Shifting Issues and "S" + ECM light blinking

[jst_4_kiks]

NEED HELP ASAP!!!! sorry just really frustrated. just bought the car on saturday 3-22-08. it is a 1990 accord 2 door coupe, auto, 198xxx miles, f22a1 engine. it's completly stock as of now but want to get it drive right now. i bought the car in dover, nh and drove it from there to concord, nh to VIP. needed a new battery (sat for 2 yrs) and some other parts.

jumped the car to get it running and it drove absolutly fine from dover to concord. shifted fine through all the gears fine and cruised good around 45 or 55 on average. started to shake around 65 (due imbalanced front tires). anyways i got to VIP in concord i shut the car off and figured for the hell of it try to restart it. it started up fine and after i restarted it the "s" light started blinking just a regular blink...blink...blink. i turned the car off and on a few more times. still the same thing.

so i took out the battery and went in and bought a new one. (had no battery connected for about 25 minutes later) i came back out and cleaned up the terminals on the battery and the cable ends. hooked up pos first then neg. went and started the car again. again the "s" light is blinking. so i figured why not check the car over a little while im still at the auto parts store. noticed that the cable ends were starting th crack around where the bolt goes through the end around the post (ends are not the oem ends. been replaced before by the origional owner.will replace ends with different ones later)

so when i was going to leave i put in "R" and engages and backs up fine. put it in D4 and it revs up to about 2200 and then starts to move. seemed high to me (kinda thought like starting off in second gear). drove home from concord (up 93 north to new hampton 30 mins or so). got off highway and turned down my road.

now im just kinda wondering why it started off in second gear. so im just trying something and i take the shifter and put it in L or 1 (sorry haven't had an auto cb7 in a while). trans engages really hard and i barely touch the gas and it takes right off no problem. then i put the shifter up in 2. nothing happens. put shifter in D3 and shifts into 2nd or 3rd gear (cant really tell ) then up into D4. i think it went it 4. so i pull in my driveway and doesnt go in 1, stays in 2. drop the shifter in 1 and get up my driveway and park.

i get out and pop the hood to see what the trans looks/smells like. looks red to me and smells fine. no burnt smell. but anyways picked up the special HONDA ATF fluid ($7.35 a quart @ dealer) owell heard the stuff is great for the trans. I HAVE NOT CHANGED THE TRANS FLUID YET. going to this weekend.

so i did some searching through the forums and i read about the blinking "S" light and the service connector on the passenger side kick panel. pulled the panel off and CAN'T find the connector. but i pull the carpet back and see the ECM and i see a series of blinks from a red light through a peep hole. so i sit and count the blinks and come up with SEVEN CODES!!!! AAAAAHHHHH!!!!

what gives, i drove the car fine from dover to concord and then from concord to new hampton it shifts funny. by the way codes are: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, and 14. i got these off the red light on the ECM (under carpet on passenger floor, under a metal cage i guess) i just bought the car and just wanted to build it up a little and have fun with it. i've had 2 cb's before. a 91 lx 4 dr auto and a 92 lx 4 dr 5 spd.

PLEASE HELP ME GUYS i am very sorry for writing such a long post but wanted to give you guys as many details to let you know whats going on.
thanks guys looking forward to getting some responses to help me

KYLE aka jst_4_kiks

[accordztech]

in the faq of the tech forum there is a link that i did some time ago that says how to diagnose the TCU. its differnt than the ecu.

it can possibly be one of the silinoids is gone but can be fixed....

check it out.

[ExplodingCake]

1 O2A - Oxygen sensor #1
2 O2B - Oxygen sensor #2
5 MAP - manifold absolute pressure sensor
7 TPS - throttle position sensor
14 IAC (EACV) - idle air control valve

I think you are wrong on code #2 since our cars only have 1 oxygen sensor..

There might be some confusion.

Check the CEL first then proceed to the S light. S light code can be pulled like the ECU but this time the S will blink.

[jst_4_kiks]

thanks guys. i will be checking out these things this weekend when i get some free time. i will keep you up dated on whats happening

[jst_4_kiks]

car had sat for 3 days before i restarted it and when i had fianally finished puting on the exhaust i had started it and backed of the ramps and there was no "s" light blinking. thought to my self and maybe the problem went away. i drove the car for about 15 minutes and it had shifted fine from 1st to 4th. and no blinking light during that time.

i drove home and parked the car in the driveway and shut it off. came back out about 30 minutes later to go get the car inspected and as soon as i started the car, the "S" light was blinking again. then i started driving down the road and i was back where i started again, not shifting from 1 -2 - 3 - 4. was shifting i believe 2 - 3 and that was it. i think it skipped 1 & 4.... ?????????? not sure what is happening to my cb???

also i drove the car to work tonight (down to concord and back to new hampton) around 55 miles im guessing and i used almost 3/4 of a tank of gas. i was cruising down the highway at 70 mph (on cruise control) & RPMS at 3100. is that correct???

help me out members need some answers to my problems or some guidance atleast thanks

[accordztech]

well did you check and pull the codes? cant help if nothing has been checked...

[ExplodingCake]

We already told you to PULL THE CODES.

[jst_4_kiks]

ok here is the deal. i went out and started my car to go to my friends garage to change the trans oil. go in the car and started it and NO s light on. just sat over night and drove around for about 20 minutes or so to get the oil circulating through the trans and to get it warm.

got to the garage and put it up on ramps. pulled the trans fluid drain bolt (dirty, black/brown oil) glad i chagned it. put in the special HONDA ATF-Z1 oil and shifts smoother than before.

while it was draining i gave it another shot to look for the blue service connector. i found it behind the pass side kick panel with some blue tape and grey foam around it. jumped the connector and the s light flashed different times. counted the flashs and came up with these: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 14

do i have that many things wrong wiht my trans or are these ECM codes too?!? also when i had the interior apart i had the carpet pulled back and i saw a red light flashing on the ECM. it seemed to be flashing the same number and same exact time as the s light on the dash. is that the ecm or tcm? not sure but i got the codes.

help needed cb'ers. still have the shifting issues. starting off in 2 it seems when shifter is in d3 or d4. takes alot of effort for the car to start off when in d3 or d4, but if i put the shifter in L or 1 it still bogs a little before moving but not as much.

[Leung]

did you just change the tranny oil or did you flush out the oil?

i had mine flushed out using more Honda ATF... like almost a case of it and now it feels great. i know it was expensive as **** but i figured it was well worth it.

[ExplodingCake]

ok here is the deal. i went out and started my car to go to my friends garage to change the trans oil. go in the car and started it and NO s light on. just sat over night and drove around for about 20 minutes or so to get the oil circulating through the trans and to get it warm.

got to the garage and put it up on ramps. pulled the trans fluid drain bolt (dirty, black/brown oil) glad i chagned it. put in the special HONDA ATF-Z1 oil and shifts smoother than before.

while it was draining i gave it another shot to look for the blue service connector. i found it behind the pass side kick panel with some blue tape and grey foam around it. jumped the connector and the s light flashed different times. counted the flashs and came up with these: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 14

do i have that many things wrong wiht my trans or are these ECM codes too?!? also when i had the interior apart i had the carpet pulled back and i saw a red light flashing on the ECM. it seemed to be flashing the same number and same exact time as the s light on the dash. is that the ecm or tcm? not sure but i got the codes.

help needed cb'ers. still have the shifting issues. starting off in 2 it seems when shifter is in d3 or d4. takes alot of effort for the car to start off when in d3 or d4, but if i put the shifter in L or 1 it still bogs a little before moving but not as much.

Just pay attention to the dash lights.

1] Pull the TCU codes (don't look at the CEL light) and write them down

2] Pull the ECU codes (don't look at the S light) then write them down.

[jst_4_kiks]

all i did was get the trans oil warm and get the oil circulating around. then just pulled the trans oil drain plug and replace and refill. didnt flush the trans. just put new fluid in. 2.5 quarts and shifts smoother in my opinion.

darkshadow707: i found the blue connector and jumped it to pull the codes. turned the ign to on and the s light had flashed. it was a lilltle dim but still flashed. i counted the flashes several times to make sure i got the right number 1 2 4 5 7 8 14 that is what the s light had flashed. I DO NOT have a CEL light on. the only thing that comes on and gives me issues is the s light for transmission. the only other light is the red light on the ECM (i blieve that is it) dont have any other engine running issues. engine runs fine, its just the trans is not shifting correctly when the s light is flashing constantly while driving

[ExplodingCake]

darkshadow707: i found the blue connector and jumped it to pull the codes. turned the ign to on and the s light had flashed. it was a lilltle dim but still flashed. i counted the flashes several times to make sure i got the right number 1 2 4 5 7 8 14 that is what the s light had flashed. I DO NOT have a CEL light on. the only thing that comes on and gives me issues is the s light for transmission. the only other light is the red light on the ECM (i blieve that is it) dont have any other engine running issues. engine runs fine, its just the trans is not shifting correctly when the s light is flashing constantly while driving

Ok you got me confused on the previous post because I though you had a CEL on since you kept saying ECM. Anyway

1-Lock-up solenoid 'A' circuit open or shorted.
2-Lock-up solenoid 'B' circuit open or shorted.
4-Vehicle Speed Sensor open or shorted - No signal from speedometer.
5-Shift Lever Position Switch circuit shorted.
7-Shift Solenoid 'A' circuit open or shorted.
8-Shift Solenoid 'B' circuit open or shorted.
14-Linear (line pressure control) solenoid open or shorted.

Your shift solenoids are now total KAPUT!... Vehicle Speed sensor is gone also and shift lever position sensor is kaput also.

Replace them and it will solve your problem.

[jst_4_kiks]

ok sorry to get confused with the lights. like i said the only light that ever flashs is the "S" light below the temperature gauge. what is code 14?? not sure what the linear does to the trans?

also when i am driving on the highway or any road by that means and i have the shifter in d3 or d4, i mash the gas and the trans does not down shift to a lower gear to get more speed or torque to get up a hill. i have to manually put the shifter in a lower gear to go faster. would that be the sloenoids or something else??? let me know thanks i do know that i have to change the solenoids but i want to make sure that it will be fixing the shifting problems

[jst_4_kiks]

also forgot to add that speedo works fine...no probs with it at all. the needle sweeps fine and skips or jumps in the movement of the needle

so not sure why i got a code for the VSS being shorted or open??

[jst_4_kiks]

the car isn't running correctly right now. bogs way down on power until you get to about 2500-3000 rpms. replaced cap, rotor, plugs, wires, fuel filter. dumped out the fuel filter and the gas was brown and dirty. pulled the plugs and 2 of them were not firing. (# 2+3). replaced with honda plugs and AZone premium wires. cap + rotor from sanels. starts right up and idles great but once you hit the gas bogs way down to about 2-300 rpms and has a really hard time to get back up on rpms.

my mechanic said to replace the throttle body cuz the tps sensor could be bad and did that (used T body from my crashed/parts car). didnt change a thing. then he said to replace the injectors cuz the ones that are in there could of got some crap from the tank in them and they are not spraying gas correctly into the manifold.

so i gotta get the car to run correctly so i can finish working on the trans. by the way im looking for replacement shift solenoids. does anyone recommend any good replacements (besides honda $$$$) i know hondas are the way to go but if there are any decent aftermarket solenoids to go for then let me know so i can order them. thanks members