Code Error Honda Accrod 2000

Either buy one from the dealer or buy one from Autozone where they were kind enough to read the code for free.

Shailesh Randeria wrote in news:f05153d1- snipped-for-privacy@m10g2000yqd.googlegroups.com:

And how do you know that?

It's possible--but unlikely--that the gas cap is to blame. Check the rubber seal on the cap. Is it free of tears and burrs? Then the gas cap is likely fine.

Sorry, but you'll need to inspect (correctly) all the solenoids that control your EVAP system. These are under the car, at the rear near the gas tank. So situated, they are horribly susceptible to corrosion. Do you know what the word "corrosion" means? Apparently Honda didn't; they seem to think everybody lives in Torrance.

I have a number of Honda docs here:

that have to do with EVAP diagnosis and cure.

My advice? If you do not have an emissions test you'll need to pass, just live with the problem. EVAP errors do no harm whatsoever to the car, but can do lots to your wallet.

But if you like gambling, you can change the cap anyway (with new OEM) and hope for the best.

Good luck.

try the new cap - they're not very expensive. and when you're tightening it, press in slightly - it helps raise the torque a little before it clicks and that helps it seal.

well, replacing the solenoids as you've advised people to do in the past, is not a gamble - it's a waste of money.

the problem is the gas cap, and i have this problem on my own accord. especially in warmer weather when there's more expansion, the tank vents and loses pressure. that is registered by the sensor and a code is set. if you get a new cap, or just vaseline and push harder on the old one so the thing seals properly before it clicks, the tank seals, holds pressure, and there's no code.

just to illustrate the point, after my own initial code light issues, i started making sure i was tightening the cap properly, and it has stayed off. i then loan my car to a friend, and he calls me a week later saying the code light was on. i tell him about the cap, he starts tightening it properly, and the code clears after the requisite number of drive cycles.

that's $120 you don't need to lash out on a new purge solenoid.

jim beam wrote in news:492dnR1UGKntlF_QnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@speakeasy.net:

I /never/ advise replacing the solenoids. I advise the performing of proper diagnostics prior to spending money on parts.

Not everybody lives in the southwest, you know.

In the northeast (where the OP apparently resides) Honda has had very significant and serious problems with corrosion on the EVAP canister and its solenoids. The problems have been bad enough to result in a large number of TSBs and SN articles on what causes the problems and how to troubleshoot them. I've posted many of them on my site.

It's true that an insufficiently-tightened gas cap can cause certain EVAP errors, so the OP would be wise to both inspect the cap's seal (as I suggested), and to ensure that it be tightened at /least/ six or eight clicks each time it is put back. It is also unwise to use aftermarket gas caps, as they are not as well-made as OEM caps, and cause EVAP codes much more frequently than OEM caps.

ahem. do you care to re-word that?

the canister is polyethylene - i don't think that even in canadia, corrosion has ever been recorded as a problem with that material. the solenoids, well, if they are corroding, they're mysteriously passing the vacuum meter test.

you're not speaking from experience dude. the $10 stant 10834 gas gap i got to replace the oem on my accord is every bit as good as oem, and better in that it has an improved seal gasket design. and the number of clicks isn't going to make any difference if the seal's not seating properly (ignoring of course that you're pulling those numbers out of thin air - the manual says three).

the telltale is that if you go to test after the code has been set, the gas cap will be "loose", i.e. that even though it seemed tight after you filled the tank, it'll now almost fall off in your hand.

the unfortunate shop diagnostic process that would include a pressure test of the cap off the tank, gives a false conclusion because the cap always works on the testing machine. this is probably why honda concluded there's a problem with the solenoids since it seems that the cap checks ok. just like honda think there's a problem with civic thermostats when in fact it's the transmission selector switches, and you get a fuel injector code when the main relay's not working.

when i had mine smog tested, the last item on the check list is the gas cap. it tested fine and the car passed smog. driving home from the smog station however, a code set because the tester only put the cap back on with "weak" torque so it was loose and then vented again.

the solution is to get a new (aftermarket) cap, then make double sure by running a little vaseline around the seal, and push a little when screwing back on. end of problem.

jim beam wrote in news:LoGdndrzrPkcfF_QnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@speakeasy.net:

You doubt Honda's own very extensive documentation on the corrosion thing?

do you own one of these vehicles and have you done the solenoid vacuum test and found it negative, even though the error code keeps setting?

have you ever had a main relay fault be registered as "code 16 - injector fault"? have you ever seen honda issue a service bulletin or shop manual diagnostic update to correct this error?

have you read honda service bulletin 97-025 blaming the thermostat for slow/no lockup clutch operation on automatics? well, it's wrong. the real cause of the fault is that the transmission selector switch grease gums up [sub-spec usa supply - not present on japan models apparently] and the ecu doesn't get the required "d4" signal to energize the lockup solenoid. this is hard to diagnose because the switch sits above the catalytic converter, so when you test drive to witness the problem, then come back to the shop to test, the heat from the converter has warmed up the switch grease and it tests fine. cold, and with cold air rushing underneath the car, the thing stays cold and is locked solid.

so, getting back to your question, yes i do doubt honda's service bulletin. [note: the words "very extensive documentation", would in any normal engineering parlance mean "fault examination and diagnosis". that is /not/ what they've provided.] this service bulletin, just like most of the others, is written by a workshop tech here in the u.s., with a view to getting the thing out of the shop and out of warranty, not hondas design engineers in japan figuring out what the design/spec/q.c. issue was so they can correct it in future manufacturing. and just like service techs for many other situations and many other types of machine, service training is not always the best analytical training so misdiagnosis and mistakes result.

jim beam wrote in news:tf-dnSlt5dl9lF7QnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@speakeasy.net:

Maybe you should apply for a job with American Honda, so you can fix all their mistakes for them.

they don't need to pay me - i've already done the ones you snipped for free.

besides, it's disingenuous to try to imply that i'm saying all their service bulletins are misdiagnoses - they're not. but when they /do/ make mistakes however, there's nothing wrong with saying so, and why. just like i'll say it makes no sense when people advocate 3k mile oil changes regardless of the scientific facts or the owners manual.

"Clete" wrote in news:iq0ich$eot$1 @speranza.aioe.org:

Well, I think it's longer than a fishingrod.