I own a "91" Honda Accord Lx that is really tring to give me a nerves brake down.
Engine-F22A1,2.2L SOHC PFI 16V,Automatic(L4)transmission 4door sedan.

I'm having starting problems and I'm looking for help everywhere I can.Here is what it's doing ..........
..........In the begining it would start and just shut down as I'm driving,I'll wait about 10 minutes and it would restart.Now it won't start at all,I just replaced the whole distrutor ,plugs and plug wires.She is getting fire.Yesterday I did get it to start again but when I shut it off it wouldn't start right back up,I'd wait about 30-45 minutes and it would restart but not instantly.I would have to hold the key and let it crank,somtimes til the battery almost drained and then it would fire off. And again,shut it off and I'm dead in the water again.(Figure of speech) Somebody PLEASE HELP ME..........Oh,I know I'm not supposed it pump a fuel injected motor but I did.Gas can be smelled under the hood.My question is:If fuel filter is cloged can gas be smelled? I also get a lot of pressure build up in gas tank,when I remove gas cap it has a massive amount of air.All suggestions welcome,I'm without a ride,single mom with handicap child.This is very important.Thank You to ALL that help.

 

Does your rpm fluctuate before it dies?
People have reported that if their IAC or FITV is clogged it causes the engine to cut off and have trouble starting.
Did this problem occur recently? If so, what did you do recently?
Or has this been an on going battle you've had with your car?

 

Before I replaced the distributor my RPM's would always stay on the 1.But since the new distributor has been put on my RPM's stay under 1 while i'm driving and a little above 1 when idleing in park.When I have to stop at lights and such I would have to keep one foot on brake and other on gas just enough to keep RPM's at 1 so it wouldn't die.That lasted about 2 weeks and then it just wouldn't start anymore.There was a couple of times since quit running that I did get it to start and all I did was tap on the fuel filter,but once I shut it off it would not start again.As far as the RPM's fluctuating before it dies,I would say no.It just looses all power.

 

I'd be most concerned that the electrical portion of the ignition switch is going bad.

 

I had a similar problem in an '87 Civic, except the shutting off on it's own part. If the vehicle was hot, it would not restart until everythign cooled down completly. I don't remember what was done to fix it exactly, but my mechanic replaced something in the steering column. (No, it was not the key or anything like that.) After that, the ignition part of it was fine.

Wish I could be more specific, but electrical has always been my weak spot.
Best of luck.

 

it could be as Hondadude says,,, but i would chk fuel pressure as well..or try something. remove the intake hose that goes to throttle body, get some brake or carb cleaner DO NOT get starter fluid,,, open up the butterfly by hand, spray some cleaner in there, start car,, if it starts it is a lack of fuel issue.......clogged filter, main relay, fuel pump.....
..Also is chk engine lite on ?? if so , read and post the code ..

 

I have the same problem w/ 93 accord. It will be running fine and at random (after being shut off), it will not start. I asked a good mechanic friend of mine and he said he has seen the problem.
He noted its probably a temp sensor wire. (please excuse my lack of knowledge here).
I still have the issue too. Simply put, when the car heats up, and the wire starts to bend (or heat up also), it bends or comes loose till it stops functioning. This causes the temp guage to stop working, (thinking the car is cold) and makes the car pump lots of fuel through to compensate. You should smell lots of fuel, and I have drained my battery trying to figure it out many times.
Now I just let the car cool.

I honestly wish I knew which sensor wire this would be. Maybe the wires connecting into the plastic temp. sensor? Not sure where that is personally...

 

I put some cheap injector cleaner in it about a week before it quit running.Could some gunk have broken loose from fuel filter and gotten through line and plugged something up some where else? I am not a wizz in auto repair‚so this is just a thought.If I tap on the fuel filter it will start up but as soon as I shut it off it won't start again.

 

I would have to say check fuel pressure too. But I could not find a pressure gauge to hook up to the fuel rail to check it myself. I just guessed it was the fuel pump, and it was. Oh, I did waste my money on a main relay first. (it was still in the trunk when I sold it) Hope you solve the problem.

 

The IACV is a good start to clean regardless of these problems.
I cleaned mine out and my idle time is so much smoother.
use either carb and choke cleaner $1.75 a can at Advance Auto Parts, or some throttly body cleaner which is the better of the two and more expensive...
You should go to CB7tuner.com and look in the maintenance section they have stuff like that there for all 90-93 accords (Model # CB7)
Also I would have a mechanic look at your idle intake and see if it's messed up.

 

Hi,I haven't tried your idea yet,but I was wondering if a bad spark plug would also keep it from starting?The reason I'm asking this is because I did put some used spare plugs I had in it and it started and restarted 4 times so I then went for a test drive and went about a block and it just cut off again no sputter it just died.

 

one bad spark plug will not keep the car from starting or kill it,,,,,,it will make that particular cylinder miss.......Now if all 4 plugs are totally worn . it could not make the car start..
i see the car died again, test if is it lack of spark or lack of fuel that caused it .

it would be a good idea to hook up a fuel pressure gauge and drive car . this way you can monitor pressure when car acts up

 

Thanks to all.I think I found the problemin the fuel relayunder the dash.I haven't replaced it yet but gently moving it seems to have done the trick.Oh,but yes.I will be replacing it real soon.

 

I have a similar problem except the self shut off...
After I turn it off for a while it would have problems starting up again.
I haven't yet done anything about it as I'm waiting for a part, but I'm told it is the main relay... appartently the weld spots go bad after a good few years on this unit and thus it has problems managing the fuel pump. (Correct me if I'm wrong)
The part retails for some ~$60 - Mitsuba Relay ***'y. Main RZ-0088

Will keep you posted (probably after 5th may)

 

Ah... didn't notice the las post ...
So... as they say - BINGO!

 

If anyone's still interested...
Just as promised: the main relay is changed and the car works fine so this was the cause...
Extremely hard to get to though, especially if extra gear is added underneath the dashboard, so if you have a few pennies in that cookie jar and don't fancy some work and scratches, then let a mechanic do it

 

underneath the dash on the L side is a little box called a main relay when it gets hot the sodder melts and after a while it wont connect at all. get the part from a junk yard if not its about 80-100 bucks. its easy to get out its bolted to the metal part of the dash. Hope this helps u. Good luck

 

Accordpro was right! Check that damn fuel pressure! Main relays are a frequent problem on those cars. Don't buy one from a wrecking yard though, Or you may end up with the same problem. The newer ones are updated!