Wont start: '98 EX

[Dominick]

Car won't start. When I turn the key and cycle to ON, I can hear the fuel pump going and the battery is charged because the radio and all the instrument lights turn on.

I had thought that the spark plug wires were loose at first, but everything is fine with the wires. Any ideas?

Starter, alternator, distributor? Those are my ideas at least? Im not so sure.

Thank you in advance!

 

[nd4sped]

Im guessing it normally starts quickly since you only were cycling it for about 1-2 seconds. You can also test for spark by leaving the plugs in the wire and placing them close to a metal surface to provide a ground. If spark is good it will jump the gap.

 

[HeX]

Whats your model year, trim & transmission type?
Did your recently perform any repairs?
Have you inspected the distributor cap & rotor?
When did you last change the cap & motor?

If its manual, try roll-starting it while in first gear and the key at position-II. If it starts doing so, then its likely your starter. Definitely try to let the car turn over ("cycle") a few more seconds when trouble shooting.

 

[Dominick]

Im guessing it normally starts quickly since you only were cycling it for about 1-2 seconds. You can also test for spark by leaving the plugs in the wire and placing them close to a metal surface to provide a ground. If spark is good it will jump the gap.

So my dad and I tested the spark plug to see if there was anything there. We took one plug out of the engine, then put the plug into the wire and left it out near some metal. I turned the car over, and nothing.

So we think the problem lies in the distributor. There are no cracks in the casing and nothing saying that moisture would get inside.

Replace the whole dizzy then?

 

[Dominick]

Whats your model year, trim & transmission type?
Did your recently perform any repairs?
Have you inspected the distributor cap & rotor?
When did you last change the cap & motor?

If its manual, try roll-starting it while in first gear and the key at position-II. If it starts doing so, then its likely your starter. Definitely try to let the car turn over ("cycle") a few more seconds when trouble shooting.

98 EX 5-speed

No recent repairs. Have not inspected cap & rotor. Have no clue when it was replaced. But the starter seems fine.

 

[HeX]

As I mentioned, remove the cap (3 screws) & rotor (1 screw). If the rotor and points seem worn then thats likely your issue. You might be lucky and the rotor screw just came loose in the cap.

While the cap is off, make sure to inspect the dizzy itself & see if anything looks burnt out or if theres oil inside. If eithers the case then look into another distributor along with a cap & rotor to be on the safe side.

 

[HeX]

Thanks for clarifying the car info. I tweaked your title accordingly. Im pretty sure no one would be happy that their car wont start, so saying you need advice is implied ;-)

 

[Dominick]

Thanks for clarifying the car info. I tweaked you title accordingly. Im pretty sure no one would be happy that their car wont start, so saying you need advice is implied ;-)

I believe you are correct. All roads are leading to the cap/rotor needing to be replaced. I thank you for changing the title as well.

 

[mc360]

Check the ignitor inside the distributor, you need to remove cap and rotor then the splash shield and test it with a multimeter

 

[nd4sped]

Replace the whole dizzy then?

Negative, start testing the ignition wires resistance then diagnose the distributor. Its possible its a bad ignition control module (ICM) or weak/bad coil. You can check voltage to the distributor to ensure you are getting proper signal from the ECU.

There is so much to do before you start spending money and throwing unnecessary parts at it.

 

[civic402Lx]

Are the ignition wires in correct order?
Last time i hook it up wrong and it wouldn't start either.
Check firing order.
May or may not help. Worth a try.

 

[nd4sped]

Are the ignition wires in correct order?
Last time i hook it up wrong and it wouldn't start either.
Check firing order.
May or may not help. Worth a try.

Very valid point if you took them off recently. If you ever need to do maintenance on the dizzy, leave the wires on the cap for reference.

 

[HeX]

I forgot to also mention the plug wire firing order, as your video showed exactly what an engine does with the wrong firing order. However, your car wont start if its in the wrong order, so if it has since moving the wires then thats not it.

 

[Dominick]

Update: So we took off the cap and rotor to check it out, and my god it was horrible. I'm betting that this is the OEM one from 1998, or at least hasn't been changed in a LONG time. So I went to the local autoparts store and picked up a new set. And of course it doesn't fit, so I just ordered an OEM set and should be here within a few days.

Thanks to everyone who chipped in with information.

 

[HeX]

Why didnt it fit? I bring it up to ensure you ordered the correct part(s) because they probably pulled up the wrong trim instead of EX. I know the HX and possibly Si trims use different caps. Either way, you're better off with OEM stuff.

 

[nd4sped]

Why didn't it fit? I bring it up to ensure you ordered the correct part(s) because they probably pulled up the wrong trim instead of EX. I know the HX and possibly Si trims use different caps. Either way, you're better off with OEM stuff.

This is correct, there are two different distributor models so if you don't know what you have you got a 50% chance of getting the right part. Next time just bring your old cap and rotor with you to compare.

 

[Dominick]

Round 2. Replaced the cap & rotor with OEM replacements: still a no go. Re-checked for fuel and plug spark: nada. I will replace the plugs anyways because they looked a little dated, but all things are pointing to the distributor.

Asked a homie about it and he suggested to check out the ICM within the distributor and see whats up with that. Hopefully its that and not the entire thing.

 

[Diana Nam]

well bad new for you, you can't just buy that piece alone they only sell those ICM with the entire distributor at the parts store and dealer if your fiend is nice enough to lend you another distributor that works that would help you find out if the icm is bad. when you mention you "re-checked for fuel and plug spark: nada" is that no for both fuel and spark? or just spark? and you have fuel at the fuel rail?

 

[Dominick]

well bad new for you, you can't just buy that piece alone they only sell those ICM with the entire distributor at the parts store and dealer if your fiend is nice enough to lend you another distributor that works that would help you find out if the icm is bad. when you mention you "re-checked for fuel and plug spark: nada" is that no for both fuel and spark? or just spark? and you have fuel at the fuel rail?

Yes I have fuel at the rail. There is no spark at the plugs, or the wires. I was just re-working my way backwards.

UPDATE:

Just checked the coil and I got a reading of 14.6 Ohms (red pin on negative terminal and black pin on the coil itself) (fits in the 12.8 - 19.2 Ohm range of working) but when I put the red pin on the positive terminal and the black pin on the negative terminal of the coil pack, I got a reading of ~2.3 Ohms. The suggested reading is supposed to be in the range of 0.6 - 0.8 Ohms.

Would this mean that the coil pack is bad or, since it has a correct first reading, that the ICM is bad?

BTW: I've been using this as a guide: http://honda-tech.com/honda-civic-del-sol-1992-2000-1/faq-how-replace-test-your-ignition-coil-icm-igntion-control-module-1430824/

 

[Diana Nam]

alot of resistance but that test does show that the icm is bad/ failing