Honda Accord Problems 2000-2005

alcan

Take it to any AutoZone and have them read the stored trouble codes (no charge). Post the codes.

gee35coupe

a fuel filter or plugs/wires/cap.

And the streaky window may need a thorough cleaning. Nightime driving brings out the worst in poorly cleaned glass.

hhall

I have a 1991 Honda Accord Lx 4DR and I'm trying to locate the blinker relay fuses of fuse ?. My blinker makes the blinking noise even when the blinker is not on. I have taken the 7.5 fuse out for now so it does not make the noise. I looked futher inside the drivers side where the fuse box is and I noticed there were 3 square black what looked like the relay fuses but they are rally tucked back up under the dash and its very hard to reach them. I tried pushing the clutch in to make room and using pliers but they would not come out and I Kind of cracked the top of one. Any Ideas ?? Help anyone Please, Thank You!!

chucko3

What happens if you put back the 7.5 fuse and turn on the hazardous switch? Do the blinkers and the lights blink normally? If yes, I suspect
the car has a bad/worn out turn signal switch at the handle.

communipaw

I am thinking of that. But I am more than annoyed that the Honda FM factory radio in a new car has had static from the beginning.

piesonpizza

HHall....I just recently parted out my 1991 Honda Accord LX sedan. I sold most of the stuff on Ebay...I removed all the relay stuff that is up under the dash. If you determine that it is the reason, email me a pic and I will send you the one I have. Shipping at your expense of course. I'm not sure what it looks like yet, I'll have to look at the board closer.
DB

hhall

yes i tried this and if i remember right the hazard lights worked too,as well as all the right and left blinkers- but when i turned off the hazard lights and blinkers it still made the blinking noise. Is the turn signal switch in the handle hard to replace? thanks for your help.

extech

The best way to locate the turn signal relay is to activate the turn signals and dive under the dash. Once you zoom in on the sound, touch all the relays in the vicinity with your hand, one by one. The relay you are looking for will emit a pulse/vibration and you can feel that if your hand is touching it. Good luck.

hhall

Thank You ! I did find 3 of what I think are the relays. They all seem to have a pulse/vibration.
I tried pulling one at a time of all three with pliers but could not get them to come out, I kinda started cracking the plastic. Should they be that hard to get out? What is your thought ?
Thank You for the help !!

jcasper

I have a 95 accord that has 99k miles on it. I just purchased the car about 3 months ago and it had 92k. I know that the timing belt has not been replaced. I believe it is recommended to be done at 90k. What is the longest any of you have let one go? I did a valve adjustment and with the valve cover off you can see the timing belt, and it looked almost like new. Is this an interference motor? It is the non v-tec four cylinder. When I do have the timing belt replaced, I am planning on having them do the water pump, bearings on the tensioners, and a new front main seal when they are in there. Anything else you can recommend doing at this time. Thank you.

chucko3

Never done it. So I don't know how hard it is.
Your car's turn signal & hazard uses the same relay. Since the hazard works, I don't think it's the relay.

Go to hondaautomotiveparts.com to see the location of the relay. Look under fusebox-relay category.

isellhondas

Yes, you do have an interference engine. If the belt breaks damage can occur. It's smart to replace the water pump, seals and other belts while they are "in there".

A lot of people tempt fate by letting their
Hondas go well past the reccommended replacement intervals. Me, I wouldn't want to take the chance.

altair4

Do you agree with the other comments made by jcasper? "...Water pump, bearings on the tensioners, and a new front main seal when they are in there."

I can understand the water pump. I'm unfamiliar with the tensioner - I have a VW and they just replace the whole tensioner. Are the bearings on the Honda tensioner replaceable, or should I just R&R the whole tensioner. And finally, the front main seal. Is this known for failing? Is this worthwhile doing? Cost?

chucko3

Honda replaced the main seal on the 1st timing belt replacement. Different dealer didn't replace it on the 2nd replacement on my 89 Accord.
Looking back at the 1st invoice, only the part. The labor was included in the timing belt job.

hhall

Thank You, yep its not the relay for sure. I did get a new one and put it in and it still does the same thing. I was able to return the part and then got the turn signal assembly-I'm going to try and figure out how to replace it tomorrow.
Thank You for your time and advice. This is a great help!

pyroman002

On my new 05 accord the cover over the DC power outlet in front of the shifter does not rise up once it is popped up as does the adjacent compartment. The piston/spring holds it down once it is opened. Is this normal or malfunctioning? If so, I plan on getting the dealer to fix it.
Thanks.

peter pan

Are you sure Accord has interference engine? I heard that Mitsubishi's engines are interference.

Toyota's engines are definitely noninterference. My Camry broke the timing belt at 120K and the engine just quit firing. After $150 replacement job it worked fine.
  
The rubber timing belt could break any time. if it were interference, a lot of people would have complained!

Please elaborate.

altair4

Per Gates timing belt website, it looks like most if not all Honda engines are interference engines.

http://www.gates.com/downloads/download_common.cfm?file=GatesTBR.- pdf&folder=brochure

And it looks like none of the Toyota engines are.

dbone

My wife's car had the same thing happen. Took it to the dealer and ofcourse the lights were out so they did nothing. A month or so later it happen again but this time they stayed on and things got progressively worse until the alternator quite working.

janl

I have this '92 Accord SW LX with 212 kMiles on it. It still runs great and doesn't burn oil. However, a few days ago it developed some problems with automatic transmission. The dealer says that it needs a transmission control unit replaced at ~$940.00!!. The junk yard units are offered for $ 100 - 150, but are they any good? Where, the hell, is that unit located in my car - supposedly under passenger side carpet... Don't even know it it is easy to pull the carpet to get to it - any help on how to spot it and replace it would be greatly appreciated. Also, after replacing it - does it need to be initialized using any tool, etc? These junk yards want me to provide them with a specific number from the top of this unit to match the replacement - but I thought that there would only be a one number for the given year and model - is this so? I can't get to my car at this moment as it sits at the dealer's parking lot 20 miles away... Is buying such control units from the internet sites a good experience - any recommendations?

janl

chucko3

Can only help you to spot it & the price.
http://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com/auto/jsp/mws/prddisplay.jsp?i- - nputstate=5&catcgry1=Accord&catcgry2=1992&catcgry3=WG- - N+LX&catcgry4=KA4AT&catcgry5=CONTROL+UNIT

From the drawing, it looks like just a few bolts to remove it.

altair4

Your story reminds me of what happened with our 92 Mazda Protege. The automatic transmission went into fail-safe mode (won't shift into 4th gear). I called the dealer and they said I needed a new transmission - no ifs,ands or buts.

Well, the car was 10 years old at the time and I wasn't going to dump that kind of money into it. On a hunch, I took it to an independent transmission shop - $80 for parts and labor later, I was on the road again! All it needed was a small electornic module that was $40.

Maybe it would be worthwhile to get a second opinion. YMMV, of course.

rylee3

Hope someone can help with this.
I have an 04 Accord EX 4 cyl auto. I just received a letter from dealer indicating it was time to lube the front suspension, steering linkage and shift linkage. I don't find those items in maintenance schedule in owners manual. Aren't these areas sealed lubrication points as in many other vehicles ? If not how often do they need lubrication ? I don't feel I can rely on dealers opinion only.
thanks

peter pan

I can't afford to throw the engine away, or pay for expensive repair jobs for valves and cam shafts, when the timing belts in interference engines break!

I would have to stick to Toyota's non interference engine then.

Thanks for an excellent reference.

hhall

Thank You again for the advice !! It worked out perfectly. I was able to return the relay and get the turn signal switch- it was around $150.00 from Hinshaws Honda in Auburn Washington. I was able to figure it out and fix it without taking the car to the dealer to have it done. Many Thanks and these Fourms for Tips and Advice !!! hhall- Kent, Washington

bd21

First of all, there are no lubrication points on any of the components you listed. They are all sealed units that are internally lubricated. Read your owner's manual maintenance schedual and follow it. There is not a single maintenance item that has to be done that is not listed in there period! Many dealer's service departments love to pick their customer's pockets by suggesting totally unnecessary maintenance.

That is why I only take my car to the dealer for covered warranty work. I just keep receipts for oil changes. By the way, that is the only item that you need to prove you actually did in order to keep yourself covered for an engine related warranty claim. Take it from a mechanic who keeps cars for 12-15 years. I just follow the extreme maintenance schedual listed in the manual. Honda's is more than adequate to keep your car running fine for many years and at least 200,000 miles.

piesonpizza

You can find these on Ebay for your exact model.
I sold mine on Ebay. It was located on the floor board under the glove box. Easy to remove. You have to match your numbers exactly for it to work. I'm not a mechanic, so get a 2nd and 3rd opinion on what I write here.... All I know is I sold it pretty quick. The numbers had to match for it to work in their car. There's a few sellers on Ebay motors that just sell older model parts for Honda's.I can't imagine how that repair shop can charge $950?? Unless there's something more to it.Next to Stockbrokers, Mechanics are the biggest scam going. I love it when they do stings on em. Big, Fat, Greasy, Greedy S.O.B.'s.

amazon

Finally, I replaced the timing belt on my '93 LX. My dad and I spent almost 2 days taking the car apart and back together again. The worst part was getting the bolt holding the crank pully off. THat was awfully hard. Other than that- it's not that bad of a job. Just a lot of work.

I do know that these are interferance engines. I have a colleauge who had the belt break, and now he doesn't drive htat car anymore....

rcc8179

The cover over the power outlet in front of the shifter is spring-loaded to close when it is released. I think Honda assumed that whatever you have plugged into it will keep it open, and that it should be covered when not in use. It is operating properly.

clemery

Has anyone else run into this problem? I have an '04 Accord 4 cylinder sedan with barely 5,000 miles on it. I was driving last night in freezing drizzle and therefore had to have the heat set full blast on the front windshield defroster the whole drive home (about an hour). Every time the air conditioner compressor cycled my headlights would dim. It was fairly severe dimming, someone coming the other direction actually flashed their brights at me thinking I was flashing my brights at them. I understand that the cycling of the compressor would cause a draw, but I don't think this drastic dimming would be normal. My husband tested the battery with a battery tester, and it is within normal range before and after having a load put on it.

isellhondas

This is getting a bit overblown...

Honda reccommends replacing timing belts at 90K or 105K depending on the year. It is VERY RARE for one to break before that time in fact a lot of people go a lot farther. One poster here has over 300,000 miles on a 99 Odyssey with the original belt!

If one happens to break, damage **can** occur.

viet

"Every time the air conditioner compressor cycled my headlights would dim".

Unacceptable problem with a Honda. Please bring it back to a Honda dealership to fix it ASAP. No charge because your car is still under warranty within 36K miles/ 3 years.

clemery

I just spoke to Ralph Schomp Honda here in Denver. Tech knew exactly what I was talking about when I described the problem and said there is a service bulletin, but that there is no fix, Honda is calling it normal. Something about the alternater being set up for gas mileage maximization. Called it "electrical load detection".

viet

Hi Clemency,

Enjoy your Honda. My friend gets an Accord EX V6 with NAV. and he likes it so much. I have owned so many Accords and going to buy an Accord Hybrid with NAV. soon.

viet

I meant my friend gets an Accord 2004 EX V6. It is probably similar to yours.

clemery

Hi Viet.

I do enjoy my Accord very much except for this issue. I find it very irritating, as I live in the mountains south west of Denver and commute 35 miles each way to work. This is a pretty big issue for me because I work 6 am to 7 pm, so therefore am usually driving in the dark - I can't have people think I am flashing my brights at them all the time. I have found another forum where people have discussed this very issue, and it is beginning to sound to me as though this is NOT normal, but Honda does not want to admit it because it is very expensive to fix.

viet

Hi Clemency,

Honda is very good on saving fuel yet producing great horsepower and torque. I may find myself irritating too if my next Accord Hybrid gets same problem with its headlights. My son's Accord V6 EX 2003 does not have that issue.

clemery

Unfortunately this is my first Honda, so this makes for a bad first impression if I have to "fight the system" to get them to fix a problem that they legitimately should be covering, if they will cover it at all.

viet

Hi Clemery,

Sorry, I keep spelling your name wrong. Your will enjoy your first 100K miles trouble free. My 95 Accord EX I4 that my wife is driving gets almost 200K miles with no problem except regular oil change and maintenance. Do the regular maintenance as suggested by Honda, change engine oil every 4-5K miles, change transmission oil, coolant, new spark plugs, etc. every year your Honda should be great as day one. I enjoy "pampering" my Honda line-up.

snakehair

I just experienced the dimming problem with my '03 V6 sedan.. There is a Tech Line note to dealerships that since the '90's Honda has used an electronic load relay that switches the alternator output from high to low output depending on battery condition, electric load, etc. Supposedly to increase mileage. They get more complaints right after clocks switch back and paople are driving in the dark more. It is normal, but very annoying. I drive hilly commute in West Virginia at 5 a.m. I don't like it or the grade logic deciding when to downshift, but it is not a fault according to Honda

whitecloud1

I read your post about the timing belt replacement. Thanks for the info. I had a Dodge Charger, later year model. The timing belt shredded, but gave me plenty of warning, no engine damage. I had the belt replaced in a Mazda Protege and the belt looked nearly new. I too think that there seems to be unwarrented worry about that aspect.

atlantabenny

I've had an interference engine break its timing belt. The rebuild was expensive and the engine never ran the same again. Unfortunately, damage WILL (not can) occur. Take it from one whose wallet suddenly became lighter because of it.

viet

I change my Accord's timing belt every 70K miles for the peace of mind.

isellhondas

Well, not really. Damage does not ALWAYS occur but a person would be smart to assume that will happen. changing that belt at 70,000 is a bit of overkill but if it gives a person peace of mind, why not?

viet

I agreed with Atlantabenny that changing timing belt at 70K is a bit "overkill". For years, I have changed the timing belt at 85K or 90K miles.

atlantabenny

Not sure if there's full awareness of the nature of interference and non-interference engines.

In a non-interference engine, the cylinder head valves don't clash (interfere) with the pistons when the timing belt breaks. Getting stranded is the worst consequence.

The opposite, OTOH, is true of interference engines like the Honda's. Not to belabor the point, but bent valves, cracked pistons, broken rocker arms and scoured camshafts are the catastrophic result of a timing belt breakage. $2,500 went for repairs when it happened to me.

This link explains the topic further: http://www.familycar.com/CarCare/TimingBelt.htm

I'm with the group of folks who'll push the carmaker's recommendations near the limit, knowing that a safety buffer exists beyond it.

The factory-recommended limit on an interference engine's timing belt replacement is one I won't exceed, however. The risk:expense equation just overwhelmingly favors prevention.

sraver

i have a rather nice stereo,i have 1 amp and 4 new speakers in my 91 accord. however when my raiator fan kicks on my speakers get all fuzzy as if the amp is not getting enough juice (power). in addition to this i used a voltage meter, and with the fans off i have around 14 to 14.6 volts. but , with the fans on my volts drop to under 12 volts. please help me

amazon

In an interferance engine, damage is likely, not just possible, if the timing belt breaks. I went 103K on the t-belt on a '93 for which 90K is recommended interval.

lrs52

Hi, I am new to this forum and need some help.I have an 03 EX V6 with 50,000 miles. I had the 2nd gear 'lubrication problem' fixed by my honda dealer, but now I have seal leak in the transmission to the tune of about 700.00. I also have noticed a vibration or wobble in my brakes, particularily when going downhill. ANY help with TSB#s or other information would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

lil302000

If you are running a high power amp make sure that your power is connected from the battery with a fuse placed in line. This might help if it does not there is a good chance you need a heavier alternator. Very high powered amps should not be powered via the radio fuse.