I am working on my cousins 97 civic. She bought it used and it it does not have the vtec motor. Someone replaced the motor and MTX before she owned it.

I had to pull the dash to replace the wire harness running to the back and check wires for the dash, to see if we could get her gauges working and now the thing will not: start or even turn over, release the key. When you turn the key you get nothing! Everything else in the car works: radio, lights, horn, windows etc...

I pulled everything out again today and the work I did looks ok. (I have done all this before on my 626). I check the main inside harness for bad wires and also traced the red/white/double gray stripped wire in evey connection that I could find. (Seems that this is the only common link to my troubles) and there are no bad spots. Ran power them through these wires using a battery to test light and the were worked fine. I even tried replacing the interlock module.

I can get a click sound from somewhere in the car when I tough a test light to one of powered the wires for the module and I can release and remove the key only when I either unplug this module or pull the neg cable from the battery. First Honda I ever worked on and it's my cousins baby and I may have killed it. How? Don't know, but if I cannot breath life into her car she may want my life in. Help!

 

Bad ignition switches are rather common. Test that power comes out of the relevant wires on the switch. Then probe the test points on the fuses to see that power is reaching the fuses. On an automatic, both the starter and the key release circuits go through the interlock switch at the shift lever.

 

Thanks, I'll check this later today and let you know. I thought I have done the first 2 parts but it will neot hurt to try again. The interlock on the shifter mat have been hit while trying to install the dash as well.

 

Thanks for the help. By tracing what you wrote about I found that somehow the bracket at the gear shifter got bent. Pushed it back in place, reinstalled the sensor and it runs great.