Yes, car is a 93 Accord with approximately 140K miles.

Thanks,
Bill


"'Curly Q. Links'" <motsco__@interbaun.com> wrote in message
news:40107EEC.3E649A74@interbaun.com...
> WORSS wrote:
> >
> > Okay....need some real Honda experts to work on this one!
> >
> > During a severe cold spell here in upstate NY (-20) our Honda would not
> > start. It would turn over, but just wouldn't catch.
> >
> > Last Sunday, during a warm spell (yes it broke 32), I was finally able
to
> > get the car started, but it took me a long, long time. When it finally
> > started, the car seemed to run very poorly. Thinking that this was
related
> > to trying to start it so many times, I took it for a test drive. It
> > continued to run poorly, particularly at idle. After it warmed up, the
> > Check Engine light came on.
> >
> > I took the car home and jumped the blue connector to get the engine
> > code......code 43. This is an oxygen sensor problem and the manual says
> > that it is the oxygen sensor if the car runs well and a fuel delivery
> > problem if the car runs poorly. Therefore, seems to be a fuel delivery
> > issue.
> >
> > At this point, I drive the car 3 miles to the nearest Honda dealership
and
> > call them. After 4 days, I get a call that I have big problems. They
tell
> > me that two cylinders show poor compression and that they found
"gasoline
> > fumes" (I think this is what the said) in my antifreeze. They want over
> > $600 to replace the head gasket plus more money for anything they find
wrong
> > when they get in there (warped head, cracked head, etc.).
> >
> > So, I call my normal Honda mechanic (I did not take the car there
because he
> > is farther away and I was not too keen on driving the car). He tells me
> > that in his opinion it is more likely a fuel problem. His hypothosis is
> > that I have a bad distributor cap that is causing a spark problem and
> > therefore there is excess fuel in the two cylinders that tested poorly.
He
> > says they would show low compression if flooded with fuel. He also went
on
> > to tell me that the people at the dealership are very young and
> > inexperienced. I can support this because when I called the dealership
> > about the engine code 43 the person told me that he was not familiar
with
> > the check engine lights!
> >
> > One other symptom I failed to mention is that the car pings during
> > acceleration. What do you think? Does this sound like a head gasket
issue.
> > I will tell you that my daughter reported that the car overheated during
the
> > holidays. However, she is very observant and pulled over and turned the
car
> > off until it cooled down.
> >
> > Any other theories?
> >
> > Thanks,
> > Bill
> =====================
>
> Bill,
>
> Is this a '93, and what's the mileage?
>
> Have you read the manual? It sounds like you have a flooding problem. If
> you failed to use the prescribed method of starting in cold weather, you
> could have flooded it good. Have you ever ran some fuel injector cleaner
> thru it? Leaking injectors will also dilute your oil (as well as flood
> your engine overnight) When it finally starts it will run badly for a
> minute or two. It could also damage the head gasket if a cylinder gets
> full enough of gas (gas compresses just as good as water does = zero)
>
> If she only pulled over, but didn't remedy the problem, yes, you may
> have a head gasket problem. What did she find when she checked the
> coolant level? Has the coolant level changed in the past while?
>
> Has _she_ ever read the owner's manual?
>
> Don't bvelieve the Honda dealer too quickly.
>
>
> 'Curly' reply to group.