ummmm ... complicated

[CHonda]

Greetings to all my fellow 3g driv3rs out there ... like you all, i am also in love ..... although this probably appears as my first or second post ... i have been religiously following this
site since i first purchased my accord in 2003... before i consult anyone or anything ... i refer to my 'honda bible' (aka. 3geez.com )

i have a few technical questions and also some opinions from others .. i've searched all the forums and have done my research, so now it's time for me to ask to clear up anything that didnt click with me ...

where to start ...

-1988 Honda Accord EX-I sedan (purchased in Canada)
-247, XXX km on the engine and still goin strong .. (as far as i know)
-recent repairs:

-both rear upper control arms, water pump, timing belt, radiator, muffler, alternator, re-machined rear drums, service rear brakes

-people always ask " ..What wrong with you ... buy something new ..?"; my response .. "im in love.."

anyways
1) my car once stalled with me in a grocery store parkin lot .. started it and it just died .. had to wait about 5 mins and the only way i got it going was startin it in first gear and feedin it gas to get the car moving ... once it was moving, it wouldnt turn off .. uncertain if this is because of the tranny or alternator although the alternator was just recently replaced ..

2) if the car stalls now, it wont start again for at least 5mins .. needs a lil bit of time to collect and heal itself

3) when i brake, there is a loud clunking sound coming from the rear passenger side, that you can actually feel through the floor .. i've read in my '3g bible' that it could either be (i) ball joints (ii) rear brakes (iii) or my suspension (shocks and struts)

4) just the other day, i was makin a left turn at about 10-20 mphs, and the steering just 'fell out' .. best way to describe it is that it was like the tire either fell off or i was riding on a flat tire .. when i stepped out to look at the car ... both wheels were facing inward like they were cross-eyed ... looked really weird.... from what i've read ... im thinking (i) tie rod ends (inner and outer) (ii) maybe a new steering rack or (iii) new control arms and ball joints for the front now ..

5) few months back, I was driving in 5th gear on the highway when it just cut out ... engine did not die or stall, just 5th gear was gone and the engine was revving high like i had the car in neutral ... im aware that its either my synchros gones or imma need a whole new tranny .. highway driving is no longer a possibility because 4th gear just isnt proper enuff for the speeds


my baby has been off the road for about 3-4 weeks now as i've been stack piling $$$ to fix it, and I just wanna seek advice before i goes about doing it .. here is what i am thinkin

1) do compression test to determine if my engine is still good and up to par
2) if engine is still good .. i wanna swap in a whole new tranny .. (rebuild or new purchase of a tranny..?.. any opinions .. got quoted almost 500$ (CAD) for this .. wow ..)
3) about the steering issue ...get them to check steering rack and if its okay, just get them to replace the tie rod ends and the upper control arms to Prelude upper control arms and ball joints ..(thanx AZmike for the lil info)
4)with regards to the knocking/clunking when i brake ... i was gonna buy new suspension in hopes of fixing it .. i've read that a lot of you are using Koni reds (struts) for the front and Tokico HP struts (for the rear) with H&R/Neuspeed springs or Tokico springs .. my shop mechanic suggested go KYB all the way around, and I just wanted some other opinions from my fellow 3g drivers .. this mechanic apparently has the fastest civic in Canada (or North America .. dont remem correct) so i assume he knows what he is talkin about ... but still .. i consult my 'bible' for advice ...

im thinking if take care off all off this .. the clunking sound i get when brakin should be gone .. i will have my 5th gear again ... and my steering will be back to normal but off course a lil better with the suspension upgrade ...

thnx in advance ... peaCe

ps. pics to come sooooon

[Oldblueaccord]

Greetings to all my fellow 3g driv3rs out there ... like you all, i am also in love ..... although this probably appears as my first or second post ... i have been religiously following this
site since i first purchased my accord in 2003... before i consult anyone or anything ... i refer to my 'honda bible' (aka. 3geez.com )

i have a few technical questions and also some opinions from others .. i've searched all the forums and have done my research, so now it's time for me to ask to clear up anything that didnt click with me ...

where to start ...

-1988 Honda Accord EX-I sedan (purchased in Canada)
-247, XXX km on the engine and still goin strong .. (as far as i know)
-recent repairs:

-both rear upper control arms, water pump, timing belt, radiator, muffler, alternator, re-machined rear drums, service rear brakes

-people always ask " ..What wrong with you ... buy something new ..?"; my response .. "im in love.."

anyways
1) my car once stalled with me in a grocery store parkin lot .. started it and it just died .. had to wait about 5 mins and the only way i got it going was startin it in first gear and feedin it gas to get the car moving ... once it was moving, it wouldnt turn off .. uncertain if this is because of the tranny or alternator although the alternator was just recently replaced ..

2) if the car stalls now, it wont start again for at least 5mins .. needs a lil bit of time to collect and heal itself

3) when i brake, there is a loud clunking sound coming from the rear passenger side, that you can actually feel through the floor .. i've read in my '3g bible' that it could either be (i) ball joints (ii) rear brakes (iii) or my suspension (shocks and struts)

4) just the other day, i was makin a left turn at about 10-20 mphs, and the steering just 'fell out' .. best way to describe it is that it was like the tire either fell off or i was riding on a flat tire .. when i stepped out to look at the car ... both wheels were facing inward like they were cross-eyed ... looked really weird.... from what i've read ... im thinking (i) tie rod ends (inner and outer) (ii) maybe a new steering rack or (iii) new control arms and ball joints for the front now ..

5) few months back, I was driving in 5th gear on the highway when it just cut out ... engine did not die or stall, just 5th gear was gone and the engine was revving high like i had the car in neutral ... im aware that its either my synchros gones or imma need a whole new tranny .. highway driving is no longer a possibility because 4th gear just isnt proper enuff for the speeds


my baby has been off the road for about 3-4 weeks now as i've been stack piling $$$ to fix it, and I just wanna seek advice before i goes about doing it .. here is what i am thinkin

1) do compression test to determine if my engine is still good and up to par
2) if engine is still good .. i wanna swap in a whole new tranny .. (rebuild or new purchase of a tranny..?.. any opinions .. got quoted almost 500$ (CAD) for this .. wow ..)
3) about the steering issue ...get them to check steering rack and if its okay, just get them to replace the tie rod ends and the upper control arms to Prelude upper control arms and ball joints ..(thanx AZmike for the lil info)
4)with regards to the knocking/clunking when i brake ... i was gonna buy new suspension in hopes of fixing it .. i've read that a lot of you are using Koni reds (struts) for the front and Tokico HP struts (for the rear) with H&R/Neuspeed springs or Tokico springs .. my shop mechanic suggested go KYB all the way around, and I just wanted some other opinions from my fellow 3g drivers .. this mechanic apparently has the fastest civic in Canada (or North America .. dont remem correct) so i assume he knows what he is talkin about ... but still .. i consult my 'bible' for advice ...

im thinking if take care off all off this .. the clunking sound i get when brakin should be gone .. i will have my 5th gear again ... and my steering will be back to normal but off course a lil better with the suspension upgrade ...

thnx in advance ... peaCe

ps. pics to come sooooon

whew you have some very starnge problems oe im not understandeing you so well.


The steering going out or not responding is the steering rack. BUT once it does that it should be a gonner not come back and act normally. You might have a broken tie rod jacking up one side of the car and seeing what the wheel will do is a start. it should be attached to the other side no movement.

The stalling then stating could be the main relay that controls the fuel pump. The wierd one is that the motor does not shut off? like at all ? thats a problem with maybe the key switch ( ignition switch) or i would guess or a major wiring problem. I have replaced both components in my car so its not unusal.

So you dont have 5 th gear at all now ?? its probably gone and you need to replace the tranny or the 5th gear shaft. You can safely run your car in 4th gear. It will go about a 100 mph in 4th with the rpms at 6k. thats not really a problem for 2-3 hours really. I generally try to keep the rpms right around 3k or so at all speeds.

with that many miles its not to hard to comprehend the problems your having. Just gonna have to pony up some money and fix it.


wp

[mr eff]

clunking while braking and the fact that your suspension blew up during a turn both point at tie rods as a problem. usually you can replace them with the rack for a package deal

as for struts, nothing you've described could be linked to bad springs/struts. if you want to just replace them, i'd go with KYB personally... unless you really want to begin working on performance-oriented suspension

i have nothing to offer with your starting problem. i'd need more information about its behavior -- sounds it makes while cranking, before dying, when trying to crank after it's dead. could be any number of things

you can inspect 5th gear without removing the transmission, if you were so inclined. otherwise a rebuilt transmission will cost you about what you've quoted, not to mention labor time if you're not doing it yourself. if you've got the thing dropped, may as well replace the clutch and release bearing preventatively.

good luck

[Oldblueaccord]

Dude you must be cursed :bowrofl:

theres 2 responses to your question but the browser shows 0 replies. pretty funny


BTT




wp

[3G Jester]

sounds like you got your work cut out for you. but it also sounds like youve done your hw.

first off...how old is your fuel filter? my baby died a few times and all she needed was a new filter...gets old and clogged and she cant drink.......then check your engine just to be sure its worth putting money into and for any suspension...and yeah check your rack and tie rods. you can even do a decent visual inspection of your suspension...just jack her up and take off the wheel....grab a flash light if the light is low and feel all the suspension parts for cracks, breaks, ect. buy a manual if you dont already have one...or get the online one from paul...a russian 3geez member who scanned the entire manual into .pdf adobe acrobat format. if the suspension looks like it should according (heh..bad pun) to the diagrams and everything seems to be in place then do a more thuorough investigation...bring her to a shop if you dont have the resourses, time or dont feel comfortable with your knowledge/skills...and as you said...have them check out the steering rack and inner suspension/steering crap. as far as the clunking..you could take your drums apart and make sure they are alright, and everything is working as it should. dont forget about j/y's...good for all kindsa parts and if you find all the SE-i goodies you could always do the rear drum to disk conversion. some people even get rims (i think they need to be 17''+ ) and do the AEM big break conversion all around...and that gets you rotors in the back i do beleive......but thats a costly upgrade. but i dont know what kinda money you have..mabe you got 4 grand already amassed.
any ways...good luck and happy hunting.

[3G Jester]

also..what is yoour sig....looks like chinese or japanese writing on the bottle...cant read.

Wo bu zhi dau! wo mei kan ni de ping shui hou shi jiu!
if only 3geez hosted chinese characters i could have writen it in characters :)

[CHonda]

first i wanna say thanx to the responses i got from all .. your advice/opinion is appreciated...


The steering going out or not responding is the steering rack. BUT once it does that it should be a gonner not come back and act normally. You might have a broken tie rod jacking up one side of the car and seeing what the wheel will do is a start. it should be attached to the other side no movement.

-steering was and is gone .. it never came back or acted normally again .. the car had to get towed away


The wierd one is that the motor does not shut off? like at all ? thats a problem with maybe the key switch ( ignition switch) or i would guess or a major wiring problem. I have replaced both components in my car so its not unusal.

-the motor shuts off/dies as soon as i release the clutch .. i got it going my just forcing the gas as i released the clutch so it didnt have time to stall, but once it was going for about 10-15 metres, it wouldnt turn off .. its like the little bit of driving got it to run continuous again without dying .
- with regards to sound .. sounds just like it would if you released the clutch too quickly and the car stalls.. thats the best way i can think to describe sound an everything .. no unusual sounds, it just 'stalls' so to say .

-about 5th .. i run 4th gear for highway driving, and try to keep it around 3k - 3.5k rpm ... sorry for whoever is behind me, but ah well ...


clunking while braking and the fact that your suspension blew up during a turn both point at tie rods as a problem. usually you can replace them with the rack for a package deal

-congrats on accord of the month ... uhh .. i dont wanna sound stupid and correct me if im wrong but i thought the tie rods were at the front of the vehicle, so im unsure how the sound and feel is comin from the rear .. unless im mistaken .. also .. if i do a sudden brake, the clunk is unnoticable .. mainly when i gradually slow down do you hear it

3g Jester .. uncertain on age of fuel filter but sure it was changed during its earlier tune up that was done way back ... (8-12 months ago ..) and i dont drive my car in the winter .. ill double check that again though .. uh .. got that manual about 1 or 2 yrs ago from paul when i first registered with 3geez.com


Dude you must be cursed
-i really think i am .. but whats also funny is that all the bad stuff that has happened has happened to me about 5 mins or less from my house and not on the highway or at higher speeds where it could have been worse ....

the sig is a rum bottle .. and those are just symbols on it .. no character or anything of that sort