ok,ok.. another cold start issue

[itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU]

I have an 84 accord with 1.8L carb. long story short, a few months back it flooded and i stalled in the water. I checked the air cleaner once I got home and it was dry, and there was no water in the oil or the tranny fluids. since then when its around 50 degrees or colder car has difficulty starting or doesnt start at all. It will always start once, but dies seconds later. If i pump the gas it just turns over forever. If i wait a second or two or If i take the key out, for some reason it will start and idle . As soon as I touch the gas pedal it will loose rpm and die.... Now after about 15-20 minutes or so ( of starting and dying, starting and dying) I can get out of the driveway..just to have the car die at the end of every block,, for about five blocks or so. Now if I wait until its warm outside the car runs and starts perfectly (its frustrating).

I have taken carb cleaner, replaced plugs and wires, both fuel filters, tried a pencil to hold the choke open ( a trick that worked on my 66 chevy el camino) before i replace the carb or rebuild it ( not looking foreward to that) I would like a little help to get started ( no pun intended) LOL..

I will after reading other post start and check my vacuum hoses, etc.,

[itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU]

also....the car has 225,000 miles, looks to be all oem and all is still stock parts. I know that timing may be an issue, and or the distributor, but my gutt tells me its in the choke or the carb somehow.

[Dr_Snooz]

I'm thinking more along the lines of distributor or igniter. Gutts are good and you should listen to them, but you should test too. Find out why the car is not starting, is it not getting fuel or spark? You can test for spark with a spark tester from Autozone (~$6). If you're getting good spark, then test for fuel by using starting fluid. Have someone turn the engine over and then squirt the starting fluid into the carb. Do those and report back.

Note: use starting fluid sparingly. It dilutes your engine oil and you can spin a bearing easily if you use too much. If this scares you, you can just pour gas down the carb for the same effect.

[itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU]

oh, yeah.... one other thing I must tell you. while the car is on,, the battery light flickers all the time. Also it get really bright sometimes also.. I know that my battery is ok. so could that be a distributor or ignitor problem showing itself?

[YK86]

How high was the water when it flooded? The battery light flickering tends to be the alternator (bad brushes or malfunctioning voltage regulator).

[Buzo]

How high was the water when it flooded? The battery light flickering tends to be the alternator (bad brushes or malfunctioning voltage regulator).

Or it can be a false contact in the alternator's wire at the battery + terminal. Check if the crimp is thight enough.

I would recommend you to increase your engine RPMs so the car don't die, then start cheking per Dr Snooz recommendations.

[itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU]

How high was the water when it flooded?

it was near as I can tell about 8 inches to 14 inches...
While I was at work, we took off the air filter to take a look at the choke.. it seemed to operate fine

BUT a coworker noticed that some rust had formed on the top of the carb on two screws...

Curious??? Could that be from the water???

[itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU]

Or it can be a false contact in the alternator's wire at the battery + terminal. Check if the crimp is thight enough.

I would recommend you to increase your engine RPMs so the car don't die, then start cheking per Dr Snooz recommendations.

I will ck those tomorrow.. Now as per giving it more gas??? When I give it gas that is when it spudders and dies...

[lostforawhile]

have you checked the alternator? also check it's terminals for corrosion, if I remember right, those have the under body fuel pump, have you checked the pump for water damage, or it's terminals? if they were full of water they may have corroded, that pump may have been under water

[itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU]

[QUOTE=Dr_Snooz;1062550]I'm thinking more along the lines of distributor or igniter. If you're getting good spark, then test for fuel by using starting fluid. Have someone turn the engine over and then squirt the starting fluid into the carb. Do those and report back. QUOTE]

ok. tested the plug wires for ohm resistance, also the ignition coil for current as per the chiltons manual. the test show that all those components are ok.
I also tested for vacuum leaks and all seemed ok.
NOW FOR THE QUESTION OF THE DAY!!!!

I wonder if I can take away some of the unnecessary vacuum hoses out?

THERE WAS SOME SORT OF LIQUID IN THE TIP OF THE IGNITION COIL.
Is that normal?

Also to test the fuel pump, How could I do that?
If anyone could help with letting me know which ones i need and the others I dont, that would be helpful.

AND WHERE DOES THAT LEAVE ME AS FAR AS THE DYING ON COLD DAYS?

[Dr_Snooz]

Find out why the car is not starting, is it not getting fuel or spark?

You should try this.

[lostforawhile]

[QUOTE=itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU;1063725]

I'm thinking more along the lines of distributor or igniter. If you're getting good spark, then test for fuel by using starting fluid. Have someone turn the engine over and then squirt the starting fluid into the carb. Do those and report back. QUOTE]

ok. tested the plug wires for ohm resistance, also the ignition coil for current as per the chiltons manual. the test show that all those components are ok.
I also tested for vacuum leaks and all seemed ok.
NOW FOR THE QUESTION OF THE DAY!!!!

I wonder if I can take away some of the unnecessary vacuum hoses out?

THERE WAS SOME SORT OF LIQUID IN THE TIP OF THE IGNITION COIL.
Is that normal?

Also to test the fuel pump, How could I do that?
If anyone could help with letting me know which ones i need and the others I dont, that would be helpful.

AND WHERE DOES THAT LEAVE ME AS FAR AS THE DYING ON COLD DAYS?

liquid in the tip of the ignition coil? does it look like oil?

[lostforawhile]

most ignition coils are filled with oil to keep them cool, if it's leaking out the coil, it's probably causing a bad connection since oil is an insulator, or the ignition coil is shot, if it's leaking cooling fluid like those reactors in japan, it's time for a new one. you don't have anyone mad at you,or who would want to pull a prank on you? it's an old prank to squirt some oil in the end of a coil, then stick the wire back on, it will drive someone nuts trying to figure it out

[itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU]

most ignition coils are filled with oil to keep them cool, if it's leaking out the coil, it's probably causing a bad connection since oil is an insulator, or the ignition coil is shot, if it's leaking cooling fluid like those reactors in japan, it's time for a new one. you don't have anyone mad at you,or who would want to pull a prank on you? it's an old prank to squirt some oil in the end of a coil, then stick the wire back on, it will drive someone nuts trying to figure it out

im going to change it out tomorrow along with a new rotor, new dist. cap, wire, and plugs...
I also noticed today (advice from a mechanic in town ) to ck my ignition switch..
So when it died on me , on the road, I wiggled the key and it actually started back up. so Im going to take the ignition out to check for a loose wire tonight

But im still going to change all the other stuff anyway... I'll get back to you on what happens.

[itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU]

[QUOTE=lostforawhile;1063797]

liquid in the tip of the ignition coil? does it look like oil?

It is clear with,greasy, and no smell

[2ndGenGuy]

The ignition switch going out is actually not an uncommon problem. If you jiggled the key, that's a pretty sure sign of that switch going bad.

[lostforawhile]

[QUOTE=itsa84HONDA HOWDAREU;1064458]

It is clear with,greasy, and no smell

that just sounds like silicone dielectric grease, thats put on ignition terminals to prevent corrosion, if you wiggled the key and it restarted, you just need a key switch, very common issue, the contacts in the switch get burned over time, you just take off the upper and lower plastic covers around the switch, unbolt or unscrew two screws on the switch and it comes off of the back of the mechanical switch. unplug it and reverse