Hello all. I'm new here and looking for some advice.

I have a 93 Honda Accord LX. Ever since I bought it (about 2 yrs ago) it will, from time to time, not start. I'll wait about 5-10 minutes, try it again, and it fires right up. I have never been able to pinpoint any set of circumstances that corilate with the problem.

Well recently it did not start and has not started since. So I began by replacing the cap and rotor. When I did the old one was in BAD shape and I thought this might do the trick. It didn't. So then I pulled the plugs and replaced those because it had been quite a while since they were changed. That too did not work. I'm living in the city now, don't have all my tools, and am stuck.

Looking for some ideas as to what to try next, OR a recomendation of a reliable mechanic in the Chicago area who I can just have take over.

Any ideas/help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Verify all basics and let us know, spark, fuel pressure, compression and timing.

Use a spare spark plug in a pulled wire and ground the plug, have a friend crank the engine and watch for spark. Crack open the 12mm bolt on top of the fuel filter, crank the engine and fuel should continuously pour out, do a normal compression test and visually inspect timing marks at the crank and cam(s) by lining up crank pulley to TDC and remove cam timing cover.

Did you notice this problem only in the summer season over the past two years???

 

Now that you mention it I think it was only in the summer months.

I'd like to do all those things you've mentioned but I don't have tools. That's why I'm getting so frustrated. I used to live in rural northern Michigan and did my own work. I'm in the city now without proper tools and am about at my wits end.

 

See the picture under my name, MAIN RELAY, get one and have your wheels back, famous hot season malfunction. Its up under the dash on the drivers side, just go get one anyways, its a wear and tear item and will go out if it is not your problem right now. Hot inside the car, NO START, only a fool would sit in a hot car with windows and doors closed, so most folks lower a window or hang the door open, 5 minutes later, all the hot air escapes from the car and it starts by some miracle.

If you have cruise control, it may be hidding up above the controller.

 

Accord FAQ's is a permanent 'sticky' link at the beginning of the Accord Forum page.

You will find Main Relay topic if you scroll down the page to the heading Electrical.

There is tons and tons of useful, commonly known issues in this FAQ thread.

If you can solder, I would choose that option first, if cash is no option then buy replacement.

Best of luck!!

 

Soldering it may fix it but many times the relay coil is out of resistance spec and will not create enough magnatism to close the switch. Its harder to close the switch initially than to hold the switch closed once it is already closed, so tapping on the relay will many times fix it for this trip, next restart will normally require another beating. Its $45 in Japan, it has to be less in the US.

 

How difficult is this to replace? I've done brakes, cv joints, plugs, wires, rotors, dist. caps, but not much beyond that, and have never messed with anything electrical on a vehicle. I have a level of intimidation that still exists when tackling a new project. I do have a Haynes manual so hopefully that would/will have enough info to get me through. Is this relay somehting that is common and will be in stock at most stores?

 

This is conceptually a very simple repair. If you buy a new one, it barely counts as an 'electrical' repair job. Just unplug the old one & plug in the new one.

The pain is reaching it amid all the wiring that's stuffed up under the dash.

I'd call around to see what's in stock. Chicago area must have dozens of Autozone-type stores. I bet some of them will let you borrow a screwdriver to install it in the parking lot.

 

JimBlake says to use a screwdriver, look at the avitar by my name, that is a main relay, look at the top and the bottom, you will notice these two tabs holding the inner relay portion into the outer housing (case). I use two flat tip screwdrivers to gently pry these two tabs away from the relay inner portion and gently pull on the wire harness to remove the inner relay from the housing, I do not unbolt the housing metal mounting bracket from the car. Practice with the new part and disassemble it in your lap then just replace the guts of the old relay on the car, only takes minutes, even if you have to remove the Cruise computer out of the way, that will need a 10mm socket, ratchet and extentention.

 

Don't know if you have fixed the problem yet or not, but I just fixed my 93 accord LX that had the same problem. It ended up being the ignition module. if you can barrow a volt meter and test it. It is located in the distributor cap it is held in place with two philip head screws. I hope this works for you as it is cheaper than the other. Let me know if it worked for ya!