I just "inherited" a '91 Accord LX with the 2.2. The car usually won't start. Occasionally I'll try and it'll fire right up but usually it'll just crank and crank. There's no spark. I have a new battery and no charging issues (burned out bulbs etc.). Once running it does great, no stalling, hesitation or missing or anything like that.

Here's where I'm at with my troubleshooting. The car has done this ever since I got it. The old distributor cap was all coked up inside so I put a new cap, rotor and coil on it thinking this was the problem. It wasn't, the problem still persisted. However, after about two hours of tinkering, I figured out that if I unscrew the distributor cap, take it off AND PUT IT RIGHT BACK ON the car fires right up. It'll start twice, three times right in a row then nothing. Pull the cap, put it right back on, and again I get two, three good starts then no spark again. I did this eight or ten times last night so I know there's a definite pattern. I would assume the module is getting hot but that doesn't explain why sometimes the car won't start after sitting for a few days.

I have to think something is up with the ignition module, but I am at a loss to describe what's going on that is affected by the distributor cap. Does this make sense to anyone? Can someone please point me to a solution? If it involves replacing the module fine, but they are expensive and I want to be certain this'll take care of the problem before I replace it.

Thanks a lot,
Darel

 

If, indeed your trick with the distributor caps is repeatable, I'd be aware of any wiring in the vicinity I might be disturbing. It's possible you've a broken or loose wire in the area.
And yes, I would also change out the distributor ignitor (module). It's prone to taking high voltage hits whenever the rotor/cap go fooie (electrical discharge finds an easier path......)
That's a starting point....
P

 

Ah, so the crappy old dizzy cap could have discharged to the module, damaging it. My uncle (who gave me the car) never had one single problem with it until he drove it 5 hours up from VA to deliver it to me, then I went out and tried to start it and nothing. That kicked off this whole escapade.

I went over the entire top end of the engine for loose wires, because that was what it sounded like to me, too, a bad ground or cracked wire but they're all in OK shape and nothing's really around the cap that could get disturbed, except for the 3 harness plugs attached to the side of the dizzy. Again, they're in good shape and by the sixth cap removal I was getting pretty svelte at it so I could do it quickly and without bumping crap around.

 

Yeh, it helps being a contortionist sometimes when working on these things.

In most cases when the distributor cap cap carbons up, the secondary ignition voltage tries to find a ground easier that the plug wires, and usually burns thru the rotor to the shaft below it. But in more than "some" cases with Honda's, it chooses to fry the Ignition Module (which the Japanese like to call the "Ignitor").
I think you're correct in looking at it next.

P

 

Just out of curiosity how did you determine that you had no spark while cranking?

I ask the question because, other than the no spark, you have all the classic symptoms of a main relay problem.

 

Good point, I've harped so much about failing Main Relays in the past, that I actually forgot to mention it.
But I still believe considering the damage that Darel mentioned earlier still warrants changing out the ignitor anyway.....and may still prove out to be the bad boy here.

Darel, was it very hot on those days this occured? My '88 had a bad Main Relay, but it would only fail during very hot weather when my son would leave to windows closed (so you can guess how hot it got in that car!!) and would only restart after the temp dropped into the 70's

P

 

Pulled plug, grounded it with jumper cables and watched for spark. I'm pretty sure it's not the main relay because I read up on that before I posted, and from what I gather the main relay supplies power to the fuel pump during startup but doesn't control ignition. No spark + fuel smell when extended cranking leads me to infer it's not the main relay (yet).

Unless you guys think otherwise....

Thoughts?

Thanks,
Darel

 

Oh, and I haven't noticed any correlation between heat and no start. Yeah, it's been hot last couple weeks, but it does it even on cooler nights.

D

 

Ignitor

 

it could be ignitor or the coil .. if you have a test lite it is easy to diagnose..

when car does not start and you get no spark , remove cap put key on and chk for power at both coil wires they should be hot, put test lite on the negat side of coil and have someone crank car if test lite pulses coil is no good if you get no pulse ignitor is no good

 

Excellent. I just put a new coil in with the cap & rotor so the problem must be the ignitor. I'll do the voltage check anyway just to make sure.

Thank you all so much!

Darel