electrical problem in my bb1 prelude?

[dimsum]

Help, my car won't go. :cry:
I can turn the key into the start position and the engine starts, but when I let it go into th on position it dies. I've checked all the fuses by the air box and the look fine, same as the ones by the foot pedals. Head lights and internal lights work, radio not sure if it's off or not going. When I turn the key into the on position non of the lights on the dash light up as they usually do.

Its not my alarm playing games with me coz if it was immoblising my car then nothing would happen if I turned the key into start.

Are there any others fuses I should check? Or anyother causes of my problem?

I'm not very car co ordinated so be as simple as possible or u will lose me.

Please save my car :cry: HELP ME PLEASE I really need my car going ASAP.

[Chris]

It sounds like it could be your ignition switch, if you give the key a little jiggle when its in the ON position especially toward the start side, see if that works.

Have you had any burning smells coming from around the steering column? Does the car do it when its both hot and cold?

[Pnut]

your ignition barrel has electrical contacts that rub against each other so over a given period of time they can wear. If it works when you are puting pressure on the key it can mean that the contacts have worn or broken so that the pressure put on it by the key helps it make the contact. To test this theory start the car, can you quickly release the key and grab it again and the car coughs as if to stall and then fires back up again?

Also, if you turn the key into the start position without the engine started does the dash light up when you let the key go?

If it is that i wouldn't expect there would be any electrical smells Chris as the barrels are pretty much a sealed unit, i could be wrong though :wink:

[revlimit]

You can buy the ignition switch seperate from the barrell, just screws on the end, don't bother with a secondhand one

[dimsum]

Originally Posted by Chris

It sounds like it could be your ignition switch, if you give the key a little jiggle when its in the ON position especially toward the start side, see if that works.

Nothing

Originally Posted by Chris

Have you had any burning smells coming from around the steering column? Does the car do it when its both hot and cold?

No strange smells. The car wouldn't start just after I drove it home, hot, still won't start now, cold.

Originally Posted by Pnut

your ignition barrel has electrical contacts that rub against each other so over a given period of time they can wear. If it works when you are puting pressure on the key it can mean that the contacts have worn or broken so that the pressure put on it by the key helps it make the contact. To test this theory start the car, can you quickly release the key and grab it again and the car coughs as if to stall and then fires back up again?

Yeah, it fires again if you turn it back to start really quickly

Originally Posted by Pnut

Also, if you turn the key into the start position without the engine started does the dash light up when you let the key go?

it lights up when you turn it into start without the engine starting but when you let go everything goes off.

So, is this all pointing to my ignition switch? If so can someone tell me what does the switch look like? And where do I find it? I assume its near the barrel:?:

[Pnut]

Originally Posted by dimsum

So, is this all pointing to my ignition switch? If so can someone tell me what does the switch look like? And where do I find it? I assume its near the barrel:?:

Ignition switch / barrel is the same thing i think you will find. Anyway this sounds like the key/barrel fault to me. You can get a new one, and might be able to get it changed to suit your key, or else get a second hand unit and have different keys for the door and the ignition - not so much a problem if you have central locking hooked into your alarm.

[Pdu-NZ]

It's the contacts on the back end of the ignition switch held on the back by 2 screws and 2 plugs. Just unscrew and unplug and replace with a new one - took me 5 mins. I had the same problem, which was getting worse so before I got stranded somewhere I got a new one for just over $200 from Honda. Havnt had problem since - and yes DONT get a second hand one, you'll just end up having the same problems in the near future.

BTW the Ignition switch contacts and Main relay are the common faults in the Prelude's.

[dimsum]

Problem fixed today, thanks guys for the help.
Learnt 2 things
1. hot to hot wire my car, had to get to school somehow.
2. alway remember to disconnect your battery when playing with the electrics

[Drewpy]

Had this problem exactly to me afew weeks ago.

Glad to see you got a lot more support then i did