well im new here im on some other forums but i thought i'd post here because its honda of course. but anyway heres the problem:

i drove the car today about 100 miles it drove like normal except a couple noises with the alternator(which i think is the problem) but i got home.. was messing around the stereo ect.. constant 12V and that.. and i went to start up the car and the rpms started jumping between 1 and 2(without the stereo on) and after about 30 seconds the check engine light came on. to me it sounded like the alternator is bad and not giving power out. it does settle down after about a min or two. but when i go to shift outta park to R-N-D it makes a big jolt which is not too good for the trans. does this sound like an alternator problem or a transmission problem. i dont see how it would be a transmission problem when it drove nice and smooth, shifted between park and drive smoothly. when i do put it in drive now it seems not to accelerateat all. it does accelerate in reserve though. any advice is appreciated.

btw this is a 2000 Honda Civic EX 2dr 1.6L if that helps any.

 

Alright well even though i did get any feedback.. it wasn't the alternator or transmission. there might be a problem with the transmission no light comes on or anything but my RPMs still jump from about 1 to 2. this only happens while in park or neutral though. any thoughts on that?(transmission)?

 

The rpm should be steady and less than 1000 in park or neutral with the engine warmed up. The transmission doesn't affect that. Does the engine actually rev up and down or is it the tach needle showing the wrong rpm?

The unsteady idle sounds like a reoccurence of part of your original problem and you could ask whoever fixed it before to check it again.

As far as "not accelerating at all," you mean the car won't move forward at all? Or it does so only slowly? In that case, when it is moving forward, what are the rpms and does the engine run steady?

 

well thanks for the reply mk.. i got everything fixed.. replaced the alternator belt and i must say it was a freakin bit** but the car is still at high rpms with around 1500 while in park and neutral. could this be because the alternator is now 160amps? it was mostly the alternator belt was bad. and i had a blown fuse. the car is pretty much fine except for the rpms bein at 1500. is that normal?

 

could it be my cat converter? theres a rattle noise.. im guessing im gonna have to get a new one.. but could that be why my rpms jump? in park there around 1500 then drop to 1000 while in drive. once in awhile when i start my car the rpms start at 1500 jump up to 2000 and hten back down and up again.. any feedback is appreciated

 

No it cannot be the catalytic converter. Rattling from the converter area is a seperate problem as discussed in another recent thread. Check the throttle linkage and IAC. I thought I posted something about that but it didn't seem to make it. What you want to do is find the part on the intake that the cable from the gas pedal moves, this is the throttle lever. Then with the engine running move it by hand. One way will rev up the engine, pull it the other way and see if you can get a normal idle. If that helps, the cable, throttle body, etc. is sticky or there is a problem with the cruise control actuator (if equipped). If not, it is probably the idle air control valve which is the device the computer uses to control how much air enters the engine at idle, and thus the rpm it will run at.

 

Did you pull the code if you dont know how https://www.hondacivicforum.com/m_152006/tm.htm
if you did what did it read?

 

the CEL did go off when i replaced the alternator and i replaced some fuses. And now that cruise control is coming up in this thread.. i think it might be a problem with that..? only because i used cruise control earily that day. i took a hour drive.. and a hour drive back home.. went to go back out later and thats when the rpms just kept jumping up and down. its not as bad now but it will jump between 1500 and 2000 and you can hear it from the engine. i did check the lever.. but i will have to see if i can pull it the other way to get a normal idle. thanks for the response guys.

other than the rpms its been driving great.. i dont notice the rpms jumping while in drive.. only in park or neutral. ill have to take another look at it tomorrow.

 

Just thought i'd post and say i found out that it was the IACV. I cleaned out the tb and the rpms went down a little. it still idles at 1500 while in park. but it doesn't jump anymore. could there be any other reason that it still idles so high though?