emfman

Hey all. I have already read a decent amount of info on what i could do to try and troubleshoot this but thought i would start a thread to help me out till i locate the culprit.

Basically I parked the car on a friday and went to start it monday afternoon and it cranks fine but no ignition whatsoever. Just cranks and cranks. Only two things I have noticed so far is some oil leaking out where the distributor attaches to the engine head and it has been raining like crazy the past three days. Not sure if the rain has anything to do with it but thought I would throw that in there.

Right now if someone can point me towards a good thread on how to diagnose the distributor that would be great. I will listen for the fuel pump next time I get in the car and I'm going to ground the spark plug to the engine cover tomorrow and see if I am getting any spark at all.

Any other suggestions on what I could troubleshoot and how would be much appreciated.

Thanks

94 accord typeR

sounds like u r on the right path as far as spark and fuel pump priming

download a FSM
http://www.hondahookup.com/manuals/

tim73

Buy a spark plug testor. Turn the car over..if no spark, then theres your problem. If spark, add some starting spray to intake. If car starts...then fuel is issue. If it doesnt, try a compression check.

emfman

Thanks,

I'll run through the basics this afternoon. The good news is it died right outside my garage. I'm gonna try to push it in so I can work on it. It is still raining here.

emfman

I bought an inline spark tester and the little light that is supposed to blink when you crank the car blinked on cylinder 3 and 4 while I tried to start it and it did not start.

Thinking I had spark, I then listened for the fuel pump priming when I turned the key to position II. And pretty sure I heard nothing. THe damn car beeps so much it makes it hard.

So the best part is I go to push it into my garage and after moving it about 30 feet i thought this is hard why don't I just try it again and see if it fires and damn if it didn't start. I parked it in the garage and turned it off and on about three times. I hear the fuel pump this time prime. I waited about thirty minutes and tried to start it again and it again failed to start. But on the third try it did start.

So when it doesn't start I am pretty sure I cant hear the fuel pump prime, but when it does i hear it prime and I hear two clicks from under the dash.

Any sugestions on where to go from here are greatly appreciated.

I have an electrical tester and would like to test the fuel pump for voltage but I am not sure where the easiest location for testing might be.

I have read about the main relay but not sure if it might be the culprit or possibly a bad ignition switch. I'm thinkn the ignition switch can't be it because it cranks every time I put the key in. Maybe the Relay/ fuel pump is the issue?

holmesnmanny

Best thing to do outside of just replacing the three parts most likely to cause the no-start issue(when it cranks(main relay, ignitor, ignition switch) ) is to get a fuel pressure tester and hook it up before you try to start. If it doesn't start and the fuel pressure is 0 then it's almost certain the main relay is the culprit. However, it could be the ignition switch but only if the dash lights don't work when you toggle to the 2nd position with the key.

Or you can simply just replace the main relay, assuming it's happening when the car is hot.

emfman

Lights have come on without issue every time I've tried to start car.

So far the problem has only occurred when the car is stone cold. I'm to scared to drive it anywhere as it is.

I don't own a fuel pressure tester but a mechanic told me I could use the low side of an AC gauge which I do have to test for fuel pressure so I'll give it a swing once I can find where to hook it up.

I have yet to read anything about the ignitor but will check it out.

Thanks

94 accord typeR

the fuel pressure service port is on the drivers side of the fuel rail. u will need a 17mm wrench and a 12mm wrench.

be sure to clean ur IACV and EGR too. not too difficult just the IACV is in a impossible position (near firewall) and the EGR requires removal of the fuel injectors. add some oil to the injector rubber seals before install. IACV and EGR affect startup/stalling.

holmesnmanny

Hondas dont have schrader valves.

You can get a fuel pressure tester that fits our fuel rails from harbor freight for $20

Crucialambition

If the pump isn't priming when it doesn't start then I'd start at the main relay. If you hear it prime and it doesn't start, I'd be leaning towards that ignition.

emfman

Only thing I have to add at this point is I got in it yesterday while it was in the garage and quiet and tried to really listen to it.

I turn key to position I and no fuel pump noise and no clicks from under dash.

I turn the key to position II and same thing no prime noise (and I know what it sounds like now) and no clicks from under dash and then position III produces continuous crank with no ignition till I release the key back to position II again.

I'm thinking Main relay so I will pull it out and test once I get time.

jasonk18

This happened to me 3 weeks ago, I replaced the main relay under the drivers side dash. Relay was $40.00.
The relay is a bitch to un-bolt!

01 Accord V6

94 accord typeR

new member to the "car wont start club" woot woot LOL j/k

emfman

Well a new $23 main relay is in my car and it still doesn't run. I read in my manual I can check for Power to the fuel pump at a connector that is under the spare tire connector. I will try that next I guess.

With the new main relay installed all symptoms remain the same. No clicking under dash and no fuel pump priming noise. Starting to think my fuel pump died but want to confirm before i replace it.

Any other suggestions?

emfman

I jumped two wires in the main relay connector to verify voltage at the Fuel pump wire connector which is located under the spare tire cover close to the seats. Voltage was present. I then reconnected everything and turned the key forward and voila the car started. I noticed there was some goo in the fuel pump connector under the spare tire cover. I thought maybe i was getting weak voltage which would explain why sometimes the motor worked and sometimes it didn't. I cleaned up the connector and cleaned up the ground wire real good as well where it connected to the frame.

I took it for a drive and turned it on and off several times. No issue. So I am not sure if I fixed anything or not. Unfortunately I think I will be stranded the next time this problem returns if i did not fix it.

Should I replace the fuel pump anyway for good measure?

tim73

Bad connections will do exactly what you were describing. Sounds like to me you got it licked. Just keep a close eye on it I would say. These non-typical fixes are always the most aggravating to find and repair.

emfman

That POS wouldn't start again today. Poop. I'm going to go ahead an replace the fuel pump and hope that is the issue. I can't think of anything else that could be causing this issue. At this point I know when it is going to work or not. If I hear the pump prime I'm good. If not I'm toast.

tim73

Have you ohmed out the wires from the fuel pump harness back to the main relay? Making sure you checked both power side and ground side(Back to negative terminal of battery)?

emfman

Well after a six pack and half a pack of smokes I got the tank out and swapped out the fuel pump. Got it back together and it started, ran and completed a test drive w/o issue. So who knows. Maybe its fixed. Fingers crossed.

I did not ohm the wires. Just tested for voltage.

tim73

Hope that did it for you!

emfman

So far so good but its only been one day. I'm sure if it fails again it will happen tomorrow when I try to leave for work on time.

mike_1212

If it still gives you trouble Clean and test all of your grounds.

emfman

For future viewers of this thread it appears my issue is now solved. I have yet to test the old fuel pump on a battery to see if it sounds bad or is temperamental but so far it has been two weeks without issue.

Thanks for the help.

Jon Bevan

92 accord,Having the same issue, car would drive fine but as soon as I slow down for stop it would die then not restart for 15-20 minutes.. New relay, new ignition switch...... Now it won't start period!

Jon Bevan

Was told the grounds for the ecu were on the motor beside the coolant fitting, for the life of me I can't find them!