cel does not light up
 

well its inspection time, and my check engine light does not work. i have replaced the bulb twice to be safe...

any ideas as to how i can get the light working again?

my car was posting a o2 error, but that was fixed.

Are there any other lights that are not working?

hey pa long time, anyway this issue has been here since i bought the car, when i first got it all the illumination lights where burnt out, but have been replaced since
the only light that does not work in the cluster is the cel

the car has come a long way since i got it, and i have you to thank because you have helped with nearly all my issues, well besides these windows, man its anoying lol.

Just looked at the shop manual. When you first turn the key to the II position and do not start the car, does the oil pressure light turn on for about two seconds.

Do you have a volt meter?

Hmm this is a strange problem. If you have replaced the bulbs and it still doesn't work it leaves me wondering, it makes me think there is something wrong with the soldering leading up to the CEL.

If you have a friend with a 94-97 Accord or an Acura CL I would ask if you can swap the cluster just to see if it fixes it.

to pa:

the oil pressure light does illuminate, ill add a pic in a few.

to live:

the solder issue could be the reason.

anyway if it was a loose wire, it may have flickered from time to time but has not.

when i first got the car it was in slightly less than perfect condition, the o2 sensor was removed and straight piped where the cat was, so maybe the cel was disabled by the previous owner, which i hope it wasnt.

Its possible, but to me the easiest way to disable the CEL is to remove the bulb, but then again it sounds like the previous owner wasnt the brightest.

hey pa

so i put it on ac without the car running and the oil pressure light, "the one on far left next to the batt light" remains illuminated unless i start the car.

Attachment 18616

live:

the previous owner had his way with this car.
anyway i think tomorrow i will take the cluster out and check the leads and grounds of the circuit board.

when i replaced the bulb both times the bulb was pretty hard to take out of the adapter, possibly a brroken adapter?

The quick way to test is to test for voltage at the ECU (aka PCM).

Unplug the A connector (see attached pic). Pin A18 should have 12V to ground with the key in the II position. The wire should be light green with a red stripe.

all i have is a 12 volt test light that should work correct? as soon as i figure this out i will test it out

One side of the CEL lamp should have battery voltage whenever the key is turned on. You can check that with your test light.

The PCM switches "on" the ground side of that lamp circuit when it wants to light up the CEL.

So if you connect your test light between one side of the lamp & ground, the test lamp will light up. Connect from the other side to ground, and the CEL along with your test light will both light up dimly. That's how it should work if the supply side of the circuit is OK.

If you have piece of wire, you can ground pin A18 with the key in the II position. You can use a bare metal bolt for the ground. The check engine light should turn on.

The volt meter method would help identify where you are missing voltage or ground. The test light should work to verify voltage to a wire.

It will probably be easier to test at the PCM connection.

hey pa im going to have to put this on hold my cars over heating again, no fans so ill post again when i get the fans taken care of