I have a 2004 Honda Accord that started giving me intermittent starting problems about a month ago.

I came out from a store and tried to start the car 3x before it finally started. I did not hear any clicking sound. It was really acting/sounding like the battery was on its last leg (but the battery isn't even a year old).

I get home and started the car about 6 times. It only failed to start once, with the same symptoms.

I cleaned all the battery connections and even removed the negative cable from the body and sanded down to bare metal to make sure I had a good connection. No problems for a month.

This past Thursday I had problems getting the car to start again. It took about 3 attempts. I decided to replace the start relay and replaced that Friday. After doing so, it seemed to get even worse (and this was an OEM relay). I popped the old relay in thinking maybe I got a dud, but the same symptoms there. I was able to get the car started by jumping it, so I ran up to O'Reilly and they tested the battery, starter and alternator. Everything looked good to them.

When I got home, the car barely turned over. I have the same battery in our 2014 Honda (also less than a year old), so I flipped batteries between the cars. BOTH batteries will start the 2014 without any hesitation. NEITHER battery will start the 2004 now.

At this point, the car is just barely even trying to turn over. Is this most likely a starter issue (despite what O'Rilly's test equipment is showing), or could it be a wiring/voltage drop issue? I know it's a major job replacing the starter and hoping that's not the issue. With this year Honda, the starter is inaccessible for testing (it requires pulling the exhaust manifold away from the engine block).

Thanks,

Andy

 

Got the old starter out and took it to both O'Reilly and AutoZone. It failed at both places. It wasn't spinning properly nor "popping out" like it should. The car has 252,000 miles on it, so I'm seriously considering just getting a Duralast Gold at Autozone ($225). Online Honda places want over $400.

 

Yeah, that's a little high for a starter (225). Did you check rock auto? Some times they have better parts. You can take the part number and google it and get it from amazon. Amazon has a better return policy than rock auto.

By the way, is your car 2.4L or 3.0L?

 

I ended up getting a new NAPA starter and exhaust manifold gasket. $216 with tax for both (the starter was $174, but I also got a AAA discount I wasn't aware NAPA did). Got it installed about an hour ago and it started right up. Glad that job is done!

I highly recommend watching this video if you plan on doing this. It will say you a lot of time:



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PARTS LIST

1/2" drive flex head ratchet. This comes in especially handy when removing the 14mm bolt on the starter.

A short (maybe 3") 1/2" drive extension to help get the 14mm bolt off. This allows the ratchet to be in an area where you have a little more room to get torque on it (although the 14mm bolt wasn't all that tight. But the 17mm was a b*tch!).

10mm socket for the "acorn nuts" that hold the black cover that partially covers the exhaust manifold.

Either a 12mm or 14mm socket for the upper bolts/nuts (I think they're all 12mm, but the lower one might be different than the top nuts/bolts)

14mm socket for the inside starter bolt (1/2" drive highly recommended)

17mm socket for the outside starter bolt (1/2" drive highly recommended)

20" extension (1/2" drive) - used with the universal joint to get the 17mm bolt lose. Mine was extremely tight

breaker bar or a 1/2" ratchet with an extra-long handle (for the 17mm starter bolt)

universal joint (a.k.a. "wobbly socket adapter") to get the correct angle on the starter bolts

needle nose pliers (to pinch the plastic connectors holding a couple of wires in place

12mm wrench to remove the nut on the starter (where the positive lead of the battery connects to the starter)

You'll also want to buy a new intake manifold gasket when replacing the starter. Mine was $28 at NAPA. The starter was $174 (but that was with a AAA discount they offered. Regular price is $192).

The video says the torque on the exhaust manifold nuts/bolts is 16 lb. ft., but I just made mine snug since I didn't have a torque wrench that went down that low. Same with the nut on the starter itself (for the positive lead). Make it snug, but don't over-tighten or you can damage the bolt or solenoid housing. There was even a piece of paper in my new starter box that said "over-tightening of the battery post nut will cause the starter solenoid cap to crack or break." It even gives a spec of 6 lb. feet, but it would be impossible to get a torque wrench in there. Mine had a nut at the base of the starter battery post (i.e. the threaded bolt attached to the starter), so that makes it a little less likely you'll damage the solenoid cap.