Hey Honda-Tech!

I've been working on this car for over 2 years, and the last step that needs to be addressed is the wiring:

In a nutshell, the 1991 wagovan was automatic, and dpfi. It was originally converted to mpfi by the original owner.

After a few years, I converted it to manual, no issues.

Just recently (past year) i swapped an H2B plateless kit, and had it tuned, made 220whp, now it wont start.

The wired near the main relay started frying...

The car is now with (IMO) one of the top Honda specialists in Georgia, and i need a new dash harness... needless to say, I don't know which to get, and what exactly the problem is.

Can someone please please please give me some information or advice as to what the root of the problem is, and how to fix it.

I'm ready to order a harness from c_zapien, but I just want to make sure I am addressing the correct issues.

 

Did the previous owner hack the main harness?

If so you might want to start there, lok online or order a wiring book for that car through helms and see what he did and if what he did was good. If you don't know what he did I and you/someone can't troubleshoot the wiring I would recommend sourcing a replacement main harness from the same year (90-91) and model (dx/lx/ect.)
I would also check all grounds and make sure there's no components missing (with the exception of the AC/heater) as some of them help complete the circuits for certain things to function.
Finally, if the main harness is good, go ahead and replace the engine harness with a custom harness or start troubleshooting it as well.

good luck, I can't wait to see the build I've always said if I came across a wagon I'd try to do h2b or h2d if they ever made that bracket so I can retain the awd.

 

Dash harness or cabin harness? If your main relay wiring has gone bad, a new dash harness isn't going to fix it.

The cabin harness should be to suit the car you have. You'll need to convert the wiring at the ECU so you can run the correct ECU for your motor. I'd suggest just buying an adapter harness, between your cabin harness and the ECU.

 

most likely its a short. like i tell others who are having a short in body harness. my engine harnesses will not fix a issue with the body wiring. i have no problem selling them to you. as long as your aware.

another reason i specify that my stock style harnesses require that stock ecu plugs be untouched. because this style wiring will still flow thru the body wiring.

which wire was frying?

 

Just an update - The car has been at EBTEC (reputable shop in Atlanta) for about 7-8 months. They went through the entire harness, and they said the engine harness is fine. The main relay and ignition switch have been addressed.

The car will start, but not consistently at all. My question is, what would allow the car to start sometimes and not all the time? Any help would be appreciated. I'm at the point where the shop wants to just put the motor setup in a EG... I don't want to get rid of my wagon.

 

Does it crank but not run? I'd check:

ECU check for intermittent signal to main relay.

ICM check workshop manual for diagnostic procedure.

 

Thanks for the response!

It's tuned on Honda s-300 by James @ EBTEC - It ran and would crank, and got dynoed. It cranks, just won't start consistently.

The main relay wiring was melting, so we cut it out, and re wired a new one in. Now the main relay seems to be fine, but the starting issue is intermittent.

Looking at picking up a CJs-wiring harness if I can get one in a decent turn-around time.

 

When it won't start, does the fuel pump fail to prime? If so, there's a simple jump test to determine whether the problem lies in the main relay circuit.

 

Why was it melting? Did you find the problem?

 

I think it's priming, but the car is at the shop. I just ordered a LVL2 H-series harness from CJs-Wiring, so hopefully there will be no more issues.

 

The answer I was given was because of the previous wiring job. So, i'm not quite sure, exactly. I was told it's fixed.