1988 Prelude stalling & idling erratically

Here are the symptoms that plague my 1988 Prelude S ( twin carbs).

When it starts, it will stall immediately three or so times in the morning
before it will maintain a steady idle.

The car will idle steadily and perfectly at times-- and other times it
will seem weak and erratic.

Today the car started to stall on me a time or two when I come out of
accelerated bursts and cruise to a stop (Manual transmission). In other
words, if I am running along at 35mph and need to stop or turn, as I shift
out of gear and the car would normally fall in rpms, tachometer will fall
all the way to 0 and the engine will stall.


Here are the steps that I have taken so far.

New Plugs-- New wires-- New Distributor Cap and rotor.

Each of these things helped for a few days or so, but the problem continues
to return.

What might be my problem, and what should my next step be-- new ignition
coil and igniter-- or maybe a new distributor??


All help is appreciated and welcome

Thank You,

Matthew Brown
Memphis

 

Hi,
Ccheck fuel pump ground. make sure it is well grounded.
Tony

 

If I had to guess, I'd say it's the transmission. It seems that you're
having a lot of friction even in neutral... possibly the worn synchros are
somehow contacting, I'm not entirely sure of the details. THis would explain
why idling (in neutral) is unpredictable, and why the engine sometimes dies
when switching back into neutral (the transmission puts load on the engine
through the friction, in neutral, causing it to die).

First of all, change the transmission oil (Honda MTF).
Flushing it with extensive amounts of oil is preferable, if you're lucky you
might wash out your problems....
If that doesnt help, you might be looking at a very expensive overhaul /
replacement.

 

Go to the base of the carburettors and you'll find three screws holding the
cover of each on. Remove them and slide the covers off; inside each will be
a large "float". These become coated with a sort of yellow varnish after a
few years and they tend to "stick". Clean them with Brasso or Duraglit until
the deposit is completely removed and reassemble. You'd be advised to make a
mark on each before you start to make certain you reassemble them with the
barrels slipped on in exactly the same position.

D.