My 1994 Honda Accord has been the most trouble free and reliable auto I’ve ever owned. I became the 2nd owner of this low-mileage vehicle back in 2007 after my Infiniti Q45 went kaput. Since then, it has required minimal repairs beyond the usual maintenance.
My current issue has me stumped. It may be coincidental, but I never had any sort of electrical or CHECK ENGINE light issues prior to a recent visit to one of those drive-through car washes at a gas station, where the vinyl slats pound the car and the water shoots in from the sides as the device moves back and forward along the length of the car.
Anyway, immediately upon leaving that car wash, for the first time ever my CHECK ENGINE light suddenly came on. Just solid, no blinking. I also noticed that the Speedometer and odometer were dead. I have four analog gauges in my IP: Two large ones, the Speedo (with old-style odometer) on the right, and the Tachometer on the left. Outside of both of those are small analog gauges for the fuel level (right) and oil temp (left).
The rest of the IP uses digital indicators (battery charge, SRS, CHECK ENGINE, etc.,), and there is a stacked P-R-N-D4-D3-2-1 series of indicator lights in the center, separating the two big analog gauges. The tranny indicators are just boxes whose edges become illumined depending on the AT gear selection.
When the CHECK ENGINE light came on, I drove for a while, then stopped the engine. Waited a few minutes and restarted. Things seemed fine, back to normal, with speedo and odometer working, and no warning lights, until about another 10 or 15 minutes into the drive. At that point the D4 green light started flashing, and continued flashing when the CHECK ENGINE light came on again, staying lit solid as before.
Could this be an electrical issue? It puzzles me that the speedometer and odometer are dead, since I thought those were mechanically related to the rotation of the wheels and not dependent on fuses or electrical wiring.
Where do you suggest I start my troubleshooting? BTW the tranny seems normal, no harsh or unexpected shifting, no gear slipping, and all the fluid levels are fine. All the other analog gauges work fine too.
CHECK ENGINE light, dead speedo/odometer and blinking D4 indicator light. That’s where I’m at. Hope you can offer some insight. Thanks in advance if you can.
RESPONSE
Your electrical system may be wet. The condition will usually be corrected when the electrical system dries out. A few driving trips should turn the light off. This is common after driving through a big puddle or EXTREME car wash.
Speedometer:
This vehicle uses a an electronic sensor called a VSS – Vehicle Speed Sensor that is mounted int he transmission and sends an output signal.
D4 Indicator Light Blinking:
If an abnormality exists in the the transaxle electronic control system and a fault code is stored in the TCM memory, TCM will deliver an output signal to turn on and blink “D4” light on A/T gear position indicator on the instrument panel.
thank you kindly. you’re very thorough and it is much appreciated.
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