I own a 2000 Honda Accord EX sedan, 4 cylinder with A/T. This morning the check engine light came on. I stopped by O'Reilly's and the guy tested it and it showed code p1259. The car drove fine on the way home. The engine oil level is approx. midway between the top and bottom dipstick dots. The oil looks slightly brown and is due for a change ( 5W/30 synthetic blend ). Can I safely drive the car with this code ? What do you think has happened and what course of action do you recommend ? Thank you in advance for any advise.

 

As long as the oil level is not low and the oil pressure light is not on, you are ok to drive. For the P1259 code, that has to do with Vtec. I'm not sure if the solenoid screens are clogged or if you have a faulty pressure switch or the solenoid itself. You will need to troubleshoot before throwing parts at it.

 

Thanks for the reply. Would a repair shop have the means to identify the specific problem or is it going to be one of those trial and error situations ?

 

I'll say a good repair shop will diagnose the problem and fix it. The issue can be one of the sensors, the wiring, or possibly the vtec assembly or PCM. Most of the time it is a sensor, but you really need to test before replacing a part.

 

Thank you. One last question if you please. The literature on this p1259 code talks a lot about " low oil pressure " causing this. If the source of the problem was legitimate low oil pressure wouldn't you expect the oil warning light to go on or at least flicker ? In my case, the check engine light is on but not the oil warning light. Thanks again for your time and advice.

 

The minimum oil pressure at the vtec solenoid may be a lot higher than the minimum oil pressure protecting your bearings and engine internals.

The only way to determine if the oil pressure is the root cause is to test the oil pressure at the vtec. It can't hurt to test the pressure on the engine block where your regular oil pressure sensor detects pressure.