Hi im MEX and im a LVL 1 Mechanic and i have an issue (armature Mech im learning as i go)
Starting with the basics
1993 Honda civic SI hatch manual
215k miles
Currently 3rd owner (close friendship with 2nd owner.) no major issue that i know of on car.

1st ecu fine when i received the car, current condition good, with aftermarket mods, ( remote start, alarm, 12v converter, (prepped but not installed, window and door actuators for pwr windows and doors. )
2nd owner does install for living, car was daily driver, work car.
I bought car
I installed crap sub and amp, to bump some crap music, cause i like to feel bass in my bones. (retrospect not a good idea) ran fine, no issues
Got new vehicle, for cargo area, civic sat for 1.5 year, batt died,
charged battery, started right up like i left it for a day, changed oil, fresh gas, drove it for a week.

ECU issue starts cant figure it out. Started trouble shooting with friends,
First it was crank no start, we started with basics, as per "friends cause i dont know what im doing yet.
Replaced Main relay, fuel pump, distributor cap rotor, all on friends advice, because im an amature mechanic trying to learn, then started researching myself through the tube of you's on symptoms, known problems, and things of things of the like.
learned how to Jump the obd 1 connector to read CEL codes, STEADY CEL, didn't understand what it meant, more search and knowledge, finally bought an ecu off ebay, with a warranty, popped it in, started right up, ran for 30 min, hums like a bird ,( but like the bird rafael from Rio, the toucan who thinks he can sing but the only one who thinks his voice is beautiful is his wife.) (Heat shield is the next fix).
turned the car off completely let it rest for an hour, came back started it up let run for 10 min, fuel pump primed and everything, no hesitation, turned car off, kept on accessory, to hook up and tinker with aftermarket radio, radio did not power on, radio fuse was burnt out, replaced fuse , radio came on, started car cause something told me to ,. crank no start resumed, and now there was a horrible burnt capacitor smell. took ECU out and opens it up, Same capacitor, same spot burnt. way worse this time.
Ive looked and browsed the tube of you's to find this problem/issue , but i believe this may be, and i dont know if they even call it this anymore, but a 2nd or 3rd echelon repair, and i think that isnt as widely shared across the web as often. so im having trouble locating my answer.

Purchased another ecu, but hesitant to install until i know and understand what caused c13 to burn out. before i install 3rd ecu. (they are not cheap)
this is my second ecu, the burn mark is worse than the first one on the original ECU



capacitor c13 i believe



TLDR;; What is burning out my capacitor on my 93 civic si hatch ECU?
How do i prevent this cap from burning out.
what is directly related to cap 13
is it a bad ground?
Please and thnk you
-MEX


Please Halp

 

All you can do is replace the capacitor and hope it hasn't burnt traces on the board.

If the capacitor took out enough of the board, you may have to find another Si ECU to run the car or modify a non Si ECU.

 

Don't just replace the cap or ECU without finding what's burning it out. You didn't say exactly what happened before you replaced the ECU. No CELs? Find what blew your radio fuse.-maybe some wires rubbing on the body or each other there...?

 

I'm having this same issue with c14 being overloaded. Installed another c14 capacitor and it burnt worse the 2nd time. Just like your picture! Did you find a solution? Vehicle is a 1993 honda civic 1.5L manual transmission.

 

did you find a solution? Having the same issue cap 14 keeps burning up.... vehicle is 1993 honda civic 1.5L manual

 

I have the same issue on my 93 civic Lx 1.5L, did anyone find out the issue?

C14 capacitor blew. Anyone know why???

 

It was time.

 

I have a new ecu, but I haven't installed it due to not knowing why the capacitor blew. I have outlined the connections and what sensors they lead to. So your saying the capacitors were just old. I read that on sites that sell new capacitors to solder on the ecu. Could the distributor be the cause?

 

Capacitors are like little batteries... they have a shelf life and then the battery acid comes out. When this happens, the electrolytic fluid can cause enough damage to the circuit board to cause an electrical short... and then you get the fire that you have pictured above. Even if you replace the capacitor, there could still be damage to the traces on the board around it and the ECU may still not work.