Car only starts sometimes....

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I'm so tempted to just pull my dash and motor back out and check every single wire in my car. It's so frustrating. Other than that, it runs good...
 
could it be the main relay or ignition module if the car always turns over but just wont start
 
way to jump in and save the day there, einstein ;).


i was asking a question.. i guess i shoulda put a question mark?



cuz he said his car sometimes starts right up but other times it just turns over

and i said well what if the car never starts, but always turns over, could it be the same problem?
 
i was asking a question.. i guess i shoulda put a question mark? cuz he said his car sometimes starts right up but other times it just turns over and i said well what if the car never starts, but always turns over, could it be the same problem?

ahh in that case, excuse my rude comment and you're right, a failing ignition module or main relay can result in the same symptom, which = nostarty. but based on his already having replaced/worked on the main relay, i went with the ignition module, also because of some of the symptoms he listed.

the main diff between the two is that the main relay tends to only fail at startup (at least in my experience). the ignition module can actually present as idle fluctuations and tachometer craziness which is not mirrored by the the engine (i.e., rpms spike up to 4-5k then immediately bounce out to 0 before normalizing back to actual reading -- but the only indicator in actual engine performance is a hiccup feeling...like a stutter). ignition modules that are failing tend to start showing it with minor hiccup/rpm fluctuations. it gets more sporadic/erratic the longer the problem goes on. and eventually, you'll get stranded in Oklahoma when it fails completely. no matter where you were, you'll end up sitting on the side of the road in OK. :p
 
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My car died for the first time while I was driving, yesterday. I started the car up, (yes, it started this time) and backed out of the driveway. I shifted from reverse into 1st, and the car just died. It started right up afterward, and drove fine after that, but I'd hate for that to happen at a light or something. I'm about to order a new dizzy right now.... I really hope this is the problem....

Also, anytime I turn on my turn signals, the speedo jumps to like 75 mph, down to zero, then back to normal. It happens almost everytime I turn on the blinkers. Could this be related to the distributor problem? I know I read that the guages do wierd things, but it only happens with the blinkers...
 
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My car died for the first time while I was driving, yesterday. I started the car up, (yes, it started this time) and backed out of the driveway. I shifted from reverse into 1st, and the car just died. It started right up afterward, and drove fine after that, but I'd hate for that to happen at a light or something. I'm about to order a new dizzy right now.... I really hope this is the problem....

Also, anytime I turn on my turn signals, the speedo jumps to like 75 mph, down to zero, then back to normal. It happens almost everytime I turn on the blinkers. Could this be related to the distributor problem? I know I read that the guages do wierd things, but it only happens with the blinkers...

you sure the speedo is off?? maybe you just have a really quick honda:p
 
I ordered a brand new distributor yesterday. I hope this fixes it... Once it gets here, I'll install it and let ya'll know if it fixes it... Thanks for everyone's help. (Except "1989civichatch") :lol:
 
it was like half as much as the one you bought
 
Thanks. That's a good price, but that does me no good. My distributor has already been shipped. Thanks though. Good find!
 
I found the problem finally. I ran a ground straight from the starter to the chassis. Car starts everytime now. I don't know why Honda didn't do this from the factory, but it works perfectly. After buying a battery, battery cables, alternator, and distibutor, turned out I coulda spent $0.50 on a piece of wire.....
 
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