Hi folks. This is the first time I have had to do any repairs on my 2009 Accord (EX-L 4 cylinder). I never had to do anything but oil changes under the warranty.

I had a couple incidents where the car wouldn't start, so I had the battery tested. It was fine. Tested the alternator and it was fine, too. I tested for parasitic draw and there was none. In fact, the battery even tested at 12.6 v and still wouldn't start. So I bought a new starter (re-man) and did the removal/install.

Of course, to do so you have to remove the intake manifold. Plenty of things to reconnect and possibly not get back quite right. But I am now able to start the car and while running it is perfect again. There are no MIL or other dash lights indicating a problem. But when I start the car (again, full battery) it cranks VERY slowly at first and then eventually kicks on. See the YouTube link below for a video of me starting the car.

I'm wondering if maybe I need to reset the ECM (ECU). But I cannot find the ECU fuse to pull as is recommended in most online references to doing the reset. I did have the battery completely removed for a day so I thought that would have forced an ECU reset.

Any ideas? Anything about the starter removal/install procedure that could lead to this if I missed a re-connection or something?

 

That looks like an electrical connection issue. Re-check all electrical connections and wiring at the starter, battery, and ECM/PCM area.

Check ground G101 wiring and connection, battery cable connections (each side of cables). Make sure the you didn't disturb the ECM/PCM harness connectors (the ECM/PCM is next to the battery). Check that no wires or cables were accidentally crimped. It may even be related to the starter or starter connections.

 

It could also be a bad remanufactured starter out of the box.

 

I would be looking at battery cables, starter and battery. If you had the battery load tested and it is charged now you should be down to stater and cables.

 

Checked the batter post connections. When I jiggled them by hand the positive connection did move a bit so I re-seated and tightened it.

I also looked through the service manual and saw the suggestion to check the starter by disconnecting the starter subharness and connect a jump wire from the positive terminal to the female end of the subharness. I couldn't find a sufficient wire to do that but I did disconnect and reconnect just to make sure it had a good connection.

After doing both things, I got a slightly more responsive startup, but it is still dragging.

If the problem persists I will probably have to remove the intake manifold again and double check the starter connections.

 

What was the symptoms of the old starter? From your video you have either a starter that is drawing too many amps. A battery that is failing under load of the starter. High resistance which would be a battery cable or corrosion between the battery post and cable.

Not likely but always a small chance that the motor is mechanically hard to turn over.

 

Everything was normal until about 4 days ago. Thursday morning I start up to go to work and there is the tiniest hint of delay before it starts. That day I tried to start it to go to lunch and it wouldn't start at all. I got a jump and took it to Pepe Boys for a test, thinking I'd be buying a new battery. Battery tested OK so I didn't do anything. It started normally when I left Pep Boys, and then again when I left work to go home.

The next day it repeated the same sequence. Weird start in the morning, no start at lunch. Got a jump and went to AutoZone to test the battery and alternator. All OK. So I went home and tested fro draw. Ordered a starter and removed the old one. Saturday morning I installed the new one and put the car back together.

Right after putting everything back it started normally. I drove about 30 minutes to pick up my daughter, car still running we drove another 10 minutes to get something. When we came out to go home the start was like in the video, and it has been the same since then. Maybe 5 times trying to start it.

With all these clues, I'm wondering if the highest likelihood is that the re-manufactured new starter is perhaps defective. Like maybe the gear doesn't spin freely enough and the resistance is why the startup is slow. The only other thing I can do with the tools available is reconnect the cables on the starter itself, which is basically the same work as replacing it.

 

Your account before installing the starter seems like a battery cable issue. Assuming the battery is in good shape jumping your Accord should only eliminate battery cable connections at the battery or cables depending on what you attached the neg jumper cable to. What does jumping it now do. You may have eliminated the neg cable if you hooked the jumper cable to a ground and not the battery.

 

try a voltage drop test bypassing the negative then positive cable to the starter if that checks out u could have a parasitic draw