problems with high idleing, diesles after shut off, and hesitation.

[whiteLX]

I'm new to this forum but not to working on older Honda cars. but i have never owned a carb Honda engine. i just picked up an 87 accord sedan, has 174k miles on it. idles between 2000 and 3000, and when i turn the ignition off it still tries to run. i know the distributor has one mounting tab broken off and i have heard of people having this problem because of the carb is starting to go bad. any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Austin's 86 LX]

I had the same problem when I got mine. A carb rebuild or Weber swap would be the way to go. The Weber gave me quite a bit of trouble at first though so if you go that route be ready to do lots of adjusting. Once it's in there though highway driving improves a lot, I used to have trouble getting mine to go once I was up around 60 mph beforehand.

[Dr_Snooz]

Sounds like your idle speed is turned up too high. Try backing it down. That should tame the run-on too. Having the timing off can also cause the run-on, so definitely get the distributor fixed too. A dirty engine can also cause run-on, so try some injector cleaner.

[whiteLX]

where is the idle speed adjuster, i did run a can of sea foam cleaner through the fuel system. i do keep finding vacuum leaks. i guess I'm actually going to have to buy almost a whole roll of vacuum hose to replace all of them. the amount of vacuum hoses on the A20A1 engines are ridiculous.

[89T]

check the timing, and spray the hoses in spurts with carb cleaner. If there is a difference in idle, you have a leak.

[THEONE>>>]

Well I am having the exact same problems. they are intermittent! Some time it runs on . Sometimes no. Sometimes it will start idling high then go away. Sometimes it seems a lil stumbly until bout 3000 rpms.I too have a broken tab on dist. But have fixed that and it wasnt the problem. Some of the "other" issues were when letting off gas while accelling it would burp "like a temp lack of fuel"....replaced both fuel filters and that problem is curing. also A can of gas treatment. ........I believe since they are intermittent for me that it probably isnt the timing??? Probably not idle adjustment????? and most likely a leak.. that can be effected intermmittently. Am i wrong in this line of thought?????
Any suggestions ? And sorry i couldnt help the OP. While waiting for posts I will check timing and look for leaks. Thank yall

[Dr_Snooz]

I think your carb is done.

[whiteLX]

I turned down the idle speed adjuster, and it seemed to bring the rpm down but only when i pull up on the throttle pedal. I tried lubing my throttle cable but that didn't help any. I have tried looking for a throttle cable through local parts houses but no one carries it, would that be a dealer only item? as far as the distributor goes, I pulled the cap and rotor off and looked at them they have a lot of corrosion on them. i am going to be replacing the distributor, cap and rotor this week.

[POS carb]

sounds like you have a large vacuum leak.check the hose that hooks up to the idle boost dashpot

[whiteLX]

i have replaced the distributor. it idles better, but still keeps the rpms at around 2500+. then i drove it home and turned it off, now it wont even crank over. i thought i may have overheated, but when i looked at the temp gauge it read normal operating temperature. this car is really starting to piss me off with the random problems. I figured it would have problems being an 87 but damn.

[whiteLX]

ok it seems my no start was caused by a previous owner that cut the connector off of the wire that goes into the starter. i replaced about 8 ft of vacuum line and only got about 1/4 of the vacuum lines replaced. it idles between 1200 and 2000 rpm, and its not steady.

[g.frost]

Do a search and your symptoms play over and over here. .... That diagram POScarb posted shows the usual most likely suspects with arrows pointing to them. left side of the carb: the choke opener, choke heater, (and behind it, the fast idle unloader) throttle control. etc.

Instead of blindly replacing vacuum hose or the whole carb, why not get a vacuum gauge and follow the test procedures for these components detailed in the manual? The problem is most likely in this area and/or associated vacuum plumbing and thermovalves, not inside the carb itself. A problem diagnosis will save $ in replacement parts that you don't need.