When I start my 95 accord there is a buzzing sound that lasts about 5 seconds and repeats itself every 30 seconds or so .It seems to come from the ABS unit at the rear of the engine compartment . Should I treat this as some kind of warning?

 

I don't think it's an issue I believe it's a test of some sort.... at least that's what I'm hoping because on occasion my 94 ex 5sp does the same thing... Something to check based on what I've just seen is that it may be the ABS system pressurizing... if your fluid is low you will hear it more often... check for leaks and make sure that your fluid levels are up first off..

 

is your abs light on?

is your parking brake light on?

it is normal for ABS to self test at a speed above 5mph but not continually self test every few seconds.

 

Thanks for your answers , ABS light is not on neither is parking brake. Noise stops after a few minutes . As far as fluid level goes it is above maximum when engine is switched off but when started it goes down to half way between min and maximum.

 

as for mine... neither of my lights are on. It occurs for a few seconds occasionally right after I start the car, before I'm even moving.... my guess is mine is pressurizing since it's not consistent...

 

here's a list of trouble codes if your light is on

HONDA FAULT CODES
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FAULT CODE IDENTIFICATION CIVIC 5 DOOR 1996, CIVIC D 1997 ONWARDS & ACCORD 4 DOOR 1996 -98 Gasoline

Fault code Fault location
11 Open circuit in right hand front wheel speed sensor
12 Short circuit in right hand front wheel speed sensor
13 Open circuit in left hand front wheel speed sensor
14 Short circuit in left hand front wheel speed sensor
15 Open circuit right hand rear wheel speed sensor
16 Short circuit right hand rear wheel speed sensor
17 Open circuit left hand rear wheel speed sensor
18 Short circuit left hand rear wheel speed sensor
21 Damage to rotor teeth
31 Right hand front inlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
32 Right hand front outlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
33 Left hand front inlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
34 Left hand front outlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
35 Right hand rear inlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
36 Right hand rear outlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
37 Left hand rear inlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
38 Left hand rear outlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
51 The pump motor is locked
52 The pump motor is inoperative
53 The pump motor is constantly on
54 Inoperative relay
61 Low supply voltage
81 The combination control module or relay


Diesel

Fault code Fault location
12 Self diagnosis-initiating
16 Left hand front inlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
17 Right hand front inlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
19 Relay of the hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
25 Damage to rotor teeth
26 Left hand rear inlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
27 Right hand rear inlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
28 Left hand front outlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
29 Right hand front outlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
31 Left hand rear outlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
32 Right hand rear outlet, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
35 The pump motor
37 The (BPP)Brake pedal position switch
39 Open circuit in the left front wheel speed sensor
41 Short circuit in the left front wheel speed sensor
42 Open circuit in right front wheel speed sensor
43 Short circuit in right front wheel speed sensor
44 Open circuit in left rear wheel speed sensor
45 Short circuit in left rear wheel speed sensor
46 Open circuit in right rear wheel speed sensor
47 Short circuit in right rear wheel speed sensor
48 Low supply voltage
55 The combination control module or relay
56 Operating error with fault code indication

CIVIC 5 DOOR 1995, ACCORD COUPE 1994-97, ACCORD AREODECK 1995-97
FAULT CODE IDENTIFICATION

Fault code Fault location
1 The hydraulic pump motor is over-run
1-2 The hydraulic pump motor
1-3 Is a high pressure leak
1-4 The pressure switch
1-8 Accumulator of high pressure system
2-1 Circuit of handbrake warning lamp switch
3-1 Rotor teeth damaged on right hand front wheel speed sensor
3-2 Rotor teeth damaged on left hand front wheel speed sensor
3-4 Rotor teeth damaged on right hand rear wheel speed sensor
3-8 Rotor teeth damaged on left hand rear wheel speed sensor
3-12 Combination of different sizes of tyres
4-1 Circuit of right hand front wheel speed sensor
4-2 Circuit of left hand front wheel speed sensor
4-4 Circuit of right hand rear wheel speed sensor
4-8 Circuit of left hand rear wheel speed sensor
5-4 Right hand rear wheel lock
5-8 Left hand rear wheel lock
6-1 Front fail safe relay
6-4 Rear fail safe relay
7-1 Right hand front, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
7-2 Left hand front, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
7-4 Rear, hydraulic modulator solenoid valve
8-1 Operation of the ABS
8-2 The ECU
8-4 Internal circuit of the ECU

 

when first starting car ABS lite wil came on than go off,, also,, the buzzing noise that you are hearing is the ABS pump.. It however should not come on every so often..

Most.likely wehat you got is a leaking modulator HONDA had a bunch of them leak 94-97 accords ..
have a shop or if you can do it, bleed the ABS system and fill up the Modulator reservoir ..
Also i have seen that when modulator leak , they have not kick out a code till very very low on fluid ,, but fluid could be low enough to make pump work,, and thus the buzzing noise you hear

 

You can also do a search on the Internet for a repair involving the rubber seals. IT's a lot better than speding a grand for a new unit....if that turns out to be the problem.....

 

good point Yeu........if modulator indeed is leaking , i would reseal it first , before replacing it ..

like Yeu said ,those abs modulator are not cheap..

but i would bleed the abs system first , just in case it has some air in system.....

 

That system's about the same as on my '95 Integra.

The pump runs for several seconds when you start the car, to pressurize the accumulator. After that, it only runs when the pressure drops below some setpoint. Normally, it only has to re-pressurize after the ABS is actually used. Occassionally if I drive for hours, it would run.

Running every few minutes indicates a leak somewhere. Possibly back into the reservoir, or if it leaks out you should see fluid dripping somewhere.

Jumper the SCS connector, just like you're reading ECU error codes (check-engine-light codes). The ABS lamp will flash instead of (or along with) the CEL. But the blinking is a little different, you read it like this...
1 - jumper in, turn key on
2 - long flash & long pause (this isn't part of the code yet)
3 - short flashes, for the first # of the code
4 - short pause
5 - short flashes, for the second # of the code
6 - long pause
7 - next error code, or repeat the first one...

Look for the code in sir_nasty's list, down where there are 2 numbers hyphenated.