For the past two years my car has been having an issue that has baffled mechanics (and myself). The car runs great 99% of the time. But then every once in a while the check engine light will come on randomly, the car will start running really rough and the car will stall anytime the car comes to a stop. The car starts right back up but will continue to stall 4-5 more times or until I arrive home. Normally when I get back in the car in the morning the light is mysteriously gone and the car continues to run great for another 1-2 months before it happens again. I have already spent more than 1,000 to have mechanics try to diagnose the problem. No one has come up with an answer. Usually the error codes are different (from problems with the Variable Cam Shaft to a problem with the ECM? main processor in the car)

It happened again tonight and I tried to take a video of what happened but by the time I got it rolling the car was only running rough but not stalling. I know that by the time I get it to a mechanic the light will be back off and it will be running fine and the mechanic will just charge me a couple hundred bucks to take a look and not find anything.

What do I do next? What can I do to help the mechanics find/fix the problem? How can i keep from wasting money?

 

Stop by an autoparts store and have them scan for codes. Have them give you the actual code number and post it on here. Codes start with the letter P and have four numbers, like P1234.

Even if the check engine light turned off, the code will still be stored.

How many miles are on your accord? What work was done so far to fix this problem? Has the car been modified in any way?

 

I will get the codes for you.

Mileage: 155,xxx
All the work I have had done is diagnostics. I have taken it in 5 separate times. The last time I spent $450 to have them look over the car for a couple hours, clean some screen that didn't seem to need cleaning (the mechanic himself said that) and tell me it seemed to be just fine.


To my knowledge there are no modifications to the car. I bought it used at 90k 4 years ago

Thanks for your help!

 

coolant temp sensor for the computer...when it goes wonky the computer thinks the car is cold and then it dumps fuel into the system when the vehicle is actually at operating temp. look for a rich condition code, probably P0172 or something along those lines.

 

Error code: p1009

 

That code is for a VTC Advance malfunction. There is a whole diagnostic procedure for checking this code. One of the first steps is to clean a screen for the VTC, since it runs off of oil pressure. It is near the power steering pump. Is this what the mechanic cleaned?

Also, can you find out what codes were read when you took it to the various shops. Maybe the estimate/receipt had the code on there. They might still have a record of the work done on your car.

When were the spark plugs last changed?

 

Yes, I checked the paper work and the mechanic cleaned the screen for the VTC (even though he said there really wasn't any residue blocking the intake).

The P1009 code is the only one that I have on record from my visits but I do remember being told that I had an ECM internal fault (P1607?) code at one point.

I figure if my ECM was bad my car would have completely died by now and would happen a lot more often.

Spark plugs were changed 4/10 @115k

 

Any other suggestions? Could it be as simple as a loose hose or does it sound like a complex electrical issue?