First post on hondacivicforum.com, and it's a loaded one.

I just bought my first ever "foreign" car this week, a 98 honda civic LX with 170k on it. The engine check light is on. I took it to autozone today and got the codes read. I got four codes to deal with: 1456, 0141, 0135, and 1298. One of them is a O2 sensor, so I picked one of those up already. That was the most expensive O2 sensor I have ever bought at $90 with tax. What are the other codes, and what do I need to replace to get rid of them?

My speedo doesn't work half the time, but I haven't noticed if the odometer also stops working or not.

the other two codes the guy didn't know, so I'm helpless there.

If someone could give me a plan of attack on this little gas sipper, that would be great!

 

Start by clearing the codes from the ECU (remove 7.5A BACKUP fuse in under-hood fuse/relay box for 10 seconds then reinsert). Drive the car and, if the CEL turns ON again, have AutoZone again retrieve the codes to determine if they are the same. You only need to take action on codes that repeatedly return.

1456 = EVAP control system leak

0141 = secondary oxygen sensor

0135 = primary oxygen sensor

1298 = Electrical load detector

*****Check whether fuse 15 is blown in under-dash fuse box.*****
If so, read potentially relevant information at this link:

http://autorepair.about.com/library/faqs/bl021d.htm

 

My number 15 fuse isn't blew. Wait a minute though, you said under dash? I checked the under hood box. Back to the cold...

 

Don't install the O2 sensor yet so that you can return it if necessary. Carefully read the information at the link in my first post -- you may have a shorted wire, which is a commonly reported problem for your Civic.

 

Yep, my under dash number 15 fuse is blown!! To bad my two spares, according to the manual, are a 10 amp and a 15 amp. THe number 15 is a 7.5a.

 

Don't try replacing fuse yet. It will just blow again. Locate and fix the shorted wire as described in the link.

 

I'll look into that in the warm confines of my heated garage! Any idea about the "EVAP" deal?

 

ALL of your CEL codes may be caused by the shorted wire.

 

Ok, so I replaced the number 15 fuse, and everything was running flawlessly. No engine light, speedo was great, then all of a sudden everything goes right back to the previous condition. Yep, the fuse blew like you knew it would. So, now I need to look for the short. I can't really see where the point in question is in the picture inside of the link in the first post. Could you explain the area a little better? What will the wiring harness at the point look like? Will there be a burnt spot in the insulation or something? How do I fix it? More tape/insulation at the spot?

Thanks.

 

Wires from the primary oxygen sensor (protruding from the exhaust manifold) and the vehicle speed sensor (protruding atop the differential/transmission) converge into a larger wire harness below the intake manifold. Tracing wires from these two sensors should lead you to the shorted wire(s). If you are standing on the passenger side near the battery with the hood open, the area of interest lies between the firewall and engine -- not a lot of space to work in.

You are looking for burned wires/harness or scraped wires/harness where metal wire(s) is exposed. When you find it, you could try to repair with some heat resistant electrical tape -- perhaps others members could point you to an appropriate product. Otherwise the harness would have to be replaced.