civic 1.6 lsi turns over but wont start please help!!

hey,
my civic has a " once in a blue moon " starting problem,
it doesnt matter what the weather is like,
it turns over fine but doesnt start,
the ecu light comes on=had it replaced it still does it,
its got;

new plugs
new leads
new dizzy
new fuel filter
new fuel injectors
the fuel relay has been bypassed so that cancels that out

took it to honda thay said the ecu codes were coming up as the
injector failing, got a new one,
then took it back
they said it was the ecu, had it changed.. now they dont want to know,
it tends not to start when i need it the most,
specially in a petrol station! when everyones waiting!

ive had so many mechanics look at it and theyve told me to sell it, i
dont want to cause ive got it how i like it ( boyed up )

honda say its got to be something to do with the wiring loom whitch is
going to cost £60 an hour for 2 days work.... TO GET IT OUT!,
then a further 2 days to put it back in, i dont know whether they are
taking the piss or not?
it would be nice to speak to someone who isnt going to fob me off for
once and who honestly wants to help my sorry ass!

let me know
cheers
kitty

 

"dizzy"=distributor? was the igniter replaced also?
Was the distributor cap and rotor replaced? Ignition coil?

why was the relay bypassed?
Problems with the main relay solder joints are a common cause of "cranks
but won't keep running".(due to no fuel pressure at the rail)
How is the fuel pressure at the fuel rail?

What model year is it? Mileage?
Ignition switch? (maybe worn out)

Check the engine grounds.unscrew each one,scrape to bare metal for good
contact,tighten. Inspect the ground wires for corrosion.

 

what is the year of the vehicle? do you get any codes? if so, what?

"injectors" sounds like classic main relay [and highly
incompetent/expensive misrepair], but please confirm the other
information requested to help diagnosis.

 

===================================

If it _only_ happens after the (unknown) Civic has sat overnight or over
the weekend, it's probably simple flooding. The owner's manual tells you
how to get it to start. The cure is to run injector cleaner (one is
dribbling overnight) through the engine three or four times a year. My
Odyssey did it too. I never thought to read the manual and spent a bunch
of unnecesary money on it.

'Curly'

 

You replaced the computer? That wasn't bright.

Can't do that in an EFI vehicle. you're misunderstanding whatever they
did.

No, you took it to an indepenent dealer that owns a Honda franchise,

A new "one"? How many injectors tdoes this car have? You'd better give
the year and model here.

That wasn't bright at all. Pretty stupid, in fact.

Sounds like that "fuel relay" that they allegedly bypassed. The solder's
cracked. You'll get the no-start plus the injector error if the solder
cracks just the right way.

See here:
http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/startproblems.html#mainrelay

 

British term for the distributor.

You CAN'T "bypass" the main relay in an EFI car. The ECU will complain
loudly if you do that.

 

What really bothers me is that I can't recall anybody who has reported a bad
wiring harness (loom) in Hondas. It seems odd the shop even suggests that.
You are already (as you seem to suspect) way beyond the point of any
troubleshooting being done. Follow TeGGeR's link for the "main relay" -
which is pretty much the first thing we think of when somebody mentions
intermittent start. As TeGGeR says, bypassing it isn't really an option.
Replacing it on general suspicion (as has been done with several more
expensive parts, apparently) is reasonable, since it is a part that can be
expected to give trouble every decade or so... and produce the very symptoms
you describe.

Mike

 

The clue is in the OP ---

The dealer and no other legitimate mechanic wants to touch this thing
because it has had wires hacked into for stereo's, alarms, lights, and
to bypass the fuel relay and who knows what else has been bypassed.

 

it would be a dangerous fire hazard,too.
In an accident,the fuel relay would not shut off the pump,and if a gasline
was broken,it would continue pumping gas for any spark to ignite.

 

thanks for your help guys i appriciate it xx

its a 1994 honda civic lsi,


the fault code was code 16 they said it was due to the injectors, so i
replaced the lot, it came up again ( 16 ) they said it was the ecu had
that replaced... did the same,

the fuel relay was bypassed in case it cut out the fuel for any reason
i think, its done 109,000 miles
the distributer cap and rotor were also replaced,

as for the once in a blue moon thing....
i go on holiday for 2 weeks come back and it starts fine... after a
week or so of smooth starting i go up the shop get something get in
the car and chug chug chug doesnt start, it sounds ok on turning over
it just wont kick in, i leave it for a coupl of minutes then it
starts,
its then fine for a week or so,

when a mechanic has it in the garage he starts it every half hour for
two days.... doesnt do it, after a few days of yet again smooth
starting i drive to work 7 miles away, leave it for 8 hours then i try
again wont start.. FOR AN HOUR rac comes out to rescue me, he arrives
and oh... it starts as soon as he gets there!

i couldnt put an exact time period say it does it every 12 days
because its that unpredictable
thankyou for all your suggestions i will print them out and shove them
under hondas nose keep them coming it all helps!

cheers for restoring my faith in guys :wink:

 

of course it did the same - they didn't fix the problem. code 16 is
almost always main relay - the injector circuit makes ground through the
relay and if the relay's bad, the injectors don't connect and the ecu
sets an injector code. fix the relay and the problem will completely
disappear. all that money you spent on people that don't know hondas
was wasted. find a real honda specialist and ask them if they know
about main relay problems - don't say why, just ask the question as a
qualifier. if they don't know, move on until you find one that does.

as raised by other posters - that is extremely extremely dangerous. if
you crash and burn, your family will get VERY rich from the resulting
lawsuit. get it fixed immediately.

 

Hi there: I think that I am having the very same problem as you.
This problem has been ongoing for about 2 years and I have had no luck!
My car is a 1991 Honda Civic DX with 150,000 km. I have changed out the
following parts Plugs
Wires
Cap and rotor
cleaned and checked injectors
****The one thing I have noticed differently is that it never happens
when parked in the garage or in the shade and only happens in the winter
on a bright sunny day! I have believe the problem must be related to a
vapor lock or flooding. I have always been able to get it going
(eventually) by releasing the pressure in the tank and
waiting...........................
I hope this helps, if you have found a solution please let me know,
thanks: Eddie