Hello all,

I own a 1991 Honda Civic DX with a 1.5L fuel injected engine, with over 200K Miles.

OK...the problem I have been having for a while now and it is getting worse, is the car starts just fine when the engine is cold, but once it warms up, if I stop and turn the engine off for any reason then it simply will not start until the engine is allowed to cool down, usually anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, depending on how warm the engine is. The engine is not overheating, just gets up to normal operating temperature.

Starting Fluid does not help and when I took off a couple of the spark plug wires there was spark coming from the tip to the engine ground. There is plenty of air pressure coming from the muffler so I assume that I have sufficient air flow, filter is clean.

I did finally get a check engine light and I will try to determine the code, once I get access to my smart OBD reader. I will indicate the code, if my reader is compatible with my Honda.

Has anyone here experienced this specific problem and if so, what was your fix? Beyond that, I am open for suggestions.

Thank you.

Edit: After looking around it appears that it may be the main relay that is causing this problem I bookmarked that help page but will wait until I get further input before diving off the deep end.

 

So it turns out that it was the Main Relay and I now know why the part about disassembling the dash was omitted from the DIY for the main relay. It is a real chore to get it all apart. I looked at a couple of youtube videos for repairing the main relay and also....the sneaky devils did not want to show how they actually got the main relay out when it buried up in the dash.

So I will tell you my quick method for gaining access to the Main Relay.

Remove the one bolt that holds the lower part of the dash assy.

Grab now loose part of the dash that is hiding the relay.

Pull real hard on the lower left dash part that is blocking access to the relay.

Dash part breaks cleanly off allowing complete access to relay.

Repair the main relay using a soldering iron, soldering paste, magnifying goggles, and solder, clean up excess flux with alcohol, and then do a final rinse with a Freon based cleaner.

Reinstall main relay after cleaning the connector housing and cable with contact cleaner.

Use gorilla glue to re-attach broken dash part, you can hold it in place with a piece of wood and then reattach the bottom bolt holding the dash part.

Easy as pie.

 

Just wanted to add another fix to this warm starting problem. After the relay fix was complete, that took care of the warm no start problem, but I was still getting a check engine light and sluggish starting. Turns out you can read the codes by simply lifting the passenger side carpet up and view an LED on the ECU. Code 6 Electronic Coolant Temperature Sensor. Replaced the sensor and warm engine performance problem was cured. Next project will be front brake pads and I might treat her to some new rotors. Turning them is 40 bucks for two rotors, so replacing them with new rotors is not that much more expensive.