hey guys, i just went to look at a used 1994 accord with about 85,000 miles... car ran good and started up fine but i noticed two issues...

When the car first starts up there was a buzzing for a few seconds, stopped for a few seconds, then started for about one or two seconds... and this was pretty consistant. i popped the hood and saw it was a gas cylinder near the front divers side of the car. After some research, it seems as if this was the ABS accumolator. the fluid levels in the resivior (kinda behind the accumalator towards interior of car) was full... very full at that. There seemed to of been some minor leaking... Are these easily fixed? Does the o-ring fix this issue that everyone talks about? what is worst case scenario on the repair? the pedal felt mushy.

secondly when driving the car and you turn left or right... it makes a ticking noise from the front of the vehicle... at idle i noticed the power steering fluid resivior was kinda bouncing around... it didnt sound like it was coming from one side or the other as i thought it may of been a ball joint or something...

here is a video of the noise for the brake issue...

 

seems that the a rotten o ring would not cause the system to properly pressurize, would this cause a mushy brake pedal?

 

If there is a leak find out where it is leaking from. The accumulator(#2) keeps the abs system pressurized after being charged by the pump(#1). If either O-ring there has failed then the system cannot maintain a charge and the system will constantly try to charge the ABS when the pressure in the modulator drops.

If the accumulator O ring(#22) or the pump O ring(#23)
57072-ST5-003 #22 O-RING (P5) $1.87
57315-ST5-003 #23 O-RING (19.6MMX2.5) $3.18
have failed then they are cheap to replace, although the pump may be a bit of a ***** to get to as it is located under the modulator which will most likely require removal of the assembly. If the accumulator was simply loosened by some muppet then it may just need to be tightened back up.

As for the mushy pedal, I'm going to guess that with only 85K on the clock the brake fluid is probably original in the system. That mushy pedal is most likely the old brake fluid compressing as it is contaminated.
If you do plan on purchasing this car, purchase an MC rebuild kit or a new MC, the seals will most likely fail if you bleed the system with new fluid.

The ABS system and normal brake circuits stay divorced until the ABS is activated. Then the poppet valves inside the ABS unit will open/close to depressurize/pressurize the circuit to the wheel that is locking up. The ABS should not interfere with normal braking.
Clicking when rolling and turning is usually the sign of the outer CV joints beginning to go bad. If the car has 85K then those are probably the original axles and may just need to be replaced.

If it is only happening when the steering is turned, not rolling, then it may be a PS pump issue, verify that there are no air bubbles or leaks from the P.S. system. Make sure the rack itself is not shifting around causing the clicking sound.

P.S. reservoir kind of just sits in a \ / shaped bracket, if it is not in the bracket it will vibrate from the pumping of fluid and engine vibration. IIRC there are no fasteners that hold it in place, just the weight of the reservoir and hoses keep it located.

 

wow thanks!!! about how much, as a worst case scenario would you say these repairs cost?

I am looking to buy a cheap car to get to and from work so i save on gas instead of driving my beastly truck... shes only asking $1500 for the car... kelly blue book suggests its about $2500. i dont want to go get it if i have to put $1500 out from the get go.

 

Also of the CV joints are going or the axles, wouldn't it make that noise of you are not moving, parked, and then moving steering wheel?

 

The O-Ring and the CV axles can both be easily done at home.

The accumulator unbolts from the bottom and the O-Ring sandwiches between the flange at the bottom of the casting and the tube itself.

The CV joints are at the end of the axles on both sides (obviously), they click and rub while moving because they bind and have play when spinning. This is why you don't hear them when moving the wheels while sitting still. If you have any general technical know how some research, a few general tools (minus the 36mm socket for the axle nut), and a good shop manual you can do both axles in about two hours.

 

dam that eric the car guy. he makes things look so easy LOL

so these repairs arent to difficult or expensive.

I found some new OEM style accumalators on ebay for less that $200 and the axles, new are $110ish and reman'd $50ish...

seems like if i can get her down to $1100-$1200 this would be a good pick up. would you guys agree?

and yes i have some basic mechanical skills. Just rebuilt a 91 mustang

 

looks like there is only one bolt that holds the accumalator in. Is it easily accessible without removing anything else?

The fact that it is turning on and off would make it clear it is functioning ok, right? Its just not being able to hold pressure?

The leak i found was just below the accumalator... well i didnt find the actual leak but the brake fluid was underneath it right about where that part#4 that holds the accumaltor down was. wasnt much there but it was something so that may make sense it would be a bad o-ring if its leaking there and not being able to hold pressure.

when repairing this, should anything else be done? Replace the master cylinder, drain all the fluid and replace with new?