Honda Car Forum

I get no voltage to my starter solenoid. I've pulled the collar to the
ignition and Black?White get power when turning to START. I've checked the
clutch interlock and it appears to be working....only to me it's backwards. It
opens when you apply pedal and closes when you take your foot off the clutch.
Does that make sense? NO! But it can't be any different than it was
originally so I guess it's supposed to work that way.

Anyway, the only thing I can figure is that there's a starter relay that's bad
and I can't find it!

Sorry, I'm a Chrysler guy, myself. An OLD Chrysler guy as I haven't been able
to afford a new car since 1982....so have pity on an ol' man, would ya?

Thanks in Advance.

Oh, and when using a jumper from the battery + to the starter solenoid, the car
starts right up.

A thought....Is the starter relay different from the main relay? I know where
that is....LOL!

If you have cruise control there will be two switches at the clutch
pedal. The lower one is for the cruise (one black and one pink wire),
the one above is for the starter interlock (one black and one blue/black
wire)

The starter-interlock switch at the clutch pedal should be closed when
you press the clutch all the way down, open otherwise. This switch
grounds one side of a relay coil. If you measure the voltage between
ground and the BLU/BLK wire on the switch you should see about 12V when
you turn the key to start and do NOT step on the clutch, about 0 V under
all other conditions.

There is a clutch interlock relay at the side of the driver's foot well.
This relay will make contact when the clutch pedal is pushed AND the
ignition is in the start position. You can test this fairly easily:
Measure the voltage between ground and fuse # 18. Most automotive fuses
has recessed metal tabs on the front for easy access with voltmeter
probes. If the interlock system is working, you should see about 12V at
the fuse when you press the clutch and turn the ignition to start.

If you post a real e-mail address I'll send you scans from the service
manual indicating where the interlock relay is mounted.

DUMBnEASY wrote:
>
> I get no voltage to my starter solenoid. I've pulled the collar to the
> ignition and Black?White get power when turning to START. I've checked the
> clutch interlock and it appears to be working....only to me it's backwards. It
> opens when you apply pedal and closes when you take your foot off the clutch.
> Does that make sense? NO! But it can't be any different than it was
> originally so I guess it's supposed to work that way.
>
> Anyway, the only thing I can figure is that there's a starter relay that's bad
> and I can't find it!
>
> Sorry, I'm a Chrysler guy, myself. An OLD Chrysler guy as I haven't been able
> to afford a new car since 1982....so have pity on an ol' man, would ya?
>
> Thanks in Advance.

> A thought....Is the starter relay different from the main relay? I know where
> that is....LOL!

Yes, it is different. The "main relay" is for the fuel injection system.
The starter interlock relay is mounted a bit above the main relay. You
should find a cluster of three relays, the two closest to the rear of
the car are for the moon roof, the one to the front of the car in the
starter interlock relay.

What body style and trim level do you have?

I can't believe it! A Saturday night Savior! I DO appreciate it. The model
is a Civic LX 4 door. It does have manual tranny and cruise control.

How stuff is starting to make sense. The switch I pulled out is backwards
because it isn't the right one. Mine opens when pushed, which indicates the
cruise control. Nes pax? LOL!

Now a little tech thought more is needed. This is my tenant's car. I am 6'3"
and about 240. Instead of coming up from underneath wouldn't it be easier for
me to pull the instrument panel and go in on top?
I'm terrific at pulling clusters; but I'm too (two-LOL!) big to get both hands
up underneath the dash. Whadaya think?
Can I get there that way?

And once again-THANK YOU!

And my screen name is real....just add Steve Case's ISP to the end of it. If
you need more of a hint.... In fact, his ISP bought Time Warner. And if that
ain't a big enough hint.... I'll post again. LOL!

Not sure about pulling the cluster, there is a lot of stuff in the way
so I doubt you'd get access from above even with the cluster out of the
way. What you should try is removing the lower dash panel and the knee
bolster as this will give much better access to both the clutch pedal
switch and the interlock relay. See page 20-82 of the service manual.

For diagnosing the switch you don't really need access to it. You can do
the measurements at the relay instead. Pull out the relay and measure
continuity between the blue/black wire of the relay socket and ground.
If the switch is working there should be continuity when you press the
pedal all the way.

If the switch is fine, measure the voltage between ground and the
blue/white wire at the relay socket as you put the key in the start
position (no need to step on the clutch). You should see battery
voltage. Then measure voltage between ground and the black/white wire at
the relay socket with the key in the start position (again no need to
step on the clutch). Again you should see battery voltage.

Assuming you found battery voltage in the two previous tests, plug the
relay back in and measure the voltage at fuse #18 as you step on the
clutch and turn the key to start. You should see battery voltage. If you
don't, it is most likely a faulty starter cut relay.

DUMBnEASY wrote:
>
> I can't believe it! A Saturday night Savior! I DO appreciate it. The model
> is a Civic LX 4 door. It does have manual tranny and cruise control.
>
> How stuff is starting to make sense. The switch I pulled out is backwards
> because it isn't the right one. Mine opens when pushed, which indicates the
> cruise control. Nes pax? LOL!
>
> Now a little tech thought more is needed. This is my tenant's car. I am 6'3"
> and about 240. Instead of coming up from underneath wouldn't it be easier for
> me to pull the instrument panel and go in on top?
> I'm terrific at pulling clusters; but I'm too (two-LOL!) big to get both hands
> up underneath the dash. Whadaya think?
> Can I get there that way?
>
> And once again-THANK YOU!