I havent owned this 96 accord that long,and have a few minor bugs to work out with it.

Aside from needing a new front Axle,I noticed something tonight...electrical I believe...

When the car is idling,It does idle perfect and flawless,and I hit anything of power,say a window switch,or turn headlights on,the engine stumbles quite a bit then stops.It does start,idle and runs perfect,doesnt miss and has alot of power.I have done the test a few times and anytime I hit a switch it stumbles.

Its just weird to feel the engine stumble anytime I use something requiring electrical power.

The car has a brand new battery and runs flawless as far as everything goes...Yet theres no specific volt gauge on the dash,so I need to get out the voltmeter and do some checking.

The alternator under the hood looks very OLD...like its original.The starter and other things misc parts have been replaced,and they look new or have reman stickers on them.

Before I do some further checking tomorrow,Is this a common problem on the 96? Has it been posted before?If so,what was the cause?I do not know much about these cars.

My experience with cars over the years says theres a possible problem with the voltage regulator on the way out,but wanted to ask here first if theres a common problem with this.

Sorry this is long,thanks for reading!

 

I would first clean the throttle plate and the screen on the IACV.
The engine my not be getting enough air at idle..
Idle speed differs from manual to Auto trans, but there should be an underhood sticker that says normal idle speed.
pic of throttle plate cleaning;

 

I found a pic of the IACV to help you find it....2or3-12mm bolts to remove it;
There is a screen on it that gets fouled with carbon soot.
A spray can of Carb Cleaner is your friend.

 

Thanks for the reply...but what does a window switch have to do with a possibly dirty throttlebody? The engine only stumbles a bit at idle IF I hit the window switch to put the glass down or up or something else that needs power.

Other than that,it does not act like it has a IAC problem, or a problem with the minimum air.

Im thinking there is a current drop or draw on the electrical system at idle due a bad regulator but am unsure.I will for sure make sure the TB and IAC is clean as well.Might as well do it since I havent had the car that long.

 

Every time you use something electrical, the current draw is being measured by the ELD (electrical load detector). The ECU uses that information to anticipate what the IAC-valve needs to do, in order to hold a steady idle. Seems like this ANTICIPATION isn't working, so the idle system is only responding after the idle actually drops.

Something's messed up with that chain of measurement & control. One of the more common things is the IACV gets dirty or plugged & doesn't respond to commands very quickly.

 

Thanks again!It makes more sense now...I sure wish I still had my snap on MT scanner(I sold it a while back)...it could show me the IAC counts live as the engines ran,under loads and etc...plus everything else.I need to get me another one.

I did notice something else tonight...when the car is idling,and the window is fully up,and I push the switch to UP,even tho the window is closed fully,it stumbles alot more.Let go of the switch and it idles rock solid.

It does the same when the window is fully down and I hit the down on the switch.

Not a problem for driving or anything,just weird.I will try the cleaning process soon.The weather has been very lousy and theres an Buddy's S10 in my garage that needs a new clutch on jack stands so I have to do this outside right now.

 

When the window is already at the end, & you press the button, it strains against the end of it's travel. That causes the motor to draw even more current than normal.

The engine is making essentially zero extra horsepower (at idle) vs what it needs just to keep idling. Very little throttle is needed to compensate for those electrical loads.

When you're driving, there's plenty of power going to the wheels so a tiny bit extra taken away for electrical loads, is not noticable.