gah! rough idle below 1000 and dies on startup

[frantik]

Ok so i go to get in my car all giddy bout winning AOM... i'm messing with my ipod letting the car warm up, and all of the sudden it starts to rough idle. i try to give it gas but it just keeps losing rpm and dies.

now whenever i try to start it the same thing happens. if the car starts out above 1000 rpms then it seems to run fine until it drops down. then it will be super rough and sound like maybe even knocking.

since when i gave it gas it doesnt seem to respond i was thinking fuel system.. i looked in the shop manual and it said stuck injector could be a cause.. i looked and one of my injector seals is definitely leaking and the injector has lots of crud on it. i checked the spark plug on that cylinder and there was a lot of black soot on the plug as well.

i don't really know how to diagnose the problem so any help would be appreciated

[MessyHonda]

time for a new car.....
























lol...jp

[russiankid]

Did you check if the ECU is throwing an codes? Does the car even run after a while? I read some symptoms about the TPS and it can cause poor idle, stumbling during acceleration, etc.

[frantik]

the car wouldnt stay running even if i gave it gas once it dropped under 1000

i will check the ecu codes though thanks

[Civic Accord Honda]

i will trade u a car that starts right up for your car .. deal?

[Whiter]

when was the last time you cleaned up all the idle valves? my car does this same thing but it normally symotomizes when im half way to work and then im stranded in the cold and yesterday was the first day of snow i had to scrape ice off my window. not good. Also when it drops below 1000 my oil light comes on, i assume its because my oil pressure isnt that good i have a crasy leak, cleaning the injectors couldnt hurt ill be doing that today but yea WHEN you find out what is the cause Please PLEASE message me or something i need to get this fixed i cant even drive anymore its so inconvinient.

thanks in advance and goodluck

oh and maybe just pull your plug and scrape the contacts for now with some low grit sand paper because that build up cant be too good.

[shepherd79]

there are two things you need to check first it is a fuel pump.
also check the ignition. sounds too me you may have a weak spark. check the distributor and other parts.

[frantik]

ok I went out today and here is a little more information

I checked the ecu and the led was dark the whole time

When I start up the car it warmed up fine again, but as soon as it got warm it started to die. the gas seemed to work fine during warmup, though it might have been a tiny bit sluggish.

Then once it warms up it rough idles and does not respond correctly when i give it gas. Sometimes the intake makes a funny muted bogging sound when i hit the gas, other times nothing happens and the car just loses rpms. then all of the sudden instead of dying it will recover, the drop recover, drop, die.

is there a way to check if the fuel pump is bad without replacing it?

[Whiter]

dude i have that EXACT same problem, when i touch the gas it clugs out and then i take my foot back and it will kick up like nothing happened, the exhaust is also a million times louder. when it starts idling rough just like yours...

now what i want to know is does my 89 exi have a idle control solenoid valve or a egr valve? and im thinking it has the egr but how do i clean the egr or adjust it or whatever i have to do to fix this retarted problem

[frantik]

ok well i have no idea what happened but i took it into a shop last week cause i didnt know how to fix it and they called today and are like we cant find anything wrong with it.. i take it for a test drive and it ran fine so i dunno wtf.. cost me almost $200 though

[Hauntd ca3]

sounds like it running uber rich to me. or you got an ignition break down.
find some one with an ex gas analyser and startit from cold until it faults.
sometimes when the in jectors get hot they start to leak and you can get what you describe.
check out your ign leads and plugs as well.
someone with a tunescope would be handier as you can check ign probs as they happen.

[Demon1024]

i dunno bought the knock but it sounds like you're fast idle valve works the engine till it warms up then the idle tries to go down an the intake air control valve isn't working hence your crazy idle. i thought i had a similar problem but checking/cleaning this is almost free (if you've got everything you need) ohmeter solvent, here this helped me...
http://www.ef-honda.com/ben/Badidle.php
when i plugged my iacv hole on the tb the car almost died so maybee yours is stuck shut
ANYONE: "this would cause the car to run rich not getting the extra air at idle =fouled plugs"?
clean it and see what happens! hell clean the fast idle too

[AccordB20A]

EFI is usually ftw. So it has to be ignition at fault (thats the only thing tht makes my car run like ass)

[A20A1]

My EFI car started to sputter when I pressed the gas because the alternator was on it's way out and would charge some times and then not charge at all, and then one day the car just died in the middle of the road. I changed the battery and connections but it didn't help, only when the alternator was replaced everything was okay.

[Whiter]

its been a month or 2 of running like a monster truck and i just throttle body cleaned my iacv again and this time it worked and now my car idles decently for a 89, this also got rid of the sputtering when i hit the gas and my acceleration is tripled i actually have to release the clutch slower now or the wheels spin every time. but my ecu is throwing a code 14 still and every once in a while at a stoplight randomly the idle will drop and the oil light will flick on. note. i have a pretty wicked oil leak

[Cheeseburger]

ok well i have no idea what happened but i took it into a shop last week cause i didnt know how to fix it and they called today and are like we cant find anything wrong with it.. i take it for a test drive and it ran fine so i dunno wtf.. cost me almost $200 though

ouch! but im glad nothing major was wrong.

[frantik]

ok guys.. get ready for this... you might want to sit down

ok.. so i got it back and it was running fine right when i got it so i was like cool it's fine. then a week or two later it started acting up, but not as bad.. so i was like whatever at least the car runs and doesnt die

well a few weeks ago it woudnt start again.. I was pissed and took it back other to the car place and they took a look at it again.


now, both times I took it in I had been low on gas, but figured it wasn't empty cause the gas light hadn't come on. SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO


$300 later it turns out that my freaking gas light had burned out and I had been driving around with my tank almost bone dry like 24/7 which is why it wouldnt start and/or would act up especially during warmup when the choke is wide open LOL!!!! what a fucking n00b i am

[Soopitup]

nice buddy, almost a horror story..

Instead of throwing 5 or 10 bucks in here or there when i am low on gas, i always just throw 5 or 10 bucks in to keep it full...its nice to always have a full tank..unless you need the light car for some racing

[skycam_313]

that sucks.....



but still

[MessyHonda]

haha....im sad.....i put 40 bucks of shell gas on my car...and that same day i crashed it....the tank is still full

[Demon1024]

haha....im sad.....i put 40 bucks of shell gas on my car...and that same day i crashed it....the tank is still full

I've always been worried bout that or it breaking down when i fill up, but i've heard the way gas evaporates quikly it's better for fuel economy to keep it full keeping the gas with the least amount of room to evaporate while in your tank. don't know how/if this applies to sealed systems. i always fill it up then run it out to determine gas mileage to keep an eye on how the car is running

[MessyHonda]

dont worry...my car will be up and running soon...and il have a tank of gas so i can take out the girl friend

[AccordB20A]

well MY digital dash accurately tells me how many liters i have left so good luck to me running out of fuel:P

[frantik]

yeah unless the digis burn out like my light did lol. pretty cool though i want one