)

Problem.

The heater blower seems to work fine on certain settings like 1, or 1 and 2 but not 3 or 4. This is an issue with the variable resistor connected to the blower assembly that has gone bad.

Fix.

You must replace the resistor. It is simple to replace, but you probably need to buy a new one from the dealer, or find a better condition one from the junkyard. They are VERY FRAGILE and its no wonder why they fail and break over time. You just have to remove the glove compartment to gain access to the blower. There are a few phillips head screws that hold the glove compartment in, it should be obvious. Then you will see the resistor with an electrical wire coming out right in the middle of the blower. Just remove the 2 screws and replace.

image



more info.
https://honda-tech.com/forums/tech-misc-15/blower-motors-works-speeds-3-4-but-not-1-2-fix-how-2082345/

Tyson

4. Blower works but no heat.

Problem.

The blower setting can be adjusted, and the A/C might even work, but when you set it to full hot, there is little to no heat. The temperature ***** adjusts 2 separate cables, the radiator fluid valve and the air mixture flap. While the radiator fluid valve might seem the obvious thing to check, the MOST LIKELY issue is the cable for the AIR MIXTURE FLAP came off the adjusting lever. This is located under the heater core. The radiator fluid valve is located in the engine bay in front the firewall. As long as you can see it turning with the temperature **** and the hose is warm closer to the firewall, it is ok. Another possible but very unlikely problem is the heater core is clogged. I've never heard of this ACTUALLY being the problem, not on a Honda. Just check the air mixture flap first, its usually the problem.

Fix.

The lever is located right underneath the heater core which is right behind the center console. Stick your head in from the passenger side behind the center console and just look up. There should be a white "L" shaped lever and a loose cable. It should be obvious how to fix it and put it back in place.

image


more info
https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-crx-ef-civic-1988-1991-3/heat-not-working-2225295/

Tyson

5.

Tyson

6. Climate control faceplate is cracked on a CRX.

Problem: The issue is obvious, over time the faceplate around the temperature control **** cracks and may completely detach.

Fix: Theres no direct fix for this. New climate controls are cost prohibited and probably not available. Used replacements in good condition are rare too. You can certainly try to superglue the remaining pieces together, or just leave it be. It should still function regardless.

Since this is so common, you can buy pre-cut faceplates that will cover the entire faceplate. I am not going to advertise anyone and I'm not sure who sells it anymore, but if you search you might be able to find one.

I think a clean but work intensive swap is from a 90-93 Accord faceplate.
old thread with no more build pics, but you can get the idea.
https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-crx-ef-civic-1988-1991-3/accord-climate-control-swap-crx-1434022/

heres another thread hosted elsewhere.
http://crxcommunity.com/viewtopic.php?t=26741

EG climate control swaps also work. Still a lot of work too.
http://crxcommunity.com/viewtopic.php?t=17526

btw, civic climate controls are not compatible with CRX ones. Its just different. But civics dont have as common breakage issues.

And I've yet to see a 100% fully functioning "JDM" climate control swap done right. Theres a bunch different about them too... like auto temp.

Tyson

7.

Tyson

8.

Tyson

9. Squeeky steering wheel.

The horn ring is dirty or needs greasing.

There is a slip ring, or a metal contact that touches the non-rotating steering column to power the horn on the steering. Its a metal contact.

Easy to fix by removing the steering wheel. In order to remove the steering wheel, remove the "H" emblem by CAREFULLY prying it off. use a razor blade or very thin piece of plastic. Then there is a 19mm nut, you might need a long breaker bar and a deep socket to get to it and remove it.

Clean and regrease with dielectric grease.

Tyson

10.

Deetz

- ignition ignitor

Tyson

going to bed. i know ill think of more....

Fo-Do Fanatic

I had this **** out on me one time and couldn't figure out what it was. This is basically what would happen.

Promblem: If you're driving down the road or freeway and your car starts to sputter or just COMPLETELY loses all power like it had ran out of gas and then just magically gains all power back and runs like normal again, it's most likely your ignitor. It will one day just **** out on you and you can crank alllll day and never get spark.

Fix: Take your distributor off(easiest way for me to do it) but before you loosen any of the three bolts MAKE SURE you scribe a marking on the top dizzy tounge and the piece of metal next to it so when you go to reinstall it you know where to put it back to ensure it's back in time. When the dizzy is off, loosen the three phillips head screws on the cap and pull it off and set it aside. Now you may be like hmmm, wheres that ignitor? It's the nice shiney 1.5in by maybe 2in piece of metal. Unplug the 4 clips that are on it and take a picture of it with your phone to make sure all the wires go back in the same spot. Now that that is done you'll have one tiny screw holding a wire to the ignitor and set the screw aside BUT DO NOT LOSE THE SCREW!! You wont be able to pull the ignitor out just yet. On the casing of the dizzy you'll see 2 quitly big phillips screws, those are the two main screws that hold the ignitor in the dizzy. I HIGHLY recommend that you use a #1 phillips screwdriver to break the screws loose. Put quite a bit of pressure on them and slowly turn until you hear it crack. And viola, it's out. When the ignitor is out you'll see a backing plate/heat sink on the ignitor. Remove that. Place the heat sink on the new ignitor AFTER you put the electric grease on the heat sink and the ignitor. You MUST reuse this heat sink or your ignitor will get hot and blow again. Simply install in the reverse order of removing.

Also, a wise idea is to replace your coil at the same time. Odds are is your coil is out the door as well and will happen shortly.

Fo-Do Fanatic

Also, maybe constant beeping of the seat belt thing whether the belts are clipped in or off?

~sp33~

Something about bouncing idle or IACV/FITV related.

gringo7718

Water Leaks - https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-crx-ef-civic-1988-1991-3/official-ef-crx-civic-water-leak-thread-2832053/

Broken A/C controls

Broken seat belt retractor mechanism

CRXguy_88

iTrader: (7)

X2

haddowj

x2

89civicsiowner

i smell sticky!

slywfbpsi

What about the driver side air vent not blowing hard when you turn up the vents. I read in forums that the plastic tubing can deteriorate over time, but when I changed out my pedal assembly, the tubing was just fine. I think it's some lever for the fresh or recirculate air. because that vent will be cold air in the winter and doesn't get warm air out of it until you bump the heat controls to 3 or 4. I have yet to find the switch mechanism though.

Also, the problem starting your car after you have just turned it off, like going into a fast food restaurant and getting your order to go and then coming back to your car. It'll take a few tries to start the car, like the ignitor is too hot or something.

robs1stcrx

what about climate control sticking on one position no change from defrost, to vent, to floor?

eazy64

what about the rpm and speedometer gauge stop working.

ef-hatchcrap

What about the clutch pedal assembly breaking leaving you with no clutch.

Deetz

I've owned 15 EF's, never had or seen this problem in 20 years