Hi everyone,

Well, this past weekend was the weekend to do the timing belt/water pump switchout as well as some other junk (filters, oil, spark plugs).. everything went fine except for the timing belt/water pump change as in it didn't happen.

Stupid crankshaft pulley bolt would not budge, this was with the crankshaft pulley removal tool, breaker bars, PB blaster, all of it. Managed to completely destroy two 19 mm sockets, my brother-in-law brought over an electric impact wrench, no dice.

So anyway, I've resigned myself to taking her in to Honda for that issue. In the interest of time, darkness and deterioriating weather we put her back together. No issues there, car still runs fine, but now has a peculiar quirk and I'm not real sure what it is or if I even need to worry about it..

For the first few minutes after a cold start when accelerating, the battery light will come on anywhere between 1800-2k RPM's.. if I'm accelerating harder and pass about 2700 RPM's all the way up into the high 3K's the light goes off. It goes off if it drops back below the 1800 mark (like on an upshift). Eventually after a few minutes of driving, the light never comes back on again.

Pertinent details - automatic transmission, accessories seem unaffected, no unusual fluctuations in headlamp or dashboard light brightness.

My theory is something is loose when we put it back together, but what? And why would the problem only occur in a certain RPM range, and I'm guessing before the engine gets up to NOT? All screws, cables, bolts and belts were accounted for on reassembly, and I would assume that the engine would run on the rough side if one of my spark plugs were not completely screwed in or if it were not connected to the ignition coil.

Any ideas/suggestions? Should I even care since it's all gonna get disassembled again with the timing belt change anyway?

Thanks in advance!

 

Is the alternator belt loose or is it slipping because some oil dripped on it or the pulleys?

The crank bolt is removed by turning it in the counterclockwise direction (conventional bolt). Did you happen to try to turn it clockwise for removal?

 

No, we were going full counter-clockwise with the bolt but it was very, very persistent.

I had thought about the alternator belt but it just seemed strange that it was only in a certain RPM range but below or above that range no battery light and then only for a few minutes. It does make sense though I guess since as the belt runs it heats up and I assume the rubber in the belt expands a little which might compensate for any issues if the belt is loose if it is expanding into the grooves on the pulley.

Will check the alternator belt tension next time I'm under the hood - I don't think there is an oil issue since it came out before we took the valve cover off and the valve cover was back on before it went back in. The alternator was on a table in the garage well away from any loose oil and I'm real OCD about wiping up spilled fluids when working so I'm fairly confident it isn't that.

 

Since you had the alternator completely out of the car, also check that the wiring is secure, especially the plug with the small wires. Disconnect the battery before putting any tools on the big wire terminal, because if it gets shorted to ground while live, you will have at least a blown fuse.

The crank bolt will come out with a good air-powered impact wrench with plenty of air supplied to it.

 

Okay, checked the connections on the alternator yesterday - everything is plugged in solidly, nothing loose. I did tighten the alternator belt a little but there's no squealing or anything, the pulley is spinning when the engine is on, no apparent wobble. The A/C compressor pulley seized up last summer so I had the dealer replace the belt back then with a non-A/C belt so I wouldn't lose my alternator while driving. The belt itself is in good condition.

Went to start the car and the engine turned over very slowly about 4 times before giving me a series of rapid clicks. Moved my wife's Ody around and jumped the battery off hers and the car started up with no problem. Let it run for a few minutes charging off the Ody, then disconnected the jumper cables and took the Civic for a little test drive.

First thing right off the bat, charging system light came on at its usual time. Drove about four more blocks down the main drag outside our neighborhood and noticed the radio (which I had volume down to 0 on so I could listen to the car) would shut off when I came to a stop, then come back on when I gassed.

Finally the radio just went off altogether. Taking that as a bad sign I cut off the main road into the neighborhood and it wasn't two blocks before everything but the charging light shut off on the dash - no speedo, no tach.

Three blocks from the house the computer went offline - I drove a very slow 1st gear the rest of the way home, and by this time the SRS light had come on.

I'm assuming either a bad battery or alternator. I didn't have time to whip out the multimeter, plus I have a feeling I'm going to have to jump it again just to get the car to start. I'm not sure what the age on the battery is - I bought the car used last March. I know at least in our part of Florida, the batteries seem to be good for about three years on average. Since the electrical stuff progressively shut off I'm assuming it's an alternator issue since the battery clearly wasn't getting charged, but if it's a bad battery I assume it wouldn't charge either.

If it is the alternator, is it possible that just simply taking it out and putting it back in would kill it? The battery was disconnected before anything was done in the engine compartment to begin with on Saturday.

 

no, but the fact that you said when you step on the gas, the radio came back on tells me that it is most likely your alt. you need to charge up your batt but it sounds like your alt is going bad. if I were you, i'd take both to a parts dealer and have them test both. the bench test on the alt will tell you right away. the batt will take about an hr to recharge but they will tell you right after it's been recharged whether it is good or bad.

 

As mundy says, have both the battery and alternator checked. Also clean the battery posts and connectors, as well as the engine bay ground wire, before reinstalling the battery.

Finally, check whether these fuses are blown: Under-hood fuses 19 and 20 or under-dash fuse 4.

 

It really sounds like a typical case of the brushes in the alternator being worn out, especially as it is getting worse over time. Taking the alternator out may have disrupted it some but it could just be coincidence.

 

I had the exact same thing happen to me after replacing my headgasket. It charged fine before I did the work and afterwords the charge light would come on and go out at different rpms. A few days later I got the 'go out to start the car and the battery's dead' problem which then progressed to the 'driving along and everything slowly dims to nothing' problem. The long and the short of it was the alternator went bad. Seems like if your alternator already a little weak the engine work does it in