I have a 94 Accord EX w/ the vtec motor. It has 117K miles. i just bought it roughly 3 weeks ago. I do not believe the timing belt has been changed, so i am going to have it changed very soon. The only things i have done are replaced the spark plugs with ngk premium and k&N filter. Most other things are unknown.

Today i started it and it shut off right away. It did it 3 times before it stayed running. After that it acted fine and drove normal. It also has started normal every time until today. I know its a shot in the dark, but the only thing i can think of is that this is the first time it has been in the rain since ive owned it. It was raining all day today...could that have anything to do with it? if not, what are some other things i could check?

 

It could be wires or distributor cap is cracked causingmoisture to short the ignition spark to ground, causing failure to start.

Try spraying the wires and distributor cap w/ a mist of water at night and see if you see sparks jumping. If wires, replace all wires, or distributor cap if that is the problem.

WD40 sprayed on the wires will displace the moisture and allow the car to be started until you get the problem corrected,...if moisture is the problem. Reportedly, the WD is Water Displacement formula 40, and smells nice too.

good luck

 

yeah...i had plans on replacing the wires, cap and rotor...so i guess i'll just start there. Thanks.

 

sounds like the electrical portion of the ignition switch ....

 

Any more info on this? it hasn't done it since.

 

Never mind Desert...i have since found the thread "Start, quit, start, quit, start, run" that seems to have everything i need to know. link found below.

https://www.hondaaccordforum.com/Sta...m_75687/tm.htm

 

i thought maybe it was the iginition switch, but wasnt certain because i couldnt get it to do it again. well, it happened again this afternoon...and what do you know...it rained all day, so i know it is related to water/moisture.

I am going to start by replacing the cap/rotor/wires. My question now is what brand should i get?? in the past i have always gotten the cheapest/best buy from autozone or a similar parts store, but since i have plans on keeping this car for a long time i would like to get better quality. i was thinking MSD, but its looking like $100 plus for all of that. What are your guys' opinion when it comes to this kind of thing? is the extra money worth it? i am looking to...of course fix the problem as well as making it run more efficiently, thus getting better gas mileage and hopefully improving horsepower at the same time.

please give your thoughts.

 

I would get at least NGK wires. I am not too picky about the cap and rotor, but others may have a different opinion about their quality.

 

I say to go with Honda OEM. That way, you are positively eliminating potential problems. Use what has been tested most. .... obviously, Honda uses NGK products, so I'd expect them to be fine ..... especially when recommended by PA.

 

FWIW, I had the exact same thing happen. Had not driven it (94 Accord Wagon VTEC 293,000 miles) in a week, went out two days ago to drive it to town and it cranked up, then 1/2 second later quits. Checked all fuses, good. Could hear the fuel pump going. Over the past month in colder weather I would crank it and it cut off two or three times but next crank it kept going so I wrote it off to the cold???? Wires (original) looked good.

Got in Durango and drove it to town. When I cranked it to come back it ran rough for 30 seconds. Never had that happen before.

Got home and went and opened a can of Seafoam and put half a can in Durango and half in the Honda. Tried to crank it another six times, same results.

Called my mechanic who is fabulous on Hondas, he said it could be a half dozen things so I told him I would round up a car hauler and bring it over. Borrowed neighbor's car hauler, backed it up to back of Honda where I was going to pull it up with a winch and got in car to put tranny in neutral and for the heck of it cranked it and to my surprise it cranked.

I did not rev it up but just let it sit there and idle, it was smooth with no roughness so I called my mechanic and he said don't bring it as it would be all but impossible to figure it out. I told him about the Seafoam and he surmised there was a clog somewhere in fuel system the Seafoam broke loose.

I took it out and got it good and warm and ran it up to 88 MPH, smooth all the way. On the way to town last night I noted on cruise there was a variation in RPMs on a hill (up and down 200 RPMs) but could not feel anything so when I got home I added another 1/2 can of Seafoam, went out and got it up to 80, ran fine.

So that is where I am now. Been trying to sell the Accord but hate to as I have had it since new, been a great car. We now have a 2011 Pilot lease turn in and appears new.

I have run Mobil 1 10W30 in it since 1500 miles when I drained the factory oil out. I run it 15,000 changed oil, filter and also drain transmission and replace it with Honda Trans fluid at same time. It has been a great car and I really hate to let it go.