My daughter drives this car back and forth to college; she's a music major and loves her car that can carry people and instruments. The other night, she was stranded and left her car at her friend's house. I was able to limp it back home. It only drives in 2nd and 3rd.

After checking the fluid level and reading all the posts on transmissions for the past day, I decided to see if I could find the problem without having to take it to the dealership, yet. I did notice that the D4 light on the dash is solid. Even when I move the shifter from P to 1, the D4 does not blink or go out. I was not able to see anyone having this problem on the forum.

I did locate and remove the selector switch, give it a good cleaning, regrease it and reinstall it. <U>No change.</U> Side note: I did notice some sticky substance (spilled soda??) near the cable that goes into the switch.

What should be my next step? The TCU? My husband is an electronic tech and could easily repair the board if need be. I'm really hoping that it's an electonics issue and not the transmission itself. The car has over 190K original miles on it!

I appreciate all suggestions...

 

When my 92 Accord D4 light was doing that it turned out to be the TCU. That is probably your problem also.


PS: You may want to see if any codes are stored in the TCU first.

 

How do I check for codes? Sorry, this is a first for me... I believe the TCU is located above the fuse panel under the dash on the driver side, correct?

 

the SCS connector (blue)(two pin) is located near the right kick panel and bottom of glove box, also the the TCM is located next to the ECU they are both located on the passenger's foot rest they will be under a metal protective plate, open the TCM for any sings of burnt resistors/transistor etc.

 

When you husband gets to eyeballing the TCM (Transmission Control Module) have him pay particular attention to several capacitors that reside there. They are prone to leaking and subsequently failing.
This (unfortunately) comes up with some frequency here. But then again; when compared to the entire fleet of Honda's out there, It's really few and far between.

P

 

Thanks for the help on the location. Just took the TCM and ECU out, boy was that a chore! I looked over both boards and did not see anything wrong (no bad burnt plastic smell).

To P_Adams: my husband did not see anything wrong but said that it will need to be tested to be sure. Unfortunately, he could not test with his meter due to the coating.

We were told of a reputable transmission shop in our area and we will limp it over there to see if they can figure it out.

Thanks for all the help...

 

Well I'd bet anything it's the tcu.I bought a 92 accord with the same problem.D4 light on all the time and it would only work in 2nd and 3rd.I have another accord a 90 model and just to test it I put the tcu from the 92 into the 90.And the problem followed the tcu to the 90....
That's not the order that I would have liked to test it now but I already had the trans out of the 92 that had your same problem.And I didn't really know what it was until I read a similar post in here.

 

good thing your husband is an electronics guy because those things are pricy. From my experience if the D4 light is on constantly the TCU has lost it's mind. Usually the light will go off with cycling the Ignition switch.
If you insist on taking it to a transmission shop do some homework to make sure your going to a good one. Just because they work on transmissions doesn't mean they are good at it.

 

I agree with Moogo.Most places that work on transmissions are gonna be lost when It comes to a tcu problem.
If they don't know what thier doing it will be like one of those deals where you call them for a month and they keep saying it should be done in a few day or tomorrow.But you drive by the Garage and your car hasn't moved from where they put it when you dropped it off.

 

Well, when it rains, it poors. My daughter was in an accident last night. She was unhurt but my 94 Accord got totalled. Someone hit her from the side in a parking lot. Anyway, we are a household of 3 with one working vehicle (06 Mustang). So, the pressue is on to get her 93 Accord SW back on the road ASAP!

I did some calling and research on what a new TCU would cost... so far, about $700; which is cheaper than a transmission. Anyway, my question is: have any of you gentlemen had success with rebuilt/used TCUs? I've seen some for less than $200. Again, the car will be driven 60 miles a day which are mostly highway miles. I would hate to have a 19 year-old student stranded if I opt with the rebuilt/used TCU.

I await your comments.

 

When I bought one, back in 97 it was $450. And that was from the dealer. $700 seems pretty steep. I would definitely look around. You could probably find one cheaper on-line, but then you would have to wait for it (pressed for time). I couldn't tell you how good the aftermarket tcu's are. Maybe someone else here has purchased one.

 

It's like anything else that's used.Hit or miss.You could probably buy one from a salvage yard for $100 or less and it would be fine.most of them have a 30 day warranty to.Just be sure to ask them up front.
I bought a used ecu for my 92 accord from a salavage yard and it works fine.

 

Well, I just called my local Honda dealer and they are willing to sell me a new one for $800. Also, they didn't know how to test the TCU only and didn't know anyone local who could do it. I'm going to take my chances with the rebuilt one and test it myself. It will save me the drive to the dealership and the $70/hr labor for them to tell me the TCU is gone.

Thanks again for all your support... I will let you all know the outcome.

 

I came across a website that deals with TCUs and suggested that I replace the speedometer sensor as well as the shift solenoids, as they may have been adversely affected. Is it true? I was able to find a new sensor for about $135 but I have not been able to find exactly which solenoids need to be replaced, if any...

So much for a quick fix to get this car going... but I want to be sure that I fix it correctly and save the agony of being stranded!

 

When I changed my tcu, that's all I changed (nothing else). It worked perfectly for years and years. These people are trying to get you to spend some more money. Find a tcu (either new or used) and you should be set. The only way I know of to check a tcu is to substitute it with a known good tcu (that's what the 92 Accord Helm service manual said). And if the problem goes away, it's the tcu. That is why I let the dealer change it. If it turned out not to be the problem, I wouldn't be stuck with two tcu's. The dealer can always sell it to someone else. Good luck