2002 Accord 4 CYL New Owner Needs Help with Engine Problem (Stalling and Maint. Light

[ncpmedic]

Hi,
My fiancee just bought a 2002 Honda Accord EX 4Cyl. She and I were in it today on the interstate and it just shut off for unk. reason. We pulled over to the side of the road and it fired right back up. It did not feel like it had been running rough or anything. Now on the way home tonight she called me and told me the maint. required light was on. Any ideas on what this could be?? I do know that the lights dim significantly when you are sitting at a stoplight and pull on the power windows. I did not know if this was normal for the car like if it had a smaller alternator or if this might be an issue. Thanks for any help. She is just talking about getting rid of it, but we got a great deal from a reputable dealer and I am trying to get her to understand it is a good car and we just need to find out whats wrong. Thanks!

RW

[russiankid]

it could be that you have bad spark plugs which cause the engine not to burn the fuel correctly, my bro had this on his BMW, like you would hit the gas and the car just doesnt move and no power, then u wait a bit and it will go, so he changed the spark plugs and it runs great

[phantastic1]

There is a known recall for the Accords from 1998-2001 about the ignition switch. I would double check the year on the door jamb of the vehicle. The problem you describe is how a bad ignition switch would be like. To see if your vehicle falls w/in the recall...just call up your local honda service dept. and give them your VIN#.

[StealthSonic]

Originally Posted by phantastic1

There is a known recall for the Accords from 1998-2001 about the ignition switch. I would double check the year on the door jamb of the vehicle. The problem you describe is how a bad ignition switch would be like. To see if your vehicle falls w/in the recall...just call up your local honda service dept. and give them your VIN#.

The recall on ignition is for when you can pull out your key while your gear is at N. In the perfect world, you can only pull out your key from your ignition while you are at P.

Just take the car to a tuneup shop. They will take care of it. It does sound like sparkplugs, wires, and distrubutor cap. I'm sure it's a simple fixed. Also check engine oil level and air filter.

[phantastic1]

StealthSonic...you are correct...however...there is another recall on the ignition switch b/c the contacts prematurely wears out....that can cause the car to stall.