1999 Honda Accord keeps dying

[weirdichi]

1999 Honda Accord LX Coupe
4 Cylinder
120k Miles
Manual Transmission
Driven in the Twin Cities, Minnesota


As the car runs and the car warms up, it dies. There are no lights to indicate that the engine has a problem or that the temperature is too high. It just shuts off. There is still electricity, as all the lights are still on just like when you insert the key into the ignition. I'd have to pull over and let it rest for a a few minutes and then it will start again. I haven't driven it more than 5 miles to work. It seems like it would go a few miles then shut off and I'd have to restart it again after letting it rest.

I've changed the spark plugs, the distributor cap, and the ignition switch and it still shuts off on the road.

Anybody have similar problems or know what exactly is wrong here? Thanks in advance.

Newbie bumped a nearly 4-year-old thread. Closed.

Zenmervolt - AnandTech Moderator

 

[CrackRabbit]

I'm going to guess fuel pump, or something wrong with the coil/coilpack.
Cars need three things to run, air, fuel and spark.
Might be a good idea to warm it up in your driveway and see which one it isn't getting when it dies.

 

[Ksyder]

could be the main relay- I believe when its hot out (obviously not now) the solder joints expand and fail and then power to the fuel pump is shut off. Whether or not this is causing your problem is hard to say but hondas historically have had problems with main relays.

check this out:
http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq...tion/badmainrelay.html

 

[SandEagle]

i had similar issues when i owned a 2000 accord. took it in and they said it was carbon buildup in the engine. seemed fine once they cleaned it up. can't remember exactly how much i paid, but it was a couple hundred bucks at least.

 

[slag]

Originally posted by: CrackRabbit
I'm going to guess fuel pump, or something wrong with the coil/coilpack.
Cars need three things to run, air, fuel and spark.
Might be a good idea to warm it up in your driveway and see which one it isn't getting when it dies.

they also need timing to run, which you may count as spark, but maybe not. A bad crank position sensor or cam position sensor will cause the problem exibited.

 

[CrackRabbit]

Originally posted by: slag

Originally posted by: CrackRabbit
I'm going to guess fuel pump, or something wrong with the coil/coilpack.
Cars need three things to run, air, fuel and spark.
Might be a good idea to warm it up in your driveway and see which one it isn't getting when it dies.

they also need timing to run, which you may count as spark, but maybe not. A bad crank position sensor or cam position sensor will cause the problem exibited.

That is a very good suggestion.

 

[weirdichi]

Welp, I replaced the ignition coil, the distibutor cap and rotor, checked the main relay, and everything seems in order. The next thing is probably the gas pump. Anybody know how I can check that instead of bringing it to the shop? I brought it to three shops already and they don't know what is wrong and how to even diagnose it. The last guy suggested the Honda dealership, but that'll cost an arm and a leg. Any other suggestions? Thanks.

 

[spigot]

Get a fuel pressure gauge. I can't remember where I got mine, maybe Sears or Autozone. There should be a service port near the fuel filter or injector rail. On the '97 there was a 6mm bolt on the fuel rail that was used to relieve fuel pressure but also doubled as a port to connect a pressure gauge. I don't think they changed that much during those years. Fuel pressure for the '97 is 38-46 psi. You'll also want to check the fuel pressure regulator. The car will have to be running to check that. It's vacuum operated, so you should see a swing in pressure as the vacuum hose is disconnected and reconnected.

I should add this: what I would do is check your pressure in your driveway and make sure it's not abnormally low, and that the regulator is working. Then I would make sure you can reproduce the problem in your driveway. Drive it around to warm it up, or whatever you need to do. Once it will die in your drive, it's just a matter of watching the pressure gauge and maybe revving the car by hand until it quits. The pressure will either dramatically change at the same time, or not.

 

[IHAVEAQUESTION]

Originally posted by: weirdichi
Welp, I replaced the ignition coil, the distibutor cap and rotor, checked the main relay, and everything seems in order. The next thing is probably the gas pump. Anybody know how I can check that instead of bringing it to the shop? I brought it to three shops already and they don't know what is wrong and how to even diagnose it. The last guy suggested the Honda dealership, but that'll cost an arm and a leg. Any other suggestions? Thanks.

There is not a reliable way of checking main relay. I took mine off and checked...looked normal, but until I put a new one in, I kept having starting problem. It's $60 part and it's up to you if u want to spend that money.

 

[Ksyder]

Originally posted by: IHAVEAQUESTION

Originally posted by: weirdichi
Welp, I replaced the ignition coil, the distibutor cap and rotor, checked the main relay, and everything seems in order. The next thing is probably the gas pump. Anybody know how I can check that instead of bringing it to the shop? I brought it to three shops already and they don't know what is wrong and how to even diagnose it. The last guy suggested the Honda dealership, but that'll cost an arm and a leg. Any other suggestions? Thanks.

There is not a reliable way of checking main relay. I took mine off and checked...looked normal, but until I put a new one in, I kept having starting problem. It's $60 part and it's up to you if u want to spend that money.

or if you are handy with a soldering iron you can fix the cold solder joints.

 

[evident]

Originally posted by: SandEagle
i had similar issues when i owned a 2000 accord. took it in and they said it was carbon buildup in the engine. seemed fine once they cleaned it up. can't remember exactly how much i paid, but it was a couple hundred bucks at least.

If this is the case, you may also be able to clean some up yourself if you get a can of throttle body cleaner and spray it where the throttle body is. For some cars, thats where most of the carbon buildup happens.

 

[spigot]

Originally posted by: Ksyder

Originally posted by: IHAVEAQUESTION

Originally posted by: weirdichi
Welp, I replaced the ignition coil, the distibutor cap and rotor, checked the main relay, and everything seems in order. The next thing is probably the gas pump. Anybody know how I can check that instead of bringing it to the shop? I brought it to three shops already and they don't know what is wrong and how to even diagnose it. The last guy suggested the Honda dealership, but that'll cost an arm and a leg. Any other suggestions? Thanks.

There is not a reliable way of checking main relay. I took mine off and checked...looked normal, but until I put a new one in, I kept having starting problem. It's $60 part and it's up to you if u want to spend that money.

or if you are handy with a soldering iron you can fix the cold solder joints.

Could OP not hit the main relay with a hair dryer while idling the car in the drive? Where is the main relay in this car? Is it still in the main fuse box under the hood?

 

[weirdichi]

Originally posted by: spigot

Originally posted by: Ksyder

Originally posted by: IHAVEAQUESTION

Originally posted by: weirdichi
Welp, I replaced the ignition coil, the distibutor cap and rotor, checked the main relay, and everything seems in order. The next thing is probably the gas pump. Anybody know how I can check that instead of bringing it to the shop? I brought it to three shops already and they don't know what is wrong and how to even diagnose it. The last guy suggested the Honda dealership, but that'll cost an arm and a leg. Any other suggestions? Thanks.

There is not a reliable way of checking main relay. I took mine off and checked...looked normal, but until I put a new one in, I kept having starting problem. It's $60 part and it's up to you if u want to spend that money.

or if you are handy with a soldering iron you can fix the cold solder joints.

Could OP not hit the main relay with a hair dryer while idling the car in the drive? Where is the main relay in this car? Is it still in the main fuse box under the hood?

The main relay is under the steering wheel within the dashboard in a little black cube. It's covered. I asked my friend's dad, who's a mechanic, and he says I could test the spark plugs. If there's a spark, then it might be the fuel pump. If there is no spark, then it may be that the module inside the distributor is not good. One of my other friend had his module go out before in a 95 Prelude and his car wouldn't start. This car does start, but just dies after it gets too hot. The car could be warmed up in the driveway and won't die until it gets hotter after running on the freeway or streets. I'm thinking that if it's the fuel pump, then the car would die whether it gets hot or not inside the vehicle. Would that be logical reasoning or am I missing something? What do you guys think?

Also, the main relay looked good when I took it out to check it. It looked very new, the solder points and even the solder was still shiny.

 

[duragezic]

A few years ago my car would suddenly die while driving. Sometimes it would start right up after, sometimes not, sometimes die for a split second then start right back up while moving. Was very hard to diagnose and I had replaced all the common things with no affect. One of the things a shop did was hook a fuel pressure gauge up and it was visible peaking out of the hood so I could watch it while driving. That ended up being fine but maybe worth a shot in your case. But mine wasn't completely affected by the car being warmed up, i.e. just because it was warmed up didn't mean it would die, then again it didn't die after just starting it. My problem turned out to be a bad distributor (which was just replaced, just it was a faulty one to begin with, which was just great).

 

[Jabbernyx]

Is your fuel filter plugged up? You could also try running SeaFoam through it, or give her the 'ol Italian tune up

 

[Indyboy2]

Check and make sure all your grounds under the hood and the ecu groung are good

 

[kingpinopie]

IF it is dying after warming up, and you have to wait a few minutes to get it to start again..... Have you tried replacing your Catalytic Converter .... From my experience, if your Cat is going out ti will wait till the car is all warmed up then die, and act like its not getting spark or not getting gas, and wont start... meanwhile it turns over just fine. This is known as a vapor lock. Also, it could be a case of one of your Evap Canisters having too much condensation in it causing vapor lock as well. .. If you take and have it hooked up for the emissions test, the computer that they hook it up to will tell you if there is a Not Ready code for one of the Evap Canisters. My guess is that you are having problems with the Catalytic Converter and it is causing the car to vapor lock... but if that is the case than the CAT is going bad due to something else like the Evaps going out.... Just my opinion, hope it helped.

 

[NutBucket]

I doubt its the main relay. The symptoms of that usually are a no start condition when its hot. Typically once its running there aren't any problems.