I am having the strangest things happen when I'm driving and I am sure they are all connected to one issue, but not sure what it could be. If it's not mechanical or electrical, it could be the devil. And if it's the devil, it's going to radically alter my belief structure.

I have a 2001 Civic coupe ex with a vtech engine. Manual transmission.

The first thing is the problem isn't consistent and it doesn't seem to matter the conditions, cold, hot, wet, or if I am driving fast, slow. Sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn't.

The first problem is the SRS light is lit almost all the time. It goes off sometimes at a stoplight for a little bit and it's gone off on the freeway, but for the most part it's always on.

Sometimes the ABS light will blink on and off, in random sequences. Then it will go weeks and never come on, then start blinking again.

Some of the dashboard lights seem to pulsate, the backlight on the odometer in particular, the cruise control light.

When that happens the car also feels like it's vibrating back to front slightly. The slower the car the more noticeable it is.

Here is the weird one. If the radio is on an AM station it will make a popping sound like it's turning off and on in a milisecond. POP POP POP. The more I am accelerating the more POPS there are. If the car is in neutral, no popping. The popping doesn't happened if the radio is on an FM station.

I had the battery and the alternator tested and both were fine and I've had the spark plugs replaced. This has been going on for a couple of months.

In those two months 3 different times after I started the car up and stepped on the gas, it feels like something is blocking the engine from doing anything the RPMS barely go up and the car goes about 2mph. After a minute, everything is fine.

Always starts with no problem.


Thanks for any help you can give me in advance.

 

This is surely an electrical problem. It may take some time to sort this out. As your most persistent problem is the SRS light staying ON, start by checking whether fuse #13 in the under-dash fuse/relay box is blown.

 

Devil... lol well it is electrical of that i am sure. It sounds to me like you have a grounding issue... but I could be wrong because there are a lot of things that could cause these problems, and please note that it could be more than one problem, so there could be multiple fixes...

 

I agree most likely a grounding issue. Also check that the connections to the battery are clean and tight, having them loose can make the whole electrical system haywire.

 

Glad it isn't possessed.

What would I look for if it's a grounding issue? I've cleaned the battery terminals and that didn't do anything as well.

 

Due to the complex nature of your problems, it's difficult for me to suggest specific ground wires to check at this point. Other members might have better ideas.

On a separate note, what was the first problem you noticed among those mentioned in your first post? Did the SRS light turn ON first followed later by the other problems or did all problems begin at about the same time?

 

Yes the SRS light was the first thing to happen and then the other things. Looks like I am going to have to take it to an expert.

 

Did you find that fuse #13 was fine? If this SRS fuse is blown, the SRS light will turn ON. It's just the first thing to check. By the way, if the fuse is not blown, there are ways to retrieve the SRS trouble code, which is indicated by the blinking pattern of the SRS light when the proper SRS circuit is jumped. The retrieved code identifies the defective SRS component. An interesting possibility would be that a short in this SRS component's circuit is responsible for all your problems.

 

#13 was fine and not blown. I was thinking a short there as well.

Should I take this to a Honda Dealer because the issue is so complex? I'd rather take it to an independent shop.

 

If you are both motivated and somewhat handy, you should be able to retrieve the SRS code stored in the cars' computer and possibly use the information to save money. If you are uneasy with this idea, I think either the Honda dealership or a local mechanic with substantial experience working on Civics should be fine.