Okay, here we go.

It's actually more like a "whole car" problem. I bought a '95 Civic Ex about a month ago. It has approx 148,000 miles on it. Anyway, long story short: the car is sometimes hard to start. It cranks over and starts most of the time, but sometimes I have to crank it three or four times and give it some gas to start. It has only officially not started on me ONE time after work (I worked third shift so I get off at 7am). When the car has trouble starting and I finally DO get it started, it's like it doesn't want to move. The RPMs are super low and it takes about a second or two before it "kicks in" and wants to go anywhere.

Well, that being said, for some reason my dad asked his friend what was wrong and his friend suggested a new ECM. They put a new one in and the same problem is still happening! And what's worse, now the speedometer won't work. The odometer doesn't roll, either.

The car also has a new IACV.

Can someone please help? I don't know anything about cars. I'm an 18 year old girl and I'm going to college in a week and I need to fix this car. I need help ASAP guys!

 

Well it sounds to me that it could be a fuel problem. But im not 100% sure. I hope MK will chime in on this.

 

Geeeeh. It always seems to run better on a full tank of gas. I hear the fuel pump when I'm supposed to, I don't know what that has to do with anything. Oh, and I guess I was supposed to say that my dad put a new IACV in it.

 

I know on my 2000 civic if the gas is below a quarter tank it takes longer to start unless you cycle the key on and off a few times to get the fuel pressure up where it should be.

 

Have you changed the fuel filter out? Could be old and clogged.

And have you checked the main relay? When you start the car (or at least turn the key), do you always hear the low hum from under the back seat (fuel pump priming)? The ignition has 3 positions. 1 is accessory power, 2 is kind of a pre-ignition. In the IGN2 position, your dash lights come on and you should hear the fuel pump prime for 3 seconds or so. Listen for that every time you start it. If you don't hear it on the days it won't start, the main relay is a possible culprit.

 

Fuel filter was the first thing we replaced, because the guy swore that "that's all it needed." Oh, people these days...

Anyway, yeah I'll listen to it everytime. I usually only listen for it when it doesn't start and I try starting it again. Could that be why it doesn't want to move sometimes when I do start it?

Also: I still don't know how I would fix the speedometer and odometer. It worked before we put the new ECM in it.

 

Well, the speedometer/odometer is one piece. Its possible the electronics in it are fried. See if you can find a spare gauge cluster just to swap in for troubleshooting purposes. If it works, then your gauge is the problem. Failing that, I'm sure there are other troubleshooting options. You've come to the right place, you just have to wait for the right member to check in.

 

Right on. Would you have an idea about how much one of those would cost? I don't know anybody with a Civic.

 

Hi, the main relay is a good place to start, search honda civic main relay repair here or google. Resolder it for super cheap. Look for my speedometer post, it too can be resoldered. But your speedo trouble is perhaps the speed sensor, that is what the speedo and odometer have in common, it could well be disconnected or loose. Download the service manual for your car from this forum. Keep at it and good luck. Keep us posted.

Cheap parts come from a nice auto wrecker, aka a junkyard, avoid the ones staffed with unpleasant people, someone here may know of a good one in your area. That said, parts that need resoldering on your car will probably be in a similar condition in a junk car. Wreckers supply parts that you destroy in your repair attempts. The nice thing about civics is they are common, don't let a wrecker tell you anything from a civic is a rare part, except a steering wheel in good condition.