FD2 engine starts, sluggish crank, then stalls.

Hi everyone,

I have a 2007, FD2 civic (Australian sports model), K20Z2 engine, automatic.

Today when I turned the key in the ignition, the starter cranked as usual, and then i heard my engine turning over a few time and finally stalls. I re-tried starting two more times and same thing happened. Then finally I resorted to putting the gear to neutral, and this time after a few sluggish crank the engine started. After that for the rest of the day, the car started normally in P. I never had this problem before.

Now just for a few more background details:
- My battery seemed fine, and it was only recently purchased.

- I have replaced my starter motor at the start of this year, because the old starter had trouble retracting from the flywheel, resulting in grinding after start up. Ever since I replaced the starter, the car started smoothly, had no problem at all. Now just to point out, I the starter I put in was a second hand starter, so maybe it is also showing its age?

- I have changed my engine oil 2 days ago, with a 10W-30. Is this oil too thick?

- For those who live in melbourne, we have been experiencing a really cold week. Today was also extremely cold, so maybe that contributed to the problem as well?

What I think might be the problem:
1. Weak battery? Unlikely, as battery is less than a year old.
2. Aging starter motor? Could be, as this starter I put in is second hand. But for the rest of today, the starter worked perfectly as usual.
3. Engine oil to viscous + cold weather?

These are just my thoughts. I am wondering if anyone else here might have a better explanation to this problem I'm experiencing? Any feedback will be greatly appreciated, thank you!

Cold weather can cause starter motor solenoid to be sluggish, perhaps it could be the actuator. This was my issue and had it replaced under warranty, fortunately.. :)

I started my car this morning with no problem, car started right away. :/

What happened yesterday didn't feel like it was the starter motor though, it was like the engine started no problem, but then stalls after a few second.

Could there be anything that can cause an engine to stall right after starting up?

does fd2 have coil packs or ignition coil?

That I am not too sure. Isn't most newer cars these days use coil pack? I will have to check.

I came across this on another website: http://www.aa1car.com/library/2005/us80530.htm

Problem: Engine stalls when cold immediately after starting

This kind of stalling problem often means the engine is not getting enough fuel and/or too much air. A cold engine needs a fairly rich fuel mixture to start, and to idle smoothly while it warms up. Any of the following could cause or contribute to this kind of stalling problem:

* An engine vacuum leak. Check for loose or broken vacuum hoses, leaks around the intake manifold gasket or throttle body, leaks around the PCV valve and EGR valve.

* A dirty or defective airflow sensor. A sensor that has been contaminated by fuel varnish or dirt will under report airflow and be slow to react to changes in airflow. This can upset the air/fuel mixture causing idle, stalling and hesitation problems. Cleaning the airflow sensor wire with aerosol electronics cleaner can often restore normal operation and cure the problem.

* A defective idle speed control system. Idle speed on a fuel injected engine is controlled by allowing a small amount of air to bypass the throttle. If the idle air bypass circuit is plugged with dirt or fuel varnish, or the solenoid valve is sticking or broken, the engine may not get enough air to idle normally causing it to stall. Cleaning the idle air bypass circuit in the throttle body with aerosol throttle cleaner will often remove the gunk and solve your stalling problem. If a good soaking with cleaner fails to fix the stalling problem, check the wiring connector. It might be loose or corroded. If no wiring faults are found, you may have to replace the idle speed control solenoid.

* A faulty coolant sensor. If the coolant sensor is bad and tells the PCM the engine is colder or warmer than it really is, that can screw up the fuel mixture, too. If the coolant sensor reads colder than normal, or cold all the time, the engine will run rich. This won't cause cold stalling but it can make for a rough idle once the engine warms up, and it kills fuel economy. If the coolant sensor reads warmer than normal, or reads hot all the time, the PCM will lean out the fuel mixture too much, causing the engine to stall when it is cold. See the article on coolant sensors for how to test the sensor. Replacing a defective coolant sensor will cure this cause of stalling.

* A faulty air temperature sensor. This sensor tells the PCM the temperature of the air entering the intake manifold. The PCM needs an accurate input so it can balance the air/fuel mixture properly. Just like a bad coolant sensor, a bad air temperature sensor can upset the fuel mixture causing stalling problems.

* A bad Manifold Absolute Pressure (MAP) sensor. This sensor monitors intake vacuum, which the PCM uses to determine engine load. If the MAP sensor is not reading accurately, the PCM may add too much fuel or not enough, causing the engine to stall. See the article on MAP sensors for how to diagnose this sensor.

* Low engine compression. If your engine has a lot of miles on it and compression is low because the piston rings and/or cylinders are worn, ot it has one or more leaky valves, it may not have enough oomph to keep idling. A compression check will tell you if this is a problem or not, and if it is there's no easy fix other than to overhaul or replace the engine.

* Worn or fouled spark plugs. Ignition misfire can make any engine stall at idle. When the engine is running slowly, there is less momentum to keep it going, so a bad misfire may cause it to stall. If the spark plugs have not been changed in a long time, a new set of plugs and/or plug wires can restore a good hot spark and eliminate the misfire. A weak ignition coil or a faulty crankshaft position sensor may also cause a stalling problem.

* Bad gas. Gasoline that contains too much alcohol (more than 10%), or gasoline that has been contaminated with water or some other substance may not burn well and cause your engine to stall. If the stalling started to occur shortly after your last fill-up, suspect bad gas. The cure is to drain the tank and refill it with fresh gas from another filling station, or just use up the bad fuel (if the engine runs okay at highway speeds), then refill at another station when the tank is near empty.

Sounds like lots of things needs to be checked :/

Could be battery.
The cold weather makes them work harder and after a drive the battery may have had enough charge to start the car normally the next day.

Age on a battery means nothing.
If you do a lot of small drives the battery never gets a proper charge, best way to test is to do a load test using a proper tool, you CAN use a multi meter and see how big the voltage drop is but it is not as accurate.
You can test the specific gravity of the lead acid using a battery acid test tool(cheap and easy to use)

All batteries need a good charge now and then, you just need to have a battery charging device.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Grayfox

Could be battery.
You can test the specific gravity of the lead acid using a battery acid test tool(cheap and easy to use)

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I shall give that a go. Thanks for the advice!