I will get right to the point. 97 Accord EX 4cyl stick. Every morning now that it is getting cold and damp, try to start and this is what happens. Turns over fine with plenty of juice, but just cranks. after ~ 10 sec of cranking, it will start to stutter. As i am switching between pumping the pedal, and holding it to the floor, it stutters less and less. After ~ 20-30 sec of cranking, it will start with a rough idol. I rev it a couple of times and everything is fine. Here's the kicker. It will start like a new car the rest of the day. I have tested somes things. When it is just cranking, there is no spark. The fuel pump does turn on. The battery has full amperage. Will not start when pushed and the clutch is popped. 2 months ago did a complete tune up with cap, rotor, plugs and wires. Have not seen any condensation in the distributor. I have also ran a bottle of heat through and injector cleaner. I have been told that it could be the main relay, but what i don't know is if the main relay opens the circuit for the coil. If it does, it would make sense that there would be no spark at the beginning. If not, i'm stumped. Any help would greatly apprieciated.

 

The main relay doesn't do anything with the distributor coil or spark.

Try this for the first start in the morning... Turn the key to ON but don't immediately turn to START. Notice the fuel pump runs for 2 seconds then shuts off. Start the engine after the fuel pump runs. You don't need to wait for the pump to stop, but don't just jump in the car & spin the key immediately to start.

 

It has been confirmed that the fuel pump does turn on. Also, the way i tested the spark was that i pulled the wire form the coil to the distributer, held it close to metal and cranked...no spark. did the same test when it was running for a while to the same spot, and got spark. The more i think about it, i think it might be the coil, but i can't be sure and don't want to start throwing money into it.

 

There's a thread in the DIY section about troubleshooting bad coil vs. bad ignitor.

 

I have a 96 accord LX 4cyl manual that is behaving the same way, same symptoms on cold starts but i believe i'm getting spark. It Was tough to start with damp temps in the 40s, now its in the 30s and i can't start it at all. Sputters on first few seconds of cranking then nothing. Could it be bad coolant temp sensor? I tried starting fluid but no luck. I've replaced cap and wires, plugs look good (wet from trying to start but otherwise OK). Car ran perfect last week with temps in the 50's. Was problem above in this thread ever solved?

 

i have the 94 accord lx and my car experiences a milder case of the same problem. affected by outside temperatures. I wait for the pump to kick in and go off then i turn my key, it cranks, starts, but starts rough and idles kinda low around 1200 rpm, within about 20 seconds it comes to normal 1500-1700 and no problem. it also starts fine the rest fo the day. I believe this problem for us all lies with the IACV and fast thermal idle valve. IACV is on the back of the intake manifold and FTV on the bottom of the throttle body. these use circulating coolant to operate.

Im going to remove my throttle body soon, clean it along with the FTV and IACV. Ill let you know what happens if its not resolved sooner. unfortunately if they are severe they may need replacement. But im leaning this and not spark or fuel.

 

You mention the IACV and FTV use circulating coolant to operate, i have a small radiator leak and noticed i'm low on coolant now. Could low coolant cause the IACV and FTV to malfunction and cause hard starting?

 

I don't think the IACV uses coolant for anything, maybe just to keep it warm. The FITV uses the coolant to expand the valve as it heats up, closing it. If it's not getting coolant it would be open all the time and you would never come off of high idle.

Low coolant is not a good thing. You'll start circulating air and once that air hits the water pump, the flow decreases a ton and you'll likely over heat the engine.

 

1200 rpm is not a low idle, it's high. Idle spec is 750 rpm, +/- 100 rpm.

 

Yeah i wasnt sure about the IACV i just know it has coolant lines going to it but a wiring connection as well for our cars.

Finch: sorry i meant the initial idle or warm up RPM, not sure of the term. its supposed to hover around 1500 or so when first started. then it creeps down to normal around 750 when fully warmed up. it kinda bogs down when its first fires in the morning.