Relay problem?

[two-two]

So i just bought a 91 Accord EX-R H22A, It's been sitting for 6 months. I bought it without seeing it run because the guy said it needed a fuel pump (for the price i didn't ask questions) Now, i took it home, threw a battery in and voila it started. Now I'm thinking it could be a relay because i heard they tend not to work when there hot? Any input guys? Thanks.

[deevergote]

There are many relays in the car.
You need to determine what your engine is not getting... fuel or spark.


This is going to be difficult, because you're dealing with a car that has an engine swap that you did not do. Who knows what the guy you got it from may have screwed up.

[ChIoVnIdCa]

I assume you mean the " main relay " and yes they are a common problem.

[deevergote]

They are more of a problem in extremely hot weather. It's worth replacing, but there's no certainty that this is the problem.

[ChIoVnIdCa]

They are more of a problem in extremely hot weather. It's worth replacing, but there's no certainty that this is the problem.

I assumed six months ago was "hot" as far as Canada goes... When he bought it and the PO was having trouble..... Basically he needs to wait until he has the issue again to troubleshot....


If it was me I would take it out and re solder it now since every accord I have had (five) has had this issue... And the preventive repair will save him a tow truck/ cycling the ignition 300 times trying to get it restarted..

[deevergote]

For some reason I didn't catch the "voila it started" part the first time around.

Yes, the main relay is MUCH more likely to fail than the fuel pump. Repairing or replacing it is smart, I agree.

[two-two]

Thanks guys, where exactly is the main relay? I'm gunna take it out and re solder it.

[deevergote]

Do you have any experience soldering electronics? Or the proper tools to do it? If not, be prepared to buy a new one... just in case your repair ends up destroying it. I've seen plenty of people do exactly that.

The main relay is located under the dash, to the left of the steering column, behind the cruise control brain box. The cruise control box is a large silver box. The main relay should be a smaller brown and gray rectangular box with one large plug in it. It's a pain in the ass to get to. You can find pictures of it on Google quite easily.

[two-two]

^ Thanks man, my uncle would be able to do it for me. He's very good with electrical stuff.

[deevergote]

Cool. In that case, go for it.
For someone that's inexperienced, or has the wrong tools, you could easily do sloppy solder points, or burn the board. If your uncle has experience and the right tools, then it should be a simple job.

[ChIoVnIdCa]

This is what you are looking for.

[two-two]

so it would still be able to work when its cracked? because the car runs fine right now but its only 0 degrees Celsius right now.

[deevergote]

It depends how bad the cracks are.

We're also assuming that the relay is the problem, and not something else. Even though I was getting ahead of myself in my first post, that all holds true... there is no definite confirmation regarding the cause of the no-start. Might as well take care of the relay while you can, and eliminate that potential issue. If the car doesn't start in the future, then you'll know at least one thing that ISN'T the problem.

[two-two]

Well the PO said his mechanic said it was the fuel pump because it wasn't getting fuel. I know the no start before had to be something with the fuel, so I'm guessing its the relay because thats the most common no fuel issue, correct? Anyones fuel pump ever went on their cb7's?

[deevergote]

The main relay is often the first thing to go, yes. Fuel pumps do go out, especially on 20 year old cars... but they're not all that common things to fail on our cars yet (thankfully... they're a bitch to change.) The injector resistor box can go bad, though that's not very common either (I've only seen it happen a handful of times.)

Of course, you're also assuming the PO's mechanic knew what he was talking about. I learned over the years that just because someone SHOULD know what they're talking about, doesn't mean that they always DO! I've heard some seriously stupid stuff come from professional mechanics in my time...

Preventative maintenance and repairs are a good idea... but don't go overboard chasing down the cause of a problem you've never experienced.