My 2002 CL Type-S will not idle. Dies at stop signs/lights. Check engine light stays on and the VSM warning light is on also. Seems to be a computer module issue of some type. Runs fine at cruising speed. Have already had a fuel system cleaning done at the Honda dealer which did not help. The Honda dealer said the computer codes indicated misfire problem and fuel injector issue. Which does not make sense. Anyone else have this problem?

Thanks - dlj

 

I have a problem with a sensor in a car built in the 80's that would cause the transmission not to reduce the speed at which it was turning and after running at 50mph and going to a stop it would die, and then it would restart after a few minutes, like the sensor would reset. It was in the transmission and this is the only thing I can think of that could be a problem.

 

Idle Air Control valve? Run a search. Guess it's not still under warranty or you wouldn't be taking it to the Honda dealer?

 

idle issue as well and check engine light is on. VSA light is off. Dealer tech on phone told me to reset gas cap and drive for three days and if light does not go off, then bring it in. I am one day into this exercise with no change. Should I be patient or do anything else? Thanks

 

i have a similar problem, except mine doesnt turn off. it idles up and down slightly when im in drive but stopped. honda told me to take it in? any quick fixes??

 

also, the lights dim like its an electric problem when the idle drops, and it doesnt do it all the time.

 

the lights dimming when it drops revs is normal the car is about to stall and the alternator slows down so they fade in and out. to the other person you might have a bad injector thats why your getting the misfire codes.

 

so you are saying the idle dropping is normal??

 

no i'm saying when the idle drops its normal for the lights to dim, you have to figure out why its dropping rpm.

 

2001 Acura CL-S, 91k miles, tranny replaced @ 55k

I have the same problem and it just started out of the blue. Friday, the car was fine. I didn't drive over the weekend and then came Monday (2/20/06)...

First the check engine light came on. Then a few minutes later, the VSP and Warning <!> lights both came on. I didn't notice any performance degradation at cruising speeds; only at a stop- the RPM had a low-idle pulse (not surging- it drops from ~850 (idle) to about ~600).

I brought it to the shop (not Acura) and they pulled the code. It claimed to be coming from the "anti-knock sensor" and I was qouted $325 to replace because it was located on the intake manifold and they had to remove a bunch of crap to get to it.

Does this sound familiar and if you had this issue, what did you do to fix and how much did it cost. Does $325 to replace the anti-knock sensor sound reasonable?

Thanks in advance!!

 

Sorry, I meant: "...VSA (vehicle stability assist) and Warning <!> lights both came on."

 

I don't see the connection between VSA lights and engine knock sensor. You can be pretty certain dealer is going to try to take advantage of you. Can you reset the codes and see if it happens again?

 

First off all if it's your injector then you won't haven't problem just at idle. It will show especially at cruising or under load since that's when the most fuel is needed not at idle. So you have to isolate the problem to a idle issue. Now does your car idle fine when you start the car? If so then it's probadly not something like a iac (idle air control). You can prove the theory by throwing the car to netural when coming to a stop and see if that resolves anything btw is your car a auto or 6sp? If that fixs it they you know it's a drivetrain issue causing your car to stall. Also to prove the iac is defective throw the car to netural when coming to the stop and lightly press on the gas pedal as the job of a iac is to bypass air through the throttle plate. Regarding the knock sensor issue. Yes in a way it can cause a car to stall I suppose but when coming to a stop? humm...anyways a knock sensor retards timing because it detects knock. If the sensor is defective and is constantly detecting knock where there isn't knock and cause the computer to think there is still knock and retard it to a point when the engine can't run and die that's a possiblity. If your automotive knowdlege isn't that great and understand what every sensor does then it's more of a trial and error situation or pay the dealer to fix it and have it be there responsiblity until the issue is resolve is my best suggestion. $325 replacing a knock sensor is a sense maybe alot but what if they misdiagnosed the issue and you took the fall and bought a knock sensor and the issue still remain? Are you willing to eat your mistake and try again or pay $325 and make it be there problem to resolve your issue?

 

Thanks everyone for replying- any help is appreciated. I didn't bring it to a dealer; it's at a shop that a friend recommeded as being reputable. (this is the first time I'm bringing in my car to them)

They did try to reset the code, but the check engine, warning and VSA lights came back on shortly afterwards.

I don't see a relationship with the lights and anti-knock sensors which is why I was hoping someone out there may have seen this before.

In any case, thanks in advance to all who have responded.

 

In my case, this is an "at-idle" issue only. The car runs fine at higher rpm's and to be frank, I can't tell any performance difference. It's only at idle that it idles rough with what feels to be like an rpm pulsating dip. As for having paying to have it replaced- I agree that I feel more comfortable having someone else do it rather than doing it myself with the chance that it may not be the problem. I just wanted to know if $325 was reasonable for swapping out this sensor (and if anyone has done it and fixed the problem).

 

The symptoms at idle-only seem to point to a bad or dirty IAC valve. $325 to replace IAC valve is high, as it's not that hard to get at.
I'm wondering if, in addition, there's also a code for a bad anti-lock (ABS) sensor. You've been saying "anti-knock sensor," which is nonsensical.

 

No, I meant anti-knock senors which according to the mechanic is what the code is indicating. ABS pertains to brakes which I doubt is of concern. In any case, the mechanic just called back and said that he took a closer look and found the wire harness to the sensor has been chewed through. He suspects some sort of rodent crawled into the in-take manifold and gnawled the cables.

He says now I'm looking at about $450 to fix. I will have to visit the shop to see this first hand. If this is the case, I'm going to have to start laying traps in front of my house.

 

ok the same thing just happened to me VSA CEL and TRACTION came on and it ideled funny. I brought it in to acura and they said it was the O2 sensor and it is not covered under warranty because it is the 02 sensor by my headers and i have aftermarket headers. they said it would be $310 to fix....so i think this answers all the questions here...

 

Did you pay $310.00 to fix it? Isn't an 02 sensor under $20.00 for the part? Maybe they are charging 3hrs of labor and $10.00 for the part?

 

OEM O2 sensors can be ~$100 and more, especially if you get it from the dealer. Rockauto O2 sensors for CL-S

I'd like to know what an anti-knock sensor is, though.

 

warranty does not cover it i spoke to acura and acura care...long story read my other post... the o2 sensor by the headers is $150 from Acura and it is plug and play...

 

If a knock (or ping) is sensed, it gives the feedback to the ECU which then can advance or retard the spark. So even if you use regular with 87 octane (I wouldn't), the engine will adjust to it.

I haven't heard of any problems with that sensor, unlike my 1st gen. Some had problems and the state of California sued Acura. The result was a letter from Acura extending the warranty on the emissions system.

 

You're describing a knock sensor. What's an anti-knock sensor? I maintain there is no such thing.

 

OK...now I see where you're coming from. I've heard it called both ways, but technically speaking you're right! My bad.

 

I had a similar stalling problem on a different car. It ended up being a throttle position sensor, which is responsible for regulating the idle on some vehicles.

 

one thing to keep in mind with these cars, first off the vsa will turn off as will abs, if the engine is knocking and not performing good, the euc will try to save the engine and turn off things it does not need and that might damage the engine. now these cars are especially sensitive to winter fuel when it gets warm. if lets say its March and one day it gets 60 outside, the car will have a check engine light, vsa light, abs light on and idle like crap. this is because the winter fuel is more volatile then summer mix and what happens is that the air bubbles in the fuel(yes there are really small air bubbles) get big, big enough to effect the engines idle you will notice that once it gets cold again the problem disappears, you can scan the car and it might have PO300 and maybe even P0301, P0302, P0303, P0304, P0305, P0306 codes. i think this phenomenon explains a lot of the trouble people are having.

 

i fixed my problem which was ... CEL, Trac Light, VSA light and irregular idle, by changing the oxygen sensor by the headers (the one next to the CAT)... this took care of everything and all the lights went away and it idles fine now...

 

Civicking, you are misinformed. ABS has nothing to do with the engine whatsoever, and is never "off" unless the ABS light comes on, and then it's a problem in the system. The CEL will often come on with VSA/TCS lights, but remember that VSA does have the ability to interfere with engine power. VSA piggybacks ABS - ABS not working will cause VSA not to work, but VSA not working doesn't affect ABS.

I've never, ever had a problem with this in GA weather. Last week, it was in the 80s here in GA. Tonight, we have a freeze warning. Same tank of gas as last week and my TL (turned 58k miles today) has NO problems whatsoever.

I don't mean you any offense by any of this, of course. But most often in the Acura CL/TL line, misfires are due to bad coilpacks, bad O2 sensors, or bad catalytic converters - not extreme fuel sensitivity.

 

if you have never seen this how can you say it does not happen, because it does. first this is that your in Ga that means you get summer fuel all the time, if it gets cold that not the same problem as going from cold to hot with winter fuel. if you have summer fuel and it gets cold then you just worse gas mileage. if you have winter fuel and it gets hot then you have the problem i am describing. we have owned the cl for two years and every spring its the same thing. you check the ecu and it says misfire, but once the gas changes to summer mix everything is fine. again. next when get multiple misfire codes the abs, check engine and trac light come on. then once it gets cold again everything goes off. they are more sensitive to fuel than you can imagine, do this is you really want to see it happen, grab some gas from a cold northern state in the middle of january and bring it down, them put it in your car when its 60-80 outside, and run it you will see the car has these exact symptoms i am talking about, and you can't do a thing about it to fix it.