There's a Honda Accord '99 for sale in my neighborhood (Pennsylvania). I came to take a look at it with completely amateur eyes. In fact, this is the first time I buy a car.

The car is said to sit outdoor since around October 2012. Given the winter this year, that may tell some thing. Mileage is more than 200k, I don't check the history report so am not sure about accidents, but exterior and interior look fine for the car at that age.

When I turn power on, the engine kind of roars up and down. I don't know how to make it more imaginable, like RUUU...ruu...RUUU...ruuu The volume of the noise is not so high though, I think it's equal to the volume when you slightly press the accelerator pedal.

Then comes the worse part. The check engine is on after car starts. I take a test drive and it can still run. But the speed when not pressing accelerator seems to be greater than normal, sorry I don't know the jargon of that. Also, I feel some trepidation at 40 mph.

The owner now wants to sell it as is and asks for an offer. I'm thinking of a several-hundred-buck offer and that's an orange/lemon bet. What do you think and suggest about this one? In particular:

- What may you think of as potential problems with it?

- Have you encountered similar cases?

- Often times, what are common causes of these lights, and how much will it approximately cost to fix?

-For your own cars, how long or how many mileages does it often take for the lights to be on?

Thanks

 

The lights can mean a lot of things. Take this car to an autoparts store like Autozone. They will scan the codes for free. Get the actual code and post it on here.

 

And don't guess about the other 2 warning lights. Check again so we are certain which ones they are.

 

Sorry I was wrong on that. The other two lights turn off when car starts Only check engine light is on.

I asked the owner to let me take the car to the mechanics and got approval, so it is here with me now and tomorrow. When driving it home, the most notable issue is still higher-than-usual speed when not pressing accelerator. I think it was up to 30 mph :O

The owner said that her husband and a neighbor, who has knowledge on car, made diagnosis and they figured out that the Idle air control valve needs to be replaced. They buy one but don't have time to follow. Actually she gives me that device; I'm holding it now in the box. It looks 99% like one of these http://www.autozone.com/autozone/par...alve/_/N-9gsof

I'm a bit thrilled about tomorrow.

 

Get the code and post it here for more info. code will be a P and four numbers, will look like "P0420" "P0135" "P1739"

As for your previous description about the noise, it sounds like your sayin the idle revs up and down, there are a couple possible reasons like dirty/malfunctioning IACV or air in the cooling system.

 

It's perfectly normal for the battery & oil lamps to be lit up as soon as you turn the key ON. After all, the engine isn't started yet; alternator isn't spinning, and there is no oil pressure yet. Soon as you start the engine they turn off. The check-engine light also has a 2-second "bulb-check" function when you first turn it on.

Read my post in the DIY section about setting the "base idle". With Honda's it's more common for the IACV to be dirty, or the base idle to be set wrong. Seems like there's a lot of misguided mechanics who want to adjust the operating idle directly, without going through the proper setup.

It's less likely for the IACV to be actually bad, but having a new one is a bonus.

 

Just come back from Peyboys. They gave me the code DTC P0505 Malfunction in Idle Control System.

They said this is an usually met problem with these cars and told me to bring it to Honda dealership, since there they have PGM Tester to deal with this.

Not sure where this leads to, but I think I'm gonna try with the dealership this afternoon.

 

From your description and comments, you are not skilled at evaluating or repairing cars. IMO, this is not a car for someone who pays for repairs out-of-pocket. There may be significant surprises.

You would be better off to spend more on a used car in need of fewer repairs.

good luck

 

P0505 is kinda like the car acknowledging that it can't hold the idle constant.

Still think a careful systematic approach to the base-idle procedure has a good chance of fixing it. Read the base-idle thread and see whether that's something that you are capable and comfortable doing.

 

Can you give me the link to that thread? I'm totally foreign here.