Mike S

CHECK YOUR KEY SWITCH

I noticed many people here saying they have problems starting their
89-91 Civics. I had an 89 Civic Wagovan that had some intermittent
starting problems. One day I went to start my car and it wouldn't
start. After about three or four tries, it finally started. About an
hour later I was driving on the freeway and smoke started coming out
of my steering column. I pulled over quickly and noticed that one wire
to my ignition switch was slightly melted. After letting things cool
down, I attempted to start it again. It ran fine until about another
30 minutes later when the smoke returned.

I was able to get to a large parking lot, where I let things cool down
and tried to start it again. My car wouldn't start no matter how hard
I tried. When it turned over, it would start, but as soon as I let the
key return to the ON position, it would shut off. I realized that when
the key was in the ON position, none of the lights on the dashboard
were on (engine, battery, etc.)

I found that I was able to keep my car running if I backed off the key
slightly after starting (holding it between ON and START) It was just
enough to get me to an Auto Parts store.

I replaced the key switch and everything worked fine afterwards. I
didn't need to replace the tumblers, rather just the switch which is a
white plastic piece that fits behind the tumblers.

Apparently these things wear out over time and can short out inside,
creating enough heat to melt the switch. The internal components had
melted, and the actual contact for the ON position had moved slightly
(which explains why I had to hold the key between ON and START just to
keep the car running)


I had this happen to a 91 Civic DX Hatchback also, so I'm assuming
this is a common problem with 10+ year old Civics.


I just thought I'd mention this, so anyone with problems starting a
Civic can try this first. If you turn your key to the ON position and
none of your dashboard lights are on (check engine light, battery,
oil, etc), but the engine still turns over when you try to start,
chances are you have a bad ignition switch.