I have recently notice that at random times, my 94 accord vtec shudders while idling. Im pretty sure it only does it when it is in drive gear or reverse gear. This is an automatic car. It does it at random times. kind of like a quick shudder. It drives great and does not lack power. there is no hesitation and it runs prefect. There is no check engine light either? Any ideas? Let me know if you need any more info.

Thanks!

 

It's possible that you're feeling/hearing your cooling fans kick on and the additional draw (although yes it is slight) may be affecting your alternator and boging it down for a split second... I know it's a long shot but listen for the fans kicking on when it happens...

 

thats exactly what i thought but then when it does it, it would shudder, then 2 seconds later do it again, then it may do it again after another 10 seconds. If it were the fans , i think it would do it once then do it again later when they turn on again instead of one after the other in the matter of a few seconds.

It is weird. I just drove the car now and it did not do it. The last time i felt it was earlier today and then maybe 2 weeks prior to that it happened once.

On another note, would the rear defrost have anything to do with it? It seems to me that this problem occurs when its rainy type of weather when i usually use the defroster but then again i may be wrong.

Its kind of hard to pinpoint the symptoms because of how out of the blue it happens.
Thanks tho.

 

No guarantee, but here's something to check for...

Wait for a cold night, damp is best, after dark. In complete darkness, start the cold engine & watch the distributor & plug wires. Any visible arcing (blue glow) means replace your wires or distributor cap or wherever it's arcing.

Surface dirt becomes more conductive when it's damp, & shorts the spark causing misfiring.If this has beengoing on for awhile, the tracks across thedistributor cap become burned into the surface so can't be cleaned.

 

thanks! yeah since it happens only in damp, rainy weather, it must be moisture related. I probably do have to replace the wires and distributor cap as i have no clue when they were changed last.