Well, today I replaced my CRX Main relay. Here is a picture of my old one.
As you can see there are many solder joints that are cracked or starting to crack.

I am gonna resolder the joints on the old relay and keep as a backup.





Symptoms of a faulty main relay:

Problems starting the car, usually after a short run (when the interior is warm), though in some cases, the car may fail to start at any time. A classic time for the problem to occur is at the gas station, or if you park for a minute to get something from a shop. If the car is parked for a long period, the interior usually has cooled enough for the joint to make contact again, and you won't notice a problem. As the cabin temperature is a major feature of this problem, it might appear worse on cold or rainy days when you have the heater running to clear the windows etc. Extremely cold temperatures can also cause the problem to be more apparent.

FYI, The Main Relay controls five circuits:
Battery
Ignition
Pump
Injectors
Starter

Reason why car won't start:

The main relay wouldn't fire up the fuel pump due to the soldering cracks on the Relay PCB.
Cracks would appear over time and can be re-soldered, or you can buy a new one from the dealer.

 

Good idea. I have old Accord and Civic MRs laying around that I need to resolder and keep as testers. These things fail all the time.

 

Because of the age of our cars, the solder joints on all electronics components/computers are starting to crack !

 

where is the main relay located on our cars?

 

and how many pins

 

Relay removal
http://www.marklamond.co.uk/tech-hon...al/removal.htm

Symptoms
http://www.marklamond.co.uk/tech-hon...main-relay.htm

 

If some one needs a Main Relay for CRX's or OBD1/2 cars I do have a few and I just tested all the obd0 on my crx.. think i got 2 black spares and one gray main relay..

 

Thanks Rob, really helpful post! Reminded me to check out mine!

 

No problemo!