Honda Car Forum

Have an '03 MDX purchased in June with ocassional trouble starting. The
starter engages but the engine NEVER catches. This happened maybe 5 times
since June. Each time I decide to call roadside assistance and each time
when I finish getting off the cell phone and have a few minutes to wait for
the tow truck, I try starting one more time - and voila! starts like a
champ.

The dealer's service dept. told me to make sure the key icon on the dash is
not blinking when I turn the key. He thinks maybe I'm starting the engine
before the electronics have a chance to finish their startup checks. In
this case, he says the electronics might interpret this as me trying to
start the engine with an unauthorized key (ie, steal the car) and hence it
will kill the ignition.

I'm not sure one way or the other whether the key icon on the dash was
blinking (the problem hasn't recurred since I spoke to the dealer). But I
am curious if others had similar problems and solutions.

-Bob
Andover, MA

We got our '03 MDX in April and have never experienced the problem you
are having. I start it as soon as I stick the key in, no waiting. If
you have been only using key #1, try using key #2 for a while and see
if it happens with it too.


On Thu, 06 Nov 2003 04:47:33 GMT, tsreyb
<MelancholyMan__NIXSPAM__@muchomail.com> wrote:

> Have an '03 MDX purchased in June with ocassional trouble starting. The
> starter engages but the engine NEVER catches. This happened maybe 5 times
> since June. Each time I decide to call roadside assistance and each time
> when I finish getting off the cell phone and have a few minutes to wait for
> the tow truck, I try starting one more time - and voila! starts like a
> champ.
>
> The dealer's service dept. told me to make sure the key icon on the dash is
> not blinking when I turn the key. He thinks maybe I'm starting the engine
> before the electronics have a chance to finish their startup checks. In
> this case, he says the electronics might interpret this as me trying to
> start the engine with an unauthorized key (ie, steal the car) and hence it
> will kill the ignition.
>
> I'm not sure one way or the other whether the key icon on the dash was
> blinking (the problem hasn't recurred since I spoke to the dealer). But I
> am curious if others had similar problems and solutions.
>
> -Bob
> Andover, MA