Hello, all. I have a 1995 Honda Accord EX, 2.2L and need to figure out how to remove a bunch of connectors (harness mass) out of the way of the Interlock Control Unit so I can troubleshoot that connector, which is adjacent to and in front of (nearest the person in driver's seat) the PGM-FI Relay up under the dash behind the steering wheel. The harness mass is directly below this with only 1/2" of clearance or less. In fact, the Interlock Control Unit harness appeared to be bundled tightly within this as well.

Not only have I wasted time pulling out the wrong connectors in the same general vicinity because the Service Manual pictures aren't so clear to me (given my lack of experience dealing with electronics), and then thinking I have the right one, then trying to find grounds (only found one of 5 on the ground wire map in the front dash area)....now that I've finally found the PGM-FI Relay and adjacent Interlock Control, I have now found two connectors attached to each other by a white holder and then to a bracket by what appears to be a large red push button connector (I think, not clear)... whereas several harness pieces are grouped together in a huge mass directly under the Interlock Control connector. If I can get these connectors off the bracket (red button piece), I can carry on.

After I get some relief from this massive headache I've acquired (but will return to work within the hour regardless, because daylight ends soon)....I will go out and take a picture so you see what I mean, but if you are familiar with this please, please, please, tell me how to clear this area. I'm running out of time to work!

 

It was very difficult to get good pictures with my camera, but here they are:


Here, you will see the connectors that are in the way. The two connectors are semi housed in a white clip that is held to the metal bracket by some kind of red push button thing. I was tempted just to yank on white piece holding the connectors and replacing it if need by. The red push button fastener doesn't pull out, and can't see if there's an easy way to unfasten it. Also couldn't get a picture of it. If these connectors would just slide out of the white bracket, that would work just as well. They don't slide, and I'm not aware of a release. It's not enough to unplug these fasteners--the thing they are connected to is in the way.!



Above you will see those white connectors to the right. I turned the camera 90 degrees to show the PGM-FI Relay. The Interlock Control Module is just barely visible behind the harness mass that is attached to the connectors. And actually, just to the right of the PGM-FI, you can see the part of the harness that connects to the Interlock control Module extended from the harness mass to behind it (where it plugs in). The mass cannot be moved enough to disconnect the Interlock Control connector, and that is the problem.

 

Just following up on this thread to share what I've learned in the event it may help someone who might stumble upon this thread in the future. In the end, I didn't need to troubleshoot the connector, but reading about the electronics connections allowed me to realize what was wrong without further testing.

Short background: My car accelerated on its own, with my foot off the gas, and I had to control my speed using the brake pedal. I noticed then that the cruise control light was on and switched it off, but nothing changed. Ultimately, I braked hard, threw the car into park (not the wisest choice--should have put my car in neutral when it was accelerating) and called for a tow. The brakes smoked.

The tow truck driver told me he could not get the car out of park, and I had read that if one goes into park from drive, the parking pawl could lock up. Also, I read that the cruise control cable could stick and keep the throttle open. So initially, I thought I was dealing with two mechanical problems--a locked parking pawl from switching gears--something I thought was separate from the acceleration issue, caused possibly by a cruise cable getting stuck.

READING ABOUT THE ELECTRONICS WAS INSTRUMENTAL in helping me to figure out what really happened. I realized that I could get the car into neutral inserting a key into a slot next to the shifter. This meant the shifting mechanism was mechanically fine, so something electronic was telling it to not shift when I inserted my key into the ignition.

READING ABOUT THE INTERLOCK CONNECTOR troubleshooting told me that a car cannot shift out of park if both the brake and throttle are pressed at the same time, and since I wasn't actually pressing the gas, but I knew I had issues with the throttle (acceleration), then it stood to reason that the throttle was in face open, and I didn't need to check for a voltage change across connections based on whether just the brake pedal was pushed or both the brake and gas pedals were pressed together. {If I didn't have reason to beleive the throttle was open, then I could have gone ahead with this check and others, as there are a half dozen causes for the shifter not moving out of park, from loose or broken grounds, to broken solenoids)

Since the car was off and the throttle was likely open, I needed to find out why--was it the throttle cable, was the throttle body cavity dirty causing the butterfly valve to stick? I checked the throttle cable first as it's the easiest to get at. I felt no issues with pressing it and it returning normally, nor did I see any issues when my husband pressed the pedal while I looked. While a visual inspection might not tell all, it was a good start.

So I resolved to check the throttle body itself--bought throttle body cleaner in case it was just dirty (which is what I was expecting at this point), but instead, found a mouse stuck under the butterfly valve holding it open.

BTW.... I really thought there should be an easy way to move those gray connectors out of the bracket that housed it, and perhaps there is. If I had known it at the time, I would have confirmed what I now know! But not being able to remove the connectors gave me time to read more thoroughly on what the diagnostic tests mean. And taking clear photos reveals a bolt holding that gray bracket on were I to still need to remove the connectors without having to slide them out of the bracket.

 

I really have to wonder how he got in there. Do you have an air filter installed ? Does it have a hole in it ?

 

Yeah, must have. There was a little grass and leaves on the transmission, and just a small amount of leaves and maple seeds in the air filter. Not enough to form a full nest, so must have just been getting started. I drive the car fairly regularly (when it works :D) so it's not like those cases where people have a project car that mice get into and take over when it's not being run or worked on. I guess I'll be paying regular attention to whether there is activity under the hood since I've now read that some people have had their harnesses destroyed on cars they drive, even new cars--scary thought.