Car starts WITHOUT pushing in clutch.

[Aggressive Kitten]

Yes... I figured this out when I first got the car, but was under the impression that was NORMAL, I didn't know anything, I was learning to drive it. Now i'm being told that it's not normal.

Without pushing in the clutch it will start, in neutral, any gear--In gear, if I don't push the clutch in when I start the car, it will literally throw the car foward or backwards (pending on if it's in reverse or first gear)--I've only done that twice, and that's how I messed up the front drivers side part of the bumper--I didn't have anything behind me when it shot back in reverse. Lucky me.

Something loose? Something not attached? Something to really be concerned about ASAP?

:sad2: Thanks in advance!

(Carb. 1988 Honda Accord LX, Sedan).

[leia]

It is mostly newer cars that make you press in the clutch in order to start the car. I think I heard some older American ones do too. But cars that I've drivent stick on (my 3g, an 88 VW Fox and a 96 VW GTI-this may have had it at one point and been disabled somehow) did not have this feature. They will allow you to start it without the clutch in. And cuz of that I got in the bad habit of not parking in gear, because when I do, I forget that I am and stall out and lurch.
So, normal.....just be careful :) Or be like me and just use the e-brake (I park in gear on hills though) Or put a note on your dash till you train yourself to remember, I dunno.

[Justin86]

yea its the normal with our car.

[carotman]

The 88-89 shouldn't start without pressing the clutch. At least, my 89 doesn't :D

[SteveDX89]

The clutch safety thing was only for 89 model Accords. All the others you can start without pushing the clutch in. Push it in anyway as it's easier on your motor/drivetrain and will prevent any silly accidents.

[Aggressive Kitten]

<~~~ Relieved.

Thought that was one more thing I had to get fixed.

:thumbup:

[Blaaz]

Steve - you sure about that? I thought 88 and 89 were identical. On my 89, there is a switch that registers whent the clutch is depressed. My car won't crank unless the clutch is depressed. The switch will also disengage cruise control if clutch is pressed while cruise control is engaged. The switch looks like the switch on the brake pedal for the brake lights.

[SteveDX89]

Pretty sure it's an 89 only thing.

[PortugalFocus]

i've driven a 90 Golf that didnt eed the clutch depressed to start...

[Aggressive Kitten]

:nervous:

lol. :dunno:

[Malt Beverage]

My old MG midget didn't have a clutch switch, but i still depressed it when starting due to the habbit of driving my 89 LXi. Its generally a good idea to get in the habbit to prevent some dumb accidents.

[AccordEpicenter]

Somtimes the clutch pedal switches break. This can also make your cruise inop

[ICEMAN707]

hmmm sounds like your clutch's neutral safety switch either came loose or is broken. check under your clutch pedal. it should be a switch that looks similar to the brake light switch on the brake pedal. if you got that car as a used car, chances are the previous owner disabled it to be able to use remote start on the car (if that is the case). remote starts are usually for automatics, but if you can bypass the neutral safety switch, it can be made to work. maybe that could be what happened in your case. either previous owner disabled it, broken switch, loose wiring, etc.

[FyreDaug]

Why not just push the clutch in then? Solves all problems...

[Vinny]

Only 89 models have the second clutch switch to prevent them from starting without pushing the clutch in.

The 86-88 models have a single clutch switch mounted above the clutch pedal and its only purpose is for the cruise control system.

The 89's have a the cruise switch above the clutch pedal and a second clutch switch located above and behind the clutch pedal beside the fuse block and under the cruise module under the dash.

My 89 coupe would start with the clutch in or out but it had an alarm on it at one time so it was probably bypassed for a starter kill.

Either way its not a big deal and its not going to harm or break anything. If you are in the habit of pushing the clutch in to strat then stay in the habit. If you arent then make sure you leave the car out of gear when you try to start it so you dont jump into anything behind or infront of you.

[Keachman1]

What's up Kitten? Vinny nailed it exactly. The 88 accords do not have a neutral safety switch. My car is an 88 and does the same as yours and it hasn't been tampered with or bypassed. Just get in the habit of pressing in the clutch before you start the car or bump the shifter into neutral before cranking. It's a good idea to leave a manual trans car in first gear when you park which helps preventing it from rolling off if the parking brake isn't adjusted correctly or the rear brakes are worn. I think it even recommends that in the owners manual.

[lostforawhile]

now mine is an 86 and it didn't come with the cruise control yet iit had the switch wired in it won't start unless you push the clutch. there is a little plastic button on the pedal that actually pushes on the switch mine had cracked and fallen out that fooled the car into thinking the clutch was pushed.once i replaced the little plastic piece it wouldn't start without the clutch pressed. according to the wiring diagram that switch is also wired to the computer changes parameters on engine operating conditions in the carb cars. same thing happened with the brake switch. plastic doodad fell out brake lights wouldn't shut off. put in round head stove bolts they do the same thing. the lxi uses the same clutch switch the cruise and the computer use the same ground signal from the switch. i have a set of pedals i'm going to put in my car from an lxi so i can hook up the cruise and it's the same switch. i think a lot of them have the little plastic thingy that has fallen out. some of them might be wired different or something. if you are electrically minded you could use that switch to make a safety switch work, you would just need to wire a bosh relay like a starter disable and the ground side of the relay coil would go to that switch. you could eaisly wire a kill switch in series with it also/.

[lostforawhile]

i'm going to do a how to on how to install a safety relay probably in technical somewhere keep an eye out

[nutmeg_runner]

My 88 LXi never required clutch depression to start. I recall my driver education teacher stating that one advantage of the manual transmission was if you got stuck on a railroad crossing with a stalled vehicle you could just use the starter to move your car off the tracks before the train did.

[lostforawhile]

My 88 LXi never required clutch depression to start. I recall my driver education teacher stating that one advantage of the manual transmission was if you got stuck on a railroad crossing with a stalled vehicle you could just use the starter to move your car off the tracks before the train did.it's possible that someone installed a relay in there somewhere this requires more investigation. i've had almost every part off this car at some point never seen an extra relay. i do know that the switch goes to the computer but that is to adjust for different driving situations. where i grew up in northeast ohio (home of the rust speckled bondo bird, and the striped interstate barrel flower- they bloom in the spring on interstates all over ohio) they told us to make sure you have enough speed to coast over the tracks if you should stall. in other words don't tailgate the guy in front of you crossing the tracks.

[Cant Stop]

good god almighty!!. clutch saftey start switches are a new addition to manual cars, my 72 bug would start in gear, did you know that autocars have had this switch for years and if it breaks an automatic trans car will start in any gear as well, i know because my dad's ford pickup had a messed up auto gear select and i started it in drive once when it stalled at a light.

[lostforawhile]

on the auto it's call the nuetral safety switch, and these cars all have them it was mandated to be on all auto transmission cars when these were built. what we are talking about is the clutch safery switch some of the later model 3gs have them. we are trying to figure iout if some of the earlier ones had them also. they have a little plastic plug on the clutch arm that gets crumbly with age and if it falls out the clutch switch thinks the clutch is pushed.

[Low Tek]

my 86 S10 has the safety switch, and so does my 86 corolla coupe...