Doing 70 in 5th near LAX I pressed the accelerator and got a short delay, then a sputter then nothing. I immediately pulled over. 1st gear had little accelerations and feedback too so I rolled to the nearest gas station and am stuck here. I thought I needed gas, but popped the hood to find a small amount of smoke. Traced it and found one of my lines from the PGM-FI to the engine released from its home. Is it safe to simply plug it back in?

Of course I don't want it to fall back out. Please help. I thought to ask before I simply try to shove things back into the hole it was in. Pun intended happy Valentine's Day, everyone. Good thing I'm not on a date.

 

It is safe to plug it back in but I wouldn't expect it to fix the loss of power.

 

What's in your hand is the PCV valve and yes, plug it back into the hole. Without it, you have a massive vacuum leak and the car runs horrible.

Being it popped out is odd though, the valve might be stuck closed. The odd part is the pressure buildup would be in the crank case.

I can't say I'm familiar with the H series motor so am not sure the routing of the PCV system. But I do know, with it not in place the vacuum leak will cause serious operational problems.

Shake it and see if it still rattles, if not, you need a new valve as it's stuck open or closed. Either of which isn't good.

 

Just checked the tube PCV valve to see if it's stuck close. Shook it and yup. It rattles. Should I drive with it? If so how long, I can't imagine the part is expensive, but I don't know if auto one tends to stock a part like this.

Now that I know that, it's probably not related, but A friend said pressure built up and blew it loose. That makes sense since after plugging it back in, it's now snug and actually difficult to pull loose. Doesn't jiggle or anything either. She suggested I check the oil and coolant. And this is what I found. Gonna top or both and see what happens.

 

I replaced the pcv valve but now my car won't start now. It sounds like it has a strong start, but doesn't ignite. Seems like things are taking a turn for the worst.

 

If it rattles it should be ok. Head to the nearest part store and pick up a pcv valve grommet. Its the thing that pcv valve plugs into. Your existing will likely be brittle and fall apart as you remove it so be careful not letting the pieces fall into the valve cover.

 

The PVC valve will not prevent engine from starting,run like crap sure, but not your starting problem.

First thing to check is to see/hear if fuel pump is running, sit in car, close windows, turn ign. switch to run, [not all the way to start] the fuel pump should run for a few sec., [priming] then turn off.

If the fuel pump does not run, check fuses, there are 3 of them for the PGM-FI Main Relay, if all fuses are good, check the relay itself. if on the other hand the fuel pump works, you may have "skipped a tooth" or more on the timing belt, check valve timing. 94

 

Damn. My phone died and I didn't get to see all your great advice until now. I ended up getting my car towed to my mechanic.

Thank you all for your help! I didn't get to check if the fuel pump was running or the fuses next, but couldn't because of the lack of tools I had with me. Someone else suggested that as well.

No I wait until my mechanic gets back to me Sunday with what was the problem. Fingers crossed. I'll be back to share what he says.

 

Just heard back. It was the fuel pump and needs to be replaced. It was running the OEM pump for the entire life of the car and he says I'm lucky it lasted this long: 180,000 It's a '96 Prelude

My shop is Hyperion Automotive here in Los Angeles, CA in Silverlake. I totally recommend these guys for anything and they are very friendly. But you aren't going to make friends, you want your car fixed- which they do best. Highly skilled and great at trouble shooting.

Below is the quote they gave me.
$325 fuel pump
$26 fuel filter
$8 seal
$275 labor @ $65/hr
$TAX
total: $666 (he actually rounded up to $667 for obvious reasons)

OR $620 cash I'm gonna go cash and hope to live another 180,000 miles.

 

$325 for the fuel pump is a total rip off. Even if you got it from Honda AND paid full price it shouldnt be more than $280

You can get a Denso OEM ftom rockauto $72 plus shipping.

Labor shouldnt be more than 3 hours.

 

You can see in the pic how much it is if you get it from hondapartscheap

But you would be best served getting it from Rockauto .. then having them install it.

 

Thanks for sharing that Holmes. I shared their quote in hopes that someone could tell me it could be cheaper. I'll find a way to let them know and see where they are ordering their parts from.

 

Just out of curiosity, how did they determine it was the fuel pump?
If the main relay, or its contacts have worn out for the pump it may simply be a problem with power to the pump. Did they verify full battery voltage to the pump before calling it bad?

 

Ditto all the above, evan $620 is high, labour is no more than 2hr. max, [tank does not need to be dropped] OEM replacements are as low as $50, you can get a Walbro for $99.

Say $150 for fuel pump, filter and parts, 2.5hr labour, [162.50] thats $312, sounds to me like a $300+ gouge.

This is an easy job that you could do yourself with just basic tools.

Also as mentioned, find out how they determined it was the fuel pump and not just the PGM-FI Main Relay, [a far more common problem on older Honda/Acura] and evan they can just be repaired. 94

 

my 95 prelude has 250k+ on OEM pump....they are ****** you. That pump is easy as hell to reach.