Make/Model: Honda Civic 2001 DX Sedan, Manual Trans

Issue: When I start my car, the green key on the dash is flashing and the battery icon is lit up. The car does not get above a certain RPM and the engine just sounds like it's running poorly. Here's an example: https://photos.app.goo.gl/NnNrRPTi5uaxeSYk9. The OBDII scanner also no longer connects to my car and it used to. Sometimes when I turn the car on, I hear 2 clicks coming from the passenger glove box, where the ECU is.

Repairs I've Tried

1. Checked every fuse in the engine box and the driver side box with a multimeter and they all check out
2. Checked the battery when off, idling, and with some load on it to verify that the alternator is working and charging my battery (it is)
3. Disconnected the battery for 10+ minutes and reconnected.

Additional background:
I am a beginner when it comes to repairing cars. I recently replaced my camshaft position sensor which involved me taking the valve cover off. First time doing that. Afterwards, my car has this new problem, however. While I was programming the new camshaft position sensor per the Hayne's manual, my engine cut out and died while I was accelerating in 1st gear and got us to where we are now. It feels like I forgot to plug something in. I did forget to plug in the fuel injector for cylinder #1 and that was causing some issues but then I fixed that and it felt like it was running smoothly until I hit this new problem. I also undid the grounding bolt and wire for the alternator so I could move some cables out of the way of the valve cover but those got reinstalled tightly with contact cleaner.

I am just learning of this alternator grounding issue with the 7th civics and the symptoms seem to be lining up, but I'm wondering if there's a way to check for sure?

 

Check that ground G101 is securely tighten.

 

My engine bay doesn't look exactly the same, but there is a grounding cable running from the engine to the front rad mount and it is tight.

 

Ground G101 is a different ground, it is part of the main wire harness that provides ground directly to the PCM and other critical components. It is under the box on the left side of the radiator hose in your picture.



you ube.com/watch?v=CMPAucqeN0w
https://www.civicforums.com/forums/182-7th-generation-civic-2001-2005/317461-help-car-over-heating-after-thermostat-change.html

 

The ground cable you shared in the video seems to be directly in line with the hose and on my car, it seems to have been cut many years ago.


Although, also in the video, the person attaches this ground directly to the front radiator mount and the first cable I took a picture of seems like it's all connected to the same metal of the engine, but maybe I'm mistaken. It would make sense that the previous owner cut the ground and replaced it with a new one. In the event that I'm still not seeing the cable you're referring to, I'm not sure how to better see underneath the big black box short of removing the whole thing. Are you suggesting that?

 

You need to look where the main engine wire harness ground that was corroded was reconnected by the previous owner. Your other photo ground cable is not the wires that feed the PCM, etc..

G101 ground wires branch off to feed various components.

 

Sorry for being away for a while! I had to remove my inkake (I think it's called that) so that I could see underneath it. I believe this pic is G101. I removed the bolt and cleaned the grounding pad, the underside of the bolt, and the mating surface on the engine. This cable joins up with a few other cables in one large loom and I honestly can't tell where the grounding wire is going. I see lots of sensors plugged in coming out of the same loom, but no other obvious grounding connection like this.


This wire is the grounding wire that comes directly from the battery and it looks pretty bad. Could this be the source of my problems?

 

It certainly could be. Replace it and see if that helps.