91 Accord Stalls and Won't Start

[jheissle]

I have a problem where the car does not always start. When it starts it will run for a few minutes and then stall and not start again. Seems to run fine on the highway, but when you come to a stop it stalls and won't start. I have spark (distributor is new) and the fuel pump (relay was replaced several years ago) comes on when the key is turned. Any recommendations for some easy checks before committing to a fuel pump replacement?

[somick]

I would check your fuel filter before going after the pump.

Good luck,

Sam

[jheissle]

How do I check that other than replacing with a new one?

[sander112]

When you say stalls and won't start. Does have to do with the rpm jumping around. If so check the 2 links under the the won't idle correctly thread. They seem to be pretty helpful if your having the same type of problem. It seems that honda's have this type of problem for these years.

[jheissle]

No, the RPM doesn't race around. It stalls like when you would run out of gas. And then just won't start.

One more data point, I was able to get the car started. It was real rough, like it didn't have enough gas. I hit the gas peddle and then it idled well for five minutes. Turned the car off and immediately tried to start and nothing. Fuel pump did kick on though.

[sander112]

I don't know if this problem was on year model. But I did find something about the ign. switch having a recall for shutting off randomly. If it starts to shut off try jiggling the ign. switch around to see if that helps. When it does shut off is the car water temp. cold or hot. After I got mine figured out it was happending when the engine was warmed up (when the radiator fans cut on) or the a/c was cycling.

[somick]

Originally Posted by sander112

I don't know if this problem was on year model. But I did find something about the ign. switch having a recall for shutting off randomly. If it starts to shut off try jiggling the ign. switch around to see if that helps. When it does shut off is the car water temp. cold or hot. After I got mine figured out it was happending when the engine was warmed up (when the radiator fans cut on) or the a/c was cycling.

My 99 Accord LX had an ignition switch fixed/replaced under recall. But that is another generation of Accords. It was a safety issue: you could start the vehicle in some gears.

For the random shut off I agree. Ignition switch is another possibility. But I cannot imagine how you check that. Probably try to wiggle the key when the car is running and see if it will lose power.

Good luck,

Sam

[jheissle]

A few more diagnostics to see if anyone has some more ideas.

I hooked up a pressure guage to the fuel line. When the key is turned I get 35psi, but the car won't start. It stays at 35psi while the engine is turning over but not starting. When it finally does start (it seems random when it does) it is rough and the guage reads 26 psi. This is about 4 psi below the minimum of the recommended range.

I disconnect the vacuum hose from the pressure regulator and the pressure jumps to 36psi. It should be more like 45 psi. But the increase of 10psi is about the right amount if it was running at 35psi instead of 26psi.

Sounds like the fuel pump, right? So I squeeze the fuel return line and I get a jump to 45 to 50psi that is stable. So that seems to say the fuel pump is working right?

Any suggestions, could it be water in the gas?

[jheissle]

To close this thread out for anyone who may encounter a similar problem. It turns out that the spark was weak, and even though the distributor was only 6 months old, the ignition coil was bad and had to be replaced.

[jeffcoslacker]

If the pressure jumps up when you pinch the return line, the FPR is bad...which is what I was gonna suggest anyway...