Help Honda Accord, 1987, manual transmission with carburetor engine

I have a 1987 Honda Accord, manual transmission and a carburetor engine.
Yesterday I drove off from my home and in less than 50 feet the car started
to jerk, jerk and jerk. Then it came to a stop. The engine turns over but
it does not start. What do you think might be the problem? What should I
check?



Lex

 

First question: has the timing belt been changed in the last 100K miles or
so? I suffered a timing belt failure on the road in Mercury Capri once, and
that is a good description of the symptoms: a couple surges and I coasted to
the side.

Otherwise, I'd suspect ignition. Fuel problems tend to be a "softer" death
than ignition, which feels like turning a switch off (or on and off). But if
the timing belt isn't a suspect because it has been changed, a spray of
starting fluid into the carburetor - be sure to put the air cleaner back on
to ward off a fire - will tell you if the problem is fuel or ignition. If
the engine runs on the starting fluid, I'd look at the fuel pump (does the
'87 have the notorious main relay, which would be a strong suspect?). If
not, look at the spark.

Mike

 

Besides checking ignition, also check your fuel filter and fuel supply.
Cars sometimes buck when the filter is clogged.
Usually it happens over more time than you are describing, but maybe
your pump happened to suck up some gas tank sludge.
Hope you find it soon.
Remco

 

Only the fuel injected cars have a main relay... so the 87 LXi would, but
the 87 DX and LX have a Fuel Pump Cutoff Relay.

 

When was the last time the distributor rotor and distributor cap changed?
Hondas from the 80's need to have the cap and rotor changed when the spark
plugs are changed. I was stranded once (after farting and bucking my way
home, car died in the yard and would not start) when I skipped the cap and
rotor change when I changed my plugs once on an 1987 carb Accord. The
rotor had failed after about 45000 miles. It had a crack in it and was
shorting the juice to the distributor shaft. SOB... the car behaved like
it had ice in the gas. Weather conditions at the time were prime to
produce ice in gas lines. 3 hours of trying to figure out what the hell
was wrong, I swapped in an old rotor (the one I took out 45000 miles
before) and VARROOM the sucker started!

New rotor, cap, and oil change (oil diluted from the flooding) and I
was back in business.


M.A Stewart

(Please don't e-mail cf005...all mail is bounced by the SPAM filter)

 

My 87 Accord did something similar at about 175,000 miles. A new fuel pump
was all that was required.
ken