** PROBLEMS - SYMPTOMS & DIAGNOSIS LOG **

[HondaFan81]

Located at top-right of this thread is the "SEARCH THIS THREAD" button, click this and enter keywords as this log grows, to help find solutions to your problems.

The purpose of this thread is to log problematic symptoms people have encountered with these 4th gen Accords and what was the cause(s) of the problem. Please be very descriptive and clear in explaining your symptoms. Also, please only post if you have FOUND & FIXED the problem that caused your issue(s).

Accord Vehicle Info:
- note year/trim/transaxle type

Symptom(s):
- detailed explanation

Cause(s):
- describe the problematic parts that caused the symptoms above

Price(s): < OPTIONAL, if you have this information on-hand
- list replacement parts & price (labor included, if you had it done by someone else)

[HondaFan81]

Accord Vehicle Info:

1990 EX manual

Symptom:

Oil level would decrease more than normal. Engine would run fine. When coming to stops after engine had been running, this burning oil odor would flow in through the vents into the cabin and sometimes like a smokey haze. If you would look at your oil filter, around the base you would see oil leaking around it causing you to think it may be the oil filter leaking.

Cause:

Oil pressure switch/sender unit cracked. It is located above the oil filter and would leak down and around it. Then, it would leak onto the down-pipe at stops and cause that burning oil smell, going into the cabin at times.

Price:

$6.99 (Autozone) - no labor, replaced it myself

[HondaFan81]

Accord Vehicle Info:

1990 EX manual

Symptom:

Engine would run fine to the average person when it was below 5000 RPMs in whatever gear. However, above 5000 RPMS, the engine would take forever to get to 5500 RPM (low on power). The engine would not go any further than 5500 RPMs up-shifting, only if you down-shifted obviously.

Cause:

Camshaft timing was set wrong at the Honda Dealer when we had timing belt change work done. It was off by approximately 13 degrees BTDC at the crankshaft/flywheel when I checked it before doing any adjustments. Basically, the timing belt was off by a tooth.

Price:

Free, did it myself and no parts were bought.

[HondaFan81]

Accord Vehicle Info:

1991 SE automatic

Symptom:

This Accord has 4-wheel anti-lock disc brakes. Brake pedal resistance decreased over a short period of time and the car would stop, but the pedal would slowly sink to the floor. No external brake fluid leaks were found and the brake master cylinder resorvoir was at the normal level. A few days later, there was minimal brake pedal resistance and the brakes did not work very well, if at all.

Cause:

Brake master cylinder internal seal wore out. There were no external leaks because the system was internally leaking brake fluid pressure past the brake master cylinder seal.

Price:

Approximately, $95 for this brake master cylinder, it has a larger bore than one from a rear drum brake system.

[HondaFan81]

Accord Vehicle Info:

1990 EX manual

Symptom:

One day I noticed brake fluid under one or both of the rear wheels. Braking was not significantly different than normal.

Cause:

Rear wheel cylinders (located in the rear drums) leaked out brake fluid (they were not damaged) because they over-extended themselves as the brake shoe material wore down extensively. This over-extension caused the wheel cylinder boot(s) to pop-out enough to cause some brake fluid to leak out and puddle under the rear wheel(s).

Price:

I forgot prices, but I bought a rear drum shoe replacement set and new hardware for it (springs, retainer clips, etc). I cleaned out the rear drum surfaces where the shoe meets the drum as well.

[Hondaman56]

Symptom: Idle reving up and down in cold weather after the car is warmed up (driven for some distance), and then put into neutral or park. Also poor heater performance.

Solution: Replace the thermostat, it is stuck in the open position.

[Hondaman56]

Symptom: On cars with automatic transmissions. When the car reaches cruising speed on the expressway, the OD lock up releases and the rpms jump up about 500, but when the gas is pressed the tranny locks again until the car reaches speed then the lock up releases again. Also NO D4 light.

Solution: Either a worn out tranny/TQ or a short. I can tell you from experience what it is not. Its is not: The Shifter Pisition Switch, Lock Up Solenoids, Shift Solenoids, Throttle cable length, Throttle control cable length, Throttle position sensor, Old Tranny Fluid, The Lock Up or Shift Solenoid Filter/Gaskets, or the TCM.

[HondaFan81]

Accord Vehicle Info:

1990 EX manual

Symptom:

Car loses power sporadically (go & pause, go & pause, etc) more so at 3000 RPMs or below. If you run the engine over 3000 RPMs or so, it runs better. The check engine light also comes on and gives you "code 43 = fuel system".

Cause:

Oxygen sensor is bad, assuming you do not have a clogged fuel filter, working fuel injectors and working fuel pump (like I did).

Price:

$59.99 - Bosch OEM type oxygen sensor (Advance Auto Parts)...the OEM type is a "plug & play" part.

Bosch only local brand available, needed part. If you have time, order NTK Oxygen sensor, more compatible with Hondas over time.

Note:Make sure to reset ECU. I pulled the ECU back-up fuse and touched the positive and negative battery cables together to completely drain the ECU of codes, then restarted the car. Car ran like a champ afterwards and idle was even smoother.

*EDIT: Price was wrong*

[laz]

Accord Vehicle Info:

91 EX Automatic

Symptom(s):
Vibration from steering wheel when going slight left under acceleration. Vibration would occur around 30 MPH.

Cause(s):
Driver's right axle inned boot was ripped and all the grease had leaked out. Did nto make noise since it was the inner joint. Did not see grease since brace directly under axle had caught all the grease.

Price(s):

$125 with aftermarket axle and labor at local NYC garage.

[laz]

Accord Vehicle Info:

91 EX Automatic

Symptom(s):
Car would not start after being driving for a while on hot days. After cool down it would restart.

Cause(s):
Main relay solder points had become loose. Removed main realy under dash and resoldered points.

Price(s):

Freebie, did it myself!

[laz]

Accord Vehicle Info:

91 EX Automatic

Symptom(s):
Smell of coolant comming from under hood.

Cause(s):
Checked radiator and top seam had a crack and was slowly leaking coolant.

Price(s):

$95 from Radiator.com through ebay.com, labor free, did it myself.

[laz]

Accord Vehicle Info:

91 EX Automatic

Symptom(s):
Smell of oil burning after driving the car for extended amount of time (1 hr +)

Cause(s):
Oil pan gasket had detriorated and was letting oil leak slowly.

Price(s):

$23 for gasket at local honda dealership, $85 labor for replacement.

[starchland]

Accord Vehicle Info:
- 1992 EX-R 5 speed

Symptom(s):
- Car would hesitate and bog after applying throttle and rough idle

Cause(s):
- Dirty and/or clogged throttle body ports and hoses.

Price(s): Free
- Took off all hoses and sprayed in carb cleaner, let it sit.
-cleaned throttle body valve
-Cleaned PCV pipe

Accord Vehicle Info:
- 92 EX-R 5 speed

Symptom(s):
- Fluctuation of idle on cold start up

Cause(s):
- Iacv mesh filter clogged with carbon

Price(s):
Free
Take off IACV from throttle body, disconnect 2 hoses, and clean with liborous amounts of carb cleaner.

Accord Vehicle Info:
- 92 EX-R 5 speed

Symptom(s):
- Hesitation of engine at or around 3.5-5k; lack of power.

Cause(s):
- Bad Coil;It tested normal, however operating conditions affected the resistance of this unit. Replace unit and car was good as gold

Price(s): 150$ or so
Remove old unit and replace. A bad coil puts premature wear on the distributor cap and rotor. Be sure to check for detonation and corrosion on rotor and replace if necessary.

[TheTempest]

Accord Vehicle Info:
1992 Honda Accord LX 5spd

Symptom(s):
H22a Swap complete, CEL 8/12 are flashing, wiring for VTEC is good, but no VTEC engagement, as well as no VTEC CEL's. Also, the car cranks for about 3 seconds and then starts, and the CEL comes on imediently.

Cause(s):
Apparently CEL #8 (TDC Sensor) is a pretty serious code. The book says it's used to help the computer time fuel injection for "abnormal crank posistion" and for startup. For that reason, it wouldn't allow me to go into VTEC and the car didn't pull at all.

Price(s):
Free.

Solution:
I took apart the PLUG that went to the DIZZY for TDC and I checked the wires. Apparently, though I don't know how this happened, in the process of swapping wiring harnesses one of the wires, on the wiring harness side, came OUT of the plug that pluged into the dizzy. So I took a small flat-head screwddriver and cramed it back in, pluged it in...and now everything runs great. Minus some other CEL stuff (EGR/KS).

Hope this helps someone else
Apparently

[Masamune]

Accord Vehicle Info:
1993 Honda Accord SE Auto

Symptom(s):
Car makes a clicking noise while turning in either direction. *Note* This can happen to any model/trim.

Cause(s):
After looking underneath my car, I noticed that the boot was cracked wide open and metal was being exposed to the elements. All grease that was in the boot was gone, and the CV joint was rusting.

Price(s):
$70 from autozone w/ lifetime warranty. No labor cost, I did it myself

Solution:
The CV joint needs to be replaced. Apparently it's easier to change the whole axle out though, and cheaper too. Jack car up, remove wheel, remove axle nut, slide axle out (the top boot part that goes into the tranny may stick) slide axle back in and put said parts back in place. First time will take you an hour, after that it's a 20 min. job tops.

I Hope this will be read enough to decrease the post count about this.