Well the 2000 LX has just experienced her first problem at 160,000 miles.

About 2 miles after I left my house, the speedometer dropped to zero, then it went back up to the correct speed. I immediately cut on the cruise control when the speedo was working again (cruise worked). Speedo went back down after about 10 seconds, cruise shut off.

Check engine light came on shortly after my "cruise control test."

When I got to the first red light, I noticed it almost stalled. The idle is now down at around 500 and will go lower if I am moving and mash down the clutch and leave it down. It has not actually stalled yet, but it has gotten pretty close.

About 10 minutes from work, speedo starts working again and worked fine till I parked it at the office.

Also: when the speedo is not working the odo is not working either.

I plan on taking it to autozone to check the CEL code after I get off work

I'm suspecting bad (or faulty connection at) VSS since the cruise doesn't work when the speedo is not working.

Any other suggestions I have not thought of, I'm all ears.

I'll post the code as soon as I obtain it.

 

VSS to me is the most likely suspect. VSS signal goes to ECU. Then I'm pretty sure the ECU drives the speedometer & odometer. I wish I had a Helm book for ya, but my 98/99 book (since sold) didn't go up to 2000. It may be that the ECU does the cruise-control job too.

So just to rule stuff out, you may want to look for loose connection at the ECU. After you rule out loose wiring down at the VSS.

 

I can't find a dang diagram anywhere on the VSS. I want to first find it and unplug it, then plug it back in to make sure I'm not lucky and it is just a loose or dirty connection. I know it's on the tranmission, but not sure if it's on the top, bottom, or one of the sides.
Jim can you find the diagram on hondaautomotiveparts.com?
Been looking on there for quite some time now and no luck....

 

Geez, how silly is this. It's in "MT Clutch Release" drawing, OBVIOUSLY!?! VSS is #7.


Looks like you're gonna need 3 extra elbows in order to reach down under the intake manifold.

 

DANGIT!! Does this mean I am going to have to remove the IM to access it? I wonder if there is any access from underneath.....

 

That's weird. Autozone wants $71.99 for a Duralast, Advance Auto Parts wants $71.99 for a BWD, and hondaautomotiveparts wants $73.99 for the Honda part. If I wind up having to buy a new one, I'd spend the extra $2 for the Honda part if I didn't have to pay shipping and wait for it...

Now I just got to get them to check the CEL after work and try to test the blasted thing. Autozone actually tells you the sensor is okay if the resistance is 190-250 ohms (I think that is coming from a Chilton manual.) But I bet $50 I can't get my VOM in there to test it.......

 

I bet the access is best from underneath, but not really sure.

 

Should have known the first "breakdown" on this car would be a royal PITA to mess with!

I already have a bad taste in my mouth from the time I sheared off a lug and had to take it to the shop and pay them an hour labor to replace a $1.50 part!

 

I had exactly the same thing on my 95 Integra, except I also had to pay for a wheel bearing since the hub didn't come out nicely.

 

Went to Autozone on my lunch break and got the code:

P0500 - VSS

Just as I suspected. Speedo worked fine all 13 miles until I entered my neighborhood, then it went out again. Didn't eve come back on for more than a few seconds. The low idle issue seems to be gone now though....

I found this post when I searched "P0500": https://www.hondaaccordforum.com/for...ighlight=P0500
Looks like he was able to replace his by moving the intake tube and using a long screwdriver. Sounds like this job is going to be a real PITA though.

I might try to test it first, but I know I'll be ticked if I can't get my VOM in there or can't get a good reading. Then I'll just wind up buying the part anyway....
Yay! Looks like I get to spend about $75

I'll update with more info later. Maybe I'll try to take some pics.