I had the same problem, it was the pickup coil in the distributor. It
was $20 and took about 15 minutes to install with basic hand tools and a
feeler gauge.

HTH

Carl


"Jonathan Upright" <qaesar1@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news2eUc.259621$2o2.15469772@twister.southeast.r r.com...
> Hello,
>
> I posted a message not too long ago about my 1990 Civic's
tachometer
> being really jumpy. A few people responded and said it is probably
the
> ignitor. (ignition module) However, after doing a bit of thinking,
and
> talking to a certified Honda mechanic, I would like a third opinion.
The
> Honda mechanic mentioned that it could be the coil going bad. Since
the
> tach gets its "reading" from the coil, and the engine IS NOT
"missing", that
> makes me want to rule out the ignitor and believe that it is the coil.
BTW,
> as I mentioned in my first post, before I replaced the distributor cap
and
> rotor button, the first cap was only held on by ONE screw, and the
contacts
> were rusted inside. Of course, rust means moisture, and moisture + an
> electronic coil = bad news. So, in lieu of this new information,
would
> y'all be willing to agree with me and say it's the coil going bad? My
only
> other thought is that it could be a sensor going bad, but how likely
is
> that? I know my car has an Engine Speed sensor, but if I unplug that,
I
> can't even go over 2,000RPM because the speed sensor controls the
timing, so
> that's not the case. Does the 1990 Civic have a such thing as a
"Throttle
> Position Sensor"?
>
> Thanks again, everyone!
>
> Jonathan
>
>