My wife has a 1995 Homda Acccord EX with 50100 miles on it.(really) For about a month now after it is been driven 1 or 2 miles it starts buckling(as if it was in 5th gear and should be in 2nd or 3rd) When we downshift and rev up the engine it will work ok after a minute or two. It seems to run fine after this until it sits for 2 plus hours and cools down. The problem will then repeat. I have gotten the check engine light only once and it cleared when the car was turned off and back on. I followed the procedure to check for codes but got nothing. I'm guessing a sensor but not sure which one.
Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Oliver

 

Theres a back-up fuse to preserve the memory of the ECU when its turned off. Maybe that fuse is blown, causing it to clear each time? Hard to guess what the CEL would be unless you can read it.

Otherwise, how old are the normal tune-up things?
Spark plugs? (what brand?)
Distributor cap & rotor, plug wires? (look for arcing in the dark)
Fuel filter?
Dirty throttle body?

 

An engine that misses under load may or may not miss w/ less load (lower gear when you downshift), but it will not beas easily detected as the bucking you experience under higher loads. I agree w/ JimBlake that ignition items are primary suspects. Start w/ plugs, distributor cap, and rotor since they are relatively inexpensive.

A good test of ignition wires is to spray fine water mist on wires at night and look for sparks. Any sparks indicate new wires are needed.

good luck

 

Kind of a dull blue glow. Actual sparks would indicate the wires arebeyond bad.

 

Thanks for the suggestions. I have changed plugs, cap & rotor. I will check the wires when it's dark. Seems to be related to the engine warm up temperature as it will have the problem after about 1 or 2 miles of driving and the settle out after it's warm. A friend suggested the coolant sensor which I just posted a question to find out where it is located.
Thanks
Oliver

 

Oliver,

Did you ever find out a solution to this problem?