1990 Honda Accord gone haywire / shifter linkage problem ?

Hi Everyone,

I have a 1990 Honda Accord EX automatic, with about 175k miles. Last
week I stopped at a store and when I came back to start the car the
following all started happening at once with the ignition was in the
final position just prior to starting the car :

1. Loud tapping rattling (relay-chattering?) sound from under the
left of the dashboard and directly under the gear shifter. Pressing
the foot brake makes the noises stop as does putting it in any gear
other than Park.

2. This model has a "Sports" button on the automatic gear shifter.
When depressed a light comes on on the dashboard. This light is now on
all the time, regardless of whether the button is depressed or not.
Nothing seems to make this light go out.

3. The car starts normally but driving it doesn't - it now seems to be
ignoring first gear. I checked that first gear is still working by
manually shifting it down and it still works fine. I can't tell if the
relay rattling sound from 1. above is still there with the engine
running though. Once you get up to about 20mph it all seems ok again.

Initially I thought the problem was the electronic control module but
now I'm thinking its the shifter linkage. Anyone seen this sort of
problem ?

Thanks
Dom

 

wrote in @b40g2000prf.googlegroups.com:

How's the battery's state of charge?

If the "S" light is illuminated, then the ECU and/or TCM has recorded an
error code.

Short the 2-pin Service Check connector behind the top of the passenger
kick panel, turn the ignition on, then read the blinks of both the ECU annd
the TCM LED's. Those modules are under the carpet in the passenger
footwell.

When was the fluid drained last? Drain it now and inspect the fluid for
metal particles.

 

Thanks.
Could it be the neutral safety switch ?

 

wrote in

Could be. You'd have to remove the console and do a continuity check on it.

Could also be the shift lock solenoid, I suppose.

If UI were you, I'd pull the console to expose the buzzing relay and
identify exactly which component is making that nose. This would help
diagnosis.