well my car intermitently starts (meaning sometimes). it either cranks over and starts right up. or it doesnt crank over at all. . . i dont get it!!

new starter.
new grounds.
new battery.
re soldered my clutch switch and tested it. works perfectly.
checked all my fuses. none were burnt out.
all connections to starter and fusebox are tight.


SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME!!! i cant take this anymore!


edit: its a 91 crx si. with a b16

 

Main relay....when your car just sits there and crank...on those days was the inside of your car generally hot? if so..or if you don't remember...try just knocking on the main relay next time..see if that helps...

its a common problem in the EF's...you re solder the relay or just get a new one..or just have a spare one...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by pr3d &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Main relay....when your car just sits there and crank...on those days was the inside of your car generally hot? if so..or if you don't remember...try just knocking on the main relay next time..see if that helps...

its a common problem in the EF's...you re solder the relay or just get a new one..or just have a spare one... </TD></TR></TABLE>

false. re-read my problem. i do not have a relay problem. it either DOESNT CRANK or it STARTS RIGHT UP. having no problems with fuel.

if it cranks at all, it starts up first time.

i apologize if i seem mad. i just am so bugged by this problem!! but i greatly appreciate your effort!

 

when main relay's wear out they can work intermittently. Don't knock a suggestion unless you've tested the part. When it doesn't crank, do you hear the fuel pump whine when you turn the key?

 

oh oh..edited! ok ..

anyway..you sure all your grounds are good? sounds like a weak ground to me ..it sometimes only takes one weak ground..

just over ride the clutch pedal connection..i've had that problem..rewired still had the problem..then i just over-rid it and i still don't know to date what it really was..

-But yea..it could Actually just be the relay..dying relays sometimes won't crank either...and when was the last the fuel pump was replaced? those have a life as well. and most of all Can you the hear the pump prime?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by IT GUY &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">when main relay's wear out they can work intermittently. Don't knock a suggestion unless you've tested the part. When it doesn't crank, do you hear the fuel pump whine when you turn the key?</TD></TR></TABLE>

yes sir i do.

i wasnt trying to be rude. ha just my attitude at this point in time is in the dumps.

fuel pump primes every time.

 

they are all tight but i have been thinking maybe they are too big. i have stainless ground straps. . do you think it could be harder for my battery to crank amps through them?

i have a ground from valve cover to rad support/chassis.
ground from chassis to trans.

and ground from battery to rear strut tower. (relocated.)

should i have another on the back of the valve cover closer to the master cylinder?

any more ideas!? IM ALL EARS. this is bugging me so much!

edit: also i re soldered and bypassed my clutch switch to an actual switch i made. and i can hear a click when i push the button in. so i know its actually working.

 

Ever had any spark related problems? ...Maybe your distributor's on its way out..but those things are fairly binary..either they work or they just don't ..and you can tell..but anyway any spark related problems at all?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by pr3d &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Ever had any spark related problems? ...Maybe your distributor's on its way out..but those things are fairly binary..either they work or they just don't ..and you can tell..but anyway any spark related problems at all?</TD></TR></TABLE>

my dizzy cap screw came out while i was driving awhile ago. but i put it back in. BUT. . wouldnt that only be a problem if it cranked and DIDNT start????? or am i wrong?


thats the only spark related issue. brand new plugs, and wires.

 

yea..if its the distributor rotor and if that breaks loose in the distributor cap then it won't fire at all..but from what i can make out you may still have grounding issues..and Using a larger gauge wire shouldn't compromise how many amps if anything it should be harmful the other way round...it can be stressful if you try to pump 500 some cranking amps through speaker wire...

now you say you've checked all your grounds..they're all clean and the conductivity is perfect at all these grounds right? like paint removed where needed but i don't think with the grounds you mentioned you need to scratch any paint off...i still think its grounding issues..

 

had a problem like this at work the other day. does all your power go away when you turn the key? Like everything is good to go when you turn the key on (the pump primes, all the dash lights come on, etc.) but when you turn the key to start everything dies?
the problem was bad battery terminal clamps. they were corroded where the cable goes into the clamb. Too much resistance and so the car would act like the battery was dead.
Take a look at em, and clean em if you haven't already. If that doesn't work, then I would find a known good main relay (from a friends Civic or rex) and pop that in there, if that doesn't work then recheck your grounds. Maybe one was just loose or it got some crap between it and the grounding surface.

Oh, I just thought of another cause. A while ago this same type of thing happened to a friend's 89 Hatch. It ended up being the ignition switch. I can't remember why it went bad, but that may be the cause of your intermitten problem.

electronics suck! Good luck man. We'll get her running again.

 

possibly an ignition problem.....I had a bad ignition or something in the ignition went bad where the key would turn on and power would turn on but starter just would not turn over so me bieng cheap wired a button straight from the batttery to the starter so when the ignition wouldn't turn the starter over I just hit that button

 

i'll try an ignition switch. .

is there a way i can test to make sure my ignition switch is bad? so im not replacing a good one. .

i can do a dizzy cap and rotor today though. . .

 

anyone?

 

This is where i'd crack open the manual too..the the fact that this isn't recurring is what makes me think of something loose...could you describe what you do at times when it doesn't even crank...so you just keep cranking it till it finally fires? or you just come back to it or what?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by pr3d &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">This is where i'd crack open the manual too..the the fact that this isn't recurring is what makes me think of something loose...could you describe what you do at times when it doesn't even crank...so you just keep cranking it till it finally fires? or you just come back to it or what?</TD></TR></TABLE>

first i swear a couple times. then punch stuff. then i get out and drive my daily (blazer). . h ah but do you think a loose starter could cause it??

 

no one else?

 

Pop off your steering column protector, remove the backside of your ignition tumbler and inspect. If it looks like there's been arcing or any other type of corrosion, I would bet you need to replace the switch.

 

my car did the same thing so I read up on the main relay. Replaced it and now i have no problems at all.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by danmdevries &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Pop off your steering column protector, remove the backside of your ignition tumbler and inspect. If it looks like there's been arcing or any other type of corrosion, I would bet you need to replace the switch.</TD></TR></TABLE>

will be done tomorrow. .

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by .kyle &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

will be done tomorrow. . </TD></TR></TABLE>

I have the same exact problem as you and need to check this out as well. Since I'm lazy I just jump the battery to the starter like someone else said. however, since it's getting colder I need to fix it soon.

 

check the ignition switch

 

Same nail the other folks hit, check ignition and when you do, look at it before going through the steps to check it... assuming you have an FSM. Also, I've had the main relay go, and when I tested it, all was well, so don't discount it. If it hasn't gone yet, it will, so a spare wouldn't be a bad idea. Another issue I had was loss of ground at the engine. The car drove fine for miles, then would act up and not start. Found out that two of the ground wires on the engine were not tight.

Good luck and let us know what the solution was.