Greetings all,
I'm not really a car guy(I do love Honda's though) but I was hoping someone on this board might be generous enough to help me out. I just got a used(but new to me) 2000 Accord and after about 4 months the Malfunction Indicator Lamp came on. I took it to my local dealer and had them check it out. They said that the PCM and the O2 sensor both needed to be replaced and that a P1164 diagnostic error code was returned. After looking around a little bit, I was just wondering if anyone could give their opinion on whether this is really what's needed. It seems like that error code might originate from just the O2 sensor being bad and not the PCM(PCM ~ $1200 while O2 ~ $200). I found on this page:

http://www.insightcentral.net/....html

if you scroll down to the "Q: The "check engine" light has come on. What does this indicate?" section, it shows that the Insight tends to have a similar problem and in the end they determined that it was the PCM that was bad. Would this also be the case for Accords? Is it likely that both suffer from the same computer problems?

I also found this page that has a bulletin listed for my error code:

http://www.hondarepair.com/bul...ccord

"'98-00 MIL Comes on With DTC P1164 Fuel 00-046"

but I'm not idea what that bulletin number 00-046 means or how to find out.

I'm just worried that replacing only the O2 sensor might solve the problem and that I'd spend $1200 on a PCM for nothing. This might not be the case but was wondering if anyone else had any thoughts. Thanks a lot for any help. -Adam

 

Now that is a great first post...very nice...good research too..I would just replace the O2 sensor you should be good to go..

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by baGged93aCcord &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Now that is a great first post...very nice...good research too..I would just replace the O2 sensor you should be good to go..</TD></TR></TABLE>

agreed

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by inzecure1 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> It seems like that error code might originate from just the O2 sensor being bad and not the PCM</TD></TR></TABLE>
(If it was mine i'd just clear the code and see if it comes back.) If you have a ULEV or SULEV model, Honda has a service bulletin on it that says:
SYMPTOM
The MIL comes on with DTC P1164 (air/fuel ratio
sensor performance problem).

PROBABLE CAUSE
Specific driving conditions may cause the ECM/PCM to
incorrectly interpret sensor inputs, setting DTC P1164.

CORRECTIVE ACTION
Do the DIAGNOSIS to determine the part number of
the ECM/PCM. Then do REPAIR PROCEDURE A or
REPAIR PROCEDURE B as indicated. As applicable,
replace the air/fuel ratio sensor (sensor 1) and replace
the ECM/PCM.

 

well i was driving it yesterday and the CEL came on this time instead of the MIL, so simply reseting it didn't fix it. It has been about a month since i had it reset though, so it doesn't come back on immediately. I was talking to a mechanic who said that computers don't often go bad, and when they do, they usually cause a lot of funkiness. In my case I really haven't noticed any problems except for the lights coming on. Although as Chiovnidca points out, it's clearly a problem honda has been having with their PCMs so maybe it is just a weird problem they have.

Chiovnidca what exactly a is REPAIR PROCEDURE A or REPAIR PROCEDURE B? Should I replace the O2 sensor first, and see if that fixes the problem? (I think this is what i want to do considering the price difference ).

I don't think i have an ultra low emmissions vehicle but am not sure. Is it something I would know if I had? (Sorry, this is probably a total newb question, but like I said I'm not a car guy ).

Thanks a lot for the responses everyone.