CRX no start and dying while driving :(

So my '89 CRX HF with LS motor has been giving me a total headache.
Two years ago it died and would not start for a few months. I didn't
do anything with it since I had another car and no time to work on it.
But then one day it started up again. No problems for a year. The
weather turned really cold and one day I was driving and it cut out
while I was driving on the street. It wouldn't start for 10 minutes
and then started again. After that it worked fine for another year.
Then last week (weather was extremely cold again) it died while
driving. Pulled over and tried restarting it for 5 minutes. Finally it
started up. Drove fine for 50 miles. Tried to take the car out again
and it wouldn't start. The next morning it started up fine. Needless
to say I'm not driving it anymore until I get it fixed. Time to stop
being delusional thinking the problem will go away by itself.

Now, what do you guys think could be the problem? At first I thought
it might be the main relay but it seems like people only have no start
problems when the weather gets hot. And that is only no start. The car
dies WHILE driving sometimes and that is the scary part. My car has
only died in the really cold weather. So I'm thinking maybe it is a
bad ground? Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

wrote:

[^^^ is that appropriate if you don't know how to fix this???]

at this age, you should check the main relay anyway. go to tegger.com
to find out what to do.

other than that, check the ignition switch and loose wiring, especially
battery earth.

 

Strong candidates are a failing (1) ignition coil or (2)
ignition module (= "igniter"). I'd suspect the ignition
coil, first.

How old are these parts on your '89 CRX, anyway?

Since the car has been sitting a lot, I would also opt for a
full tuneup, including check of the battery and alternator
and administration of moisture remover to the fuel tank plus
a fuel injector cleaner (= a bottle or two of Chevron
Techron for under $20)

For all ignition parts, use OEM only. They pay for
themselves, and believe me, I learned the hard way.

 

P.S. Use one of our regular's swell sites on start/run
problems with Hondas for eliminating a lot of possibilities
and helping with checks of the coil, etc.:

http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/faq.html#startrun

 

Hmm...well the engine parts are fairly new. The motor is a 94 and the
ignition coil is 4 years old. The fuel pump and relays are from 89.
Some have suggested I have a failing fuel pump. Could this be the
culprit? How can I check for this. I really don't want to change the
fuel pump since that would mean dropping the tank which is a real pain
to do.

Yes, I am a fraud. I am no god of cars.

 

I'd still start with the main relay - it directly controls the fuel pump. The
common problem with it is that the soldered joints inside become intermittant,
and any temperature extremes can affect that.

 

This group gets far fewer reports of fuel pump problems
compared to the other candidate causes listed at Tegger's
site. A failing fuel pump is not out of the realm of
possibility, I just would not expect this first or near
first to be the cause.

 

First thing you should check: Is your ECU throwing any codes?

 

Nope, no codes. I guess I will order a new relay from Honda and try
that first. I mean how much are they, $60?

 

A new main relay should cost a bit less than that. Try the
online OEM Honda parts sites I list at:
http://home.earthlink.net/~honda.lioness/id9.html

Also, if you know how to solder or are willing to take a
crash course, the old one can be re-soldered pretty easily.
See Tegger's site for more direction on this for one.

You did go through the things to check for the main relay as
listed at Tegger's site, right?

 

Well the car turns on right now so everything seems to be working just
like it has in the past. But I'm sure that it will die again soon.
That leads me to believe that it is the extreme weather changes that
are affecting the car since I usually have the car in my garage. I
went through Tegger's site (great resource by the way) and read about
main relays. I took mine out and visually inspected it for broken
solder joints. Everything looks good. I don't have a volt meter so
can't do the electronic tests. The mystery continues...

I think I'll just order a new main relay and go from there.... Thank
you so much to everyone for all the good tips. Keep them coming if
anyone has more ideas.

 

check the ecu for code 16 - you get that code frequently if the main
relay is bad.

 

Why not buy a VOM & a soldering iron. You can do the tests & maybe
rehab the relay. Then you'll have the tools for your next adventure.