new to the board, having tons of problems with my car

[LUX88LXI]

Hey everybody,
I used to be a part of this board a few years ago, I just bought another Honda Accord and I wanted to come back and be a part of this again. It's changed a lot since I was here last :) Anyway, I just bought this 1988 Accord LX-i Auto. I got it for $400 and it has a few issues... I was wondering if anyone could help me out with one or all of them? :)

1st: The engine is making a tapping noise. I adjusted all the valves but it still does it exactly the same, and it doesn't even sound to me like its coming from under the valve cover. I was thinking it might be the alternator or p/s pump or something? Do they make noise like that when they are going out? I don't think its any danger to ruining the engine although its pretty loud and mettalic

2nd: The engine idle is way screwed up, it idles at 2500 when i first start it up, i can actually pull the gas pedal with my foot and get it where it needs to go, but when i hit the gas, it just goes right back up to 2500-3000 even when the engine is warmed up. Would this be a vacuum leak possibly?

3rd: The temp gauge doesn't work, I thought i saw it on today, but i can't get it to register, even though i know the car is warm. Which sending unit is the one for the gauge? I know that our crazy cars have 4 temp sending units LOL...

4th: this car has a ridiculous alarm that I want to take out (it might be causing some of these electrical problems) where is a typical place that an installer would put the alarm module so that I can just unplug it and throw it in the trash?

and last (there's probably more lol), the CEL came on while I was running the car today. I turned off the engine and looked at the light under the driver's seat when i turned the key back on. It blinked twice then it would pause and blink twice again, continuously, where is a good place to get the ECU codes so I can find out what this means...

Ok thanks for any help and its great to be back :) well when my car finally runs right anyway lol

Thanks!

[Acid X]

In response to #2, thats normal. The car needs to warm up, so it makes itself idle high to warm up quicker.. It will usually take about 2-3 minutes to warm up, and then you just tap the gas to drop the idle back down to normal.

Thats all i can help you with.

['89AccordLX(Rus)]

Hey everybody,
I used to be a part of this board a few years ago, I just bought another Honda Accord and I wanted to come back and be a part of this again. It's changed a lot since I was here last :) Anyway, I just bought this 1988 Accord LX-i Auto. I got it for $400 and it has a few issues... I was wondering if anyone could help me out with one or all of them? :)
1st: The engine is making a tapping noise. I adjusted all the valves but it still does it exactly the same, and it doesn't even sound to me like its coming from under the valve cover. I was thinking it might be the alternator or p/s pump or something? Do they make noise like that when they are going out? I don't think its any danger to ruining the engine although its pretty loud and mettalic
2nd: The engine idle is way screwed up, it idles at 2500 when i first start it up, i can actually pull the gas pedal with my foot and get it where it needs to go, but when i hit the gas, it just goes right back up to 2500-3000 even when the engine is warmed up. Would this be a vacuum leak possibly?
3rd: The temp gauge doesn't work, I thought i saw it on today, but i can't get it to register, even though i know the car is warm. Which sending unit is the one for the gauge? I know that our crazy cars have 4 temp sending units LOL...
4th: this car has a ridiculous alarm that I want to take out (it might be causing some of these electrical problems) where is a typical place that an installer would put the alarm module so that I can just unplug it and throw it in the trash?
and last (there's probably more lol), the CEL came on while I was running the car today. I turned off the engine and looked at the light under the driver's seat when i turned the key back on. It blinked twice then it would pause and blink twice again, continuously, where is a good place to get the ECU codes so I can find out what this means...
Ok thanks for any help and its great to be back :) well when my car finally runs right anyway lol
Thanks!

1) I don't think its likely that any of the accessories would make a tapping noise. It may, however, be an emissions control valve or something in that system making noise (some get pretty noisy). As long as the noise is not originating from the top or bottom of the engine, you should be alright.

2) Check the throttle cable. If there is not enough slack in the cable, it will not close the butterfly all the way. Your FI model does not require an elaborate warm-up sequence like the carbed Accords. It should start and idle at relatively normal RPM. The fact that you can get the idle down by pulling on the pedal points to an adjustment problem. The cable passes through a holder before the throttlebody. This is where you can adjust the amount of play. Have the car running during this procedure so that you can give it just enough slack without going overboard.

3) You temperature sending unit is in the thermostat housing. THere are two sensors total in the housing. I can't tell you which one is the gauge sensor. Someone with more EFI experience should be able to help you with this one.

4) The alarm is usually mounted underneath the steering column. Remove the access panel above the driver's footwell and trace any aftermarket wiring. Chances are, you'll find your alarm. Make sure that you take care of any starter-kill features that the alarm may have had.

For ECU codes visit the How-To/FAQ section of the website. I remember there being a how-to or a FAQ in regard to decyphering ECU codes.

Found it:
ECU Codes (http://www.3geez.com/forum/showthread.php?t=185)

Hope this helps.

[shepherd79]

Hey everybody,
I used to be a part of this board a few years ago, I just bought another Honda Accord and I wanted to come back and be a part of this again. It's changed a lot since I was here last :) Anyway, I just bought this 1988 Accord LX-i Auto. I got it for $400 and it has a few issues... I was wondering if anyone could help me out with one or all of them? :)
1st: The engine is making a tapping noise. I adjusted all the valves but it still does it exactly the same, and it doesn't even sound to me like its coming from under the valve cover. I was thinking it might be the alternator or p/s pump or something? Do they make noise like that when they are going out? I don't think its any danger to ruining the engine although its pretty loud and mettalic
2nd: The engine idle is way screwed up, it idles at 2500 when i first start it up, i can actually pull the gas pedal with my foot and get it where it needs to go, but when i hit the gas, it just goes right back up to 2500-3000 even when the engine is warmed up. Would this be a vacuum leak possibly?
3rd: The temp gauge doesn't work, I thought i saw it on today, but i can't get it to register, even though i know the car is warm. Which sending unit is the one for the gauge? I know that our crazy cars have 4 temp sending units LOL...
4th: this car has a ridiculous alarm that I want to take out (it might be causing some of these electrical problems) where is a typical place that an installer would put the alarm module so that I can just unplug it and throw it in the trash?
and last (there's probably more lol), the CEL came on while I was running the car today. I turned off the engine and looked at the light under the driver's seat when i turned the key back on. It blinked twice then it would pause and blink twice again, continuously, where is a good place to get the ECU codes so I can find out what this means...
Ok thanks for any help and its great to be back :) well when my car finally runs right anyway lol
Thanks!

1. tapping could be from anywhere. just open the hood and listen to the tapping. you can pin point almost exactly from where it is comming from. if the tapping sound comes from the engine side, listen to PS pump and water pump. If the sound is comming from transmition side. you may want to check the oil level in tranny. One of my transmitions did that when the oil level was low.
2. Fast Idle. EFI engine should be idling at 1400-1450 RPM when it is cold. I would start with throttle cable adjustment. You want to make sure that it has some little play and it doesn't pull the throttle open. (after adjusting throttle, you may have to adjust regular idle). After that i would adjust the fast idle. it is easy to do. and after that i would make final adjustment to regular idle.
3. if your gauge doesn't work, you may want to check the wires that go to the sensor. On thermostat there is a sensor on the side with one wire. make sure it is connected.
4. Alarm, i wouldn't just disconnect and dump it into a trash. It may have starter disconnect wired. If you just disconnect, you won't be able to start it. If i was you, i would find the unit (should be under the dash) and start disconnecting one wire at a time.

[LUX88LXI]

Thanks everybody this helps a lot! now i gotta go get back to work on the car ;) lol... Oh, one more thing... the headlights are all weird, one works on high beam and its fine... On low beam they both work but they get really dim, Where should I start with this problem, could it be a relay or something

Thanks!

[kaltenacht]

Thanks everybody this helps a lot! now i gotta go get back to work on the car ;) lol... Oh, one more thing... the headlights are all weird, one works on high beam and its fine... On low beam they both work but they get really dim, Where should I start with this problem, could it be a relay or something
Thanks!

Check all your fuses and relays making sure you have the proper connection... If that checks out them suspect a poor connection w/ the dimmer switch. I would take it out and clean it up and make sure your getting the proper connection. Refer to the online shop manual you can download from this link...

http://www.pauldesign.ru/honda/shopmanual.html

[LUX88LXI]

Hey everybody thanks a lot for your help, I was able to clear everything up except the headlights and the engine tapping. I was driving the car last night and I noticed that the tapping (which sounds exactly like a valve that has too much lash, but I know for a fact that that isn't what it is) goes away when i let off the gas, any ideas? also, intermittently the tach will act funny (move all over the place) sometimes and the engine starts to run a little rough, could this be a loose electric connection in the distributor?

Thanks everybody for helping me get this car back on the road! :) it was really neglected...

[Tecknixia]

The tach acting weird and dimming lights sounds like a alternator regulator problem, either that or a bad ground.

The tapping... I would definitely check your timing... if it happens when the gas is pressed it could be pinging... you could also try putting in a higher octane gas for the moment.

['89AccordLX(Rus)]

The tachometer gets its signal from the coil. Very often, the tachometer will malfunction if the coil is failing or if the distributor is faulty. Take off the distributor cap and make sure its clean inside. If you see red dust inside, get ready to replace the distributor in the near future. A failing distributor can also make noise that can be best described as little rocks bumping around inside the distributor. This is a sign of a bad bearing (which also causes ther red dust). You should be able to hear this with the engine at idle. Hope this helps.

[LUX88LXI]

I will check for the red dust when i do work on the car tomorrow, I hope that its not the distributor, because i know they don't grow on trees lol... Thanks!