98 Accord LX Engine Shakes/Shuts Off
 

Hi All, I'm trying to help out an uncle with his car. He has a 1998 Honda Accord LX Sedan AT SOI-IC 16-Valve 4-Cyl.VTEC
I feel so bad cause he's recently out of a job a then his car starts to give him problems. On to the details, as I'm told...

Over a month ago it started to randomly shut off, engine only, while driving (city and highway).

So we initially thought it would be the spark plugs or spark plug cables or both. But since the problem started a
new symptom arose; the engine starts and stays idle but is very shaky and seems to sputter.

Now my uncle believes that the "timing" is off. If so how do we go about fixing or adjusting the "timing," the only experience
he has in that regard is with an 82 Camaro, which is totally different from newer, Japanese cars.

Any troubleshooting tips or DIY info would be greatly appreciated. Thank You.

Did you replace the spark plugs? If not, then pick up a set of NGK ZFR5F-11 plugs. They are $2 each and the oem parts for the accord. You may also want to pick up a fuel cleaner (I like Lucas Fuel Treatment) for ~$6. While you are at the parts store, have them scan for error codes on the computer. Post the codes on here. They start with the letter P and have 4 numbers, like P1234.

Along with other maintenance items, when were the distributor cap and rotor replaced? You may want to remove the distributor cap and see if the contacts are worn out.

OEM spark plug wires tend to last a long time on Accords. I would only replace them you can see arching at night. Spray a fine mist of water using on them using an old windex bottle at night when the engine is running. If you see spark arching or a blue glow, then I would replace.

Can you get the car to stall by shaking the key when the engine is running? I would call your local dealership to see if the ignition switch recall was done on your uncle's car.

The spark timing is not adjustable. If you have a timing light you can check it, but you can't do anything about it.

Pull the spark plug wires out from the valve cover & look for oil down in the sparkplug holes. That would be a leaky valvecover gasket & it can cause misfiring.