no start 1990 Honda Civic DX 1.5L

[str8mennis]

Hello all,

Topic

[jacobnbr1]

Quoted From str8mennis:

so the distributor is bad or the ignitor is bad the whose set is 190 and the ignitor is 50 at autozone and well i don’t have the money us military folk don’t make much so maybe next payday and what do i do about the wires under the dash it is a blue wire with a black stripe on it and a black wire with a silver mark around it

There is a catch 20 that I am doing here and the catch is either the igniter, tdc sensor or crank sensor is bad one of the three. The catch is that in order to go forward and isolate which one has failed you need an oscilloscope and perform wave form diagnostics on those.

Doesn’t really matter I would replace the whole thing because they are all just as old as the failed component and the complete deal will refresh the whole ignition system and magnetic pick ups.

[str8mennis]

all i have is a mulitmeter but i don’t know how to do most of the things it can do lol I will try to get one

[dreamer2355]

Nice job helping him troubleshoot this Jacob C8-)

[jacobnbr1]

That is fine, that will work.

I wan’t you to turn the key on in the run position and switch the dvom to 12 volts dc and put the black lead to battery negative and proble the red lead to the black/yellow wire at the distributor at the connector with the connecter still pluged together and tell me if there is voltage and exactly what voltage you have.

[str8mennis]

I do have some good points if you guys ever need anything i do own a business so please let me know if i can help you plus i am military so i can pull strings to well time to tell if it is a distributor or the belt

[str8mennis]

i checked all the fuses yesterday all of them were good and i made sure that they were in good i am working today so i can’t do the test till after 6 pacific time but if i have 10 plus volts that way what do you think it could be?

[jacobnbr1]

If it has voltage on the yellow/black wire then step 2 is to test the flow of voltage through the igniter white wire and if you have or have not determines the problem.

In either case it doesn’t matter you should just put a distributor in it because if the voltage is not there then the igniter is bad, If it is there then the integrated crank sensor inside the distributor is failing to pull the ground down in a square wave for for the pcm to detect the signal to fire the ignition system.

As I previously stated it is cheaper to buy the whole distributor vs’s buying the parts separately not to mention the availability of the distriutor is probably on the shelf at the nearest parts store where the individual components most likely will have to be ordered.

Another way to determine if a signal is being generated is by looking at the tach(if it has one) and see if it is counting rpm as the engine cranks but that is not always the case as I have seen it either way as there is a dual function system inside the distributor.

[jacobnbr1]

Here is the flow of diagnostics on the ignitor.
IGNITER UNIT INPUT TEST
Igniter Unit

See CODE [15] IGNITION OUTPUT TEST when the self-diagnostic indicator blinks. Perform an input test for the igniter unit after finishing the fundamental tests for the ignition system and fuel emission system. Check for blown No.32 (50 A) fuse in the dash fuse box before testing.

1. Remove the distributor cap, the leak cover and the rotor.
2. Disconnect the WHT wire, BLK/YEL wire, WHT/BLU wire, and the BLU wire from the igniter unit.
3. Use a voltmeter to check for battery voltage between the BLK/YEL wire and the body ground with the ignition switch ON.

a)If there is no voltage, check for an open in the BLK/YEL wire between the igniter unit and the ignition switch.b)If there is battery voltage, go to step 4.

1. Use a voltmeter to check for battery voltage between the WHT/BLU wire and the body ground with the ignition switch ON.

a)If there is no voltage, check for:-Faulty ignition coil.

• An open in the WHT/BLU wire between the igniter unit and the ignition coil.

b)If there is battery voltage, go to step 5.

1. Check for continuity between the WHT wire and the body ground.

a)If there is no continuity, check for:

• An open in the WHT wire between the igniter unit and the PGM-FI ECU. -Poor ground at thermostat housing (G101 or G151). Refer to Cooling System / Cooling Fan Motor / Diagrams . See: Engine, Cooling and ExhaustCooling SystemRadiator Cooling Fan MotorDiagramsElectrical

b)If there is continuity, go to step 6.

1. Check for continuity between the BLU wire and the body ground.

a)If there is no continuity, check for:

• An open in the BLU wire between the igniter unit and the tachometer or the A/T control unit. -Poor ground at thermostat housing (G151), left front fender well next to washer bottle (G301) or left kick-panel (G401). Refer to Cooling System / Cooling Fan Motor / Diagrams . See: Engine, Cooling and ExhaustCooling SystemRadiator Cooling Fan MotorDiagramsElectrical

b)If there is continuity, go to step 7.

1. If all continuity and voltage tests are normal, but the engine won’t start, replace the igniter unit.

NOTE :The igniter unit may be covered under the manufacturer’s emission warranty. Contact the appropriate agency before replacing.

[str8mennis]

When i checked the black and yellow wire with the ground from the battery it had 11.82 volts i am going to do the other test like you said. be back shortly

[str8mennis]

there was no continuity on the white wire but i also checked the blue wire and none on it either but i check it with the ground from bat and the ground up on the valve cover is that a bad place cause i don’t know where the other place is at

[str8mennis]

yes that does happen

[jacobnbr1]

Ok. Now grab your dvom and switch it to volts dc with the key still on red lead to that same white wire and the black to the battery ground.

How many volts are on the white wire?

[str8mennis]

8.6 volts

[jacobnbr1]

Doesn’t really matter! What I would do is take your new coil out and put it back in the box and go back to the parts store and exchange it for the complete distributor.
Make sure you buy the brand new one instead of the rebuilt one. (it will last longer)

Install the distributor is pretty basic.
The input shaft of the distributor will only go in one way and I think there is (2) 12 mm bolts to remove, try and put it back in the same clock position as the old one for ignition timing. (Note the position of the top bolt of the rectangle adjusting slot)

[str8mennis]

so the distributor is bad or the ignitor is bad the whose set is 190 and the ignitor is 50 at autozone and well i don’t have the money us military folk don’t make much so maybe next payday and what do i do about the wires under the dash it is a blue wire with a black stripe on it and a black wire with a silver mark around it

[Author]

Replies