Hello everyone;

Now that my ten-year-old Honda Accord EX 4 cyl is running good again I decided I want to post in a forum to share my experiences and hopefully help someone avoid some pitfalls; and at the same time maybe someone more knowledgable than me will add some extra help that I am not aware of because I am NOT a know-it-all!
Years ago my SRS light came on and stayed on. I went to adealership and was told the onboard computer was at fault and needed replacement to the tune of 300+dollars. I asked if I don't do that can I still drive it and the answer was "yes!" I said does it have to be replaced for state inspection and the answer was "NO!"
I drove it away and didn't spend a dime! The SRS light is still on!
Do I care that my restraint system probably won't work if I am in an accident?
"NO!"
It always rattled my cage that congress can tell me I have to have that system on my vehicle whether I want it or not yet cyclists can now travel without helmits in PA.
The next issue is the "check engine" dash light. About a year ago it kept coming on and Autozone gave me a free analysis which claimed I had a transmission malfunction. I took it to AAMCO who wanted to rip me off. I decided I would rather be ripped off by a local one-man garage so I dropped 2500 clams for a tranny rebuild. Two weeks later the CE light was on again....same transmission code. That's been over six months now and the light keeps coming on and I keep pulling the battery terminal to turn it off....so this week I decided even though the transmission fluid checks full on the stick I would drain some fluid anyway....and since doing that with the trans fluid level slightly below full the CE light has stayed off.
Here's a bit more detail...the trans code doesn't spell out exactly what is going on when the CE light comes on but the garage guy says it's the torque converter refusing to lock when the computer thinks it should.
Here's my take....I think excessive pressure has been building from a trans fluid over-fill even though the stick says the fill is normal; and the excessive trans pressure is not allowing the TC to lock at the proper time....going up a long grade is the issue. Going down a grade or level running allows the TC to operate just fine.
If anyone has anything to add I very much appreciate any similar experiences or thoughts that would help. As of now things seem acceptable....unless the CE light comes on again!

Wilson

 

WELCOME!

Your SRS problem might have been under warranty. Possibly a lifetime warranty on that, so read your warranty booklet.

 

Agreed; the SRS problem in my Honda may well be covered under lifetime warranty but there are extenuating circumstances you will find interesting...my wife....who is far-sighted and has trouble with near-range depth perception is the primary driver; has nailed the right front end bumper containing the SRS sensor no less than six times since the computer began malfunctioning. You do the math on how much I have saved to install new airbags after accidental deployment not caused by a life-threatening crash! Congress knew how many times this would happen when they passed the mandatory law for airbags and conspiracy between the lawmakers and garage owners should be investigated; but as for my situation; the spirit world has smiled upon me in protection of my bank account for unnecessary but mandatory repairs!

As I did not purchase the vehicle new; I don't have a warranty booklet in my possession. Even if I did; I don't trust the dealership to perform only necessary repairs and expect my total bill for SRS system correction would be much higher than I am willing to pay!

A local garage has recommended an 85 dollar diagnostic just to tell me if the problem really is the computer or if the right front bumper sensor is the only guilty element. My wife balked at the 85 dollars (it didn't make me jump for joy, either!).

Having said all that; I do sincerely thank you for the advice, Jim; and believe it or not take it into consideration as future reference for this reason....my experience with computers allows me to understand they are capable of producing many problems beyond my control; and should my computer decide to make my life a living hell I may wish to consult a dealership; either that or get another vehicle and pray for the poor schmuck who gets saddled with the computer issues as the next unsuspecting owner; but at this very satisfied point I feel compelled to remain acceptable to my disfunctional computer circumstances for not only monetary reasons but practical and political statement reasons as well; and if nothing else; at least to prove once again the oft-made point of leaving well enough alone!

Oh....one more point....I performed the bumper repairs myself every time my wife had her little mishaps; with body filler; primer and a matching Chrysler top coat touch-up spray laquer (which I found judging color by eye at Advance Auto) and the result is a perfect match proving rubber bumpers can be repaired easily and do not have to be replaced if they have a scratch or two!

Wilson

 

welcome enjoy your stay...your in good hands with Jim he knows his stuff!

 

Well, now that I know the rest of the story, I can understand that.

Check out www.ahm-ownerlink.com which is Honda's Owner Link. Register with your car's VIN. You can see an on-line version of the owner's manual so I wonder if you can't see the warranty book too??

 

Thanks much for that web address, Jim! I'll go get my unmemorized VIN and register! I might learn something from that.

Wilson

 

Hi Wilson and Welcome to the HAf...

WheelBrokerAng

 

Here's an update....after four days of driving with eight less ounces of tranny fluid the CE dashlight has remained unilluminated just as it should be! Is it possible my theory about excessive tranny pressure confusing the watchdog warning computer is correct? Eight ounces is certainly a very small amount of the total capacity and the fill stick shows the level to be about a sixteenth of an inch below the max amount allowed.
Comments are always welcome! Wilson

 

The only auto-trans I ever owned was 1998 Accord. Pretty sure I've had the fluid at or 1mm above the FULL mark, without any warning lamps or problems. But in general, it's not good for it to be overfilled. I'm just surprised to hear those problems when it was overfilled by such a small amount.

 

From your post I am assuming that you have a 2000 accord? Can you tell us the year/model(EX, LX...)/engine (4 or 6 cyl)/transmission (at from your posts).

You can stop by a parts store like autozone and have them read the code(s) for free. Post the actual code you are getting. They all start with the letter P and have 4 numbers, like P1234. The code should still be stored for a certain number of drive cycles.

The scanner at the parts store may not be able to get the SRS code. It could be as simple as a bad seat belt buckle, or the control unit. The seatbelts are warrantied for the life of the car, so you don't need warranty papers. The SRS system is not warrantied for the life of the car.