89' Civic shutting down at highway speeds

Well, I've recently began experiencing a car problem that is totally new to
me. My 1989 Civic LX completely shuts down at highway speeds at least 3
times per week. The feeling is pretty darn scary whenever it happens. No
other vehicle that I have owned over the course of 28 years has ever
exhibited a problem of this particular nature.

Anyone else out there ever experienced this type of problem with their late
80s model Civic? The vehicle usually does this at the end of inclined exit
ramps/driveways. Not 100% of the time, but almost.

S.T.

 

There are a couple of possible causes. I suggest that you get a complete
tune-up. If you have never before done a tune-up, you should take it to a
mechanic that you trust. The mechanic can hook it up to a diagnostic
computerized engine tester and may be able to track down the problem. You
could have gotten a bad tank of gas. If there was water in the gas, it
causes all sorts of problems. One person spent several hundred dollars
replacing various engine parts until he figured out that the problem was
related to water in the gas. A clogged fuel filter was his main clue since
it had water in it. I suggest that you clean or replace the fuel filter.
Also, check for dampness inside the distributor. A vacuum leak in the
intake maniford or vacuum hoses can also cause an engine to stall. I hope
this helps.

 

Thanks for taking the time and effort to respond Jason. I appreciate it!
Actually, I had a complete tune-up performed on the car about 5 months ago.
The guy that did it is a superb Asian car specialist. He replaced the fuel
filter, spark plugs, plug wires, air filter, PCV valve, adjusted the idle,
etc. The little car ran great for the next 4 months after he tuned it up.
Not sure what's going on with it. I'm going to have him check it out next
week.

Personally, I suspect that it is indeed a vacuum leak as you aluded to in
your reply. I'll mention to my mechanic that I want him to explicitly check
for any vacuum leaks.

Regards,

S.T.

 

when it shuts down does it jerk or what i like to call buck? if so i would
guess to be a fuel filter. i had a late 80's toyo pickup that would buck
severly on uphill swings but not all the time - just like your situation.
Come to find out it was a clogged fuel filter.


-Jeff

 

You know it does "buck" sometimes Jeff. Especially when I reach the pinnacle
of our driveway which is a fairly substantial incline. It hasn't bucked
every single time that it shutdown, but now that you mention it, there is a
tendency towards this type of behavior on ocassion.

S.T.

 

I spoke with the Asian car guru today. He said that this problem can be
related to either...

a) Bad ignition module

b) Bad coil wires

c) Bad fuel filter

Next week he's going to take a look at it. If anyone is interested I'll post
his findings here.

Thanks for all of your input guys!

S.T.

 

That would be fun.

My best guess prior to your latest post, based on my experiences with my 1991
Civic and reading a lot of posts here, would have been the distributor coil.
('Course, it's only a best guess.)

Place your bets folks.

(Sorry for your misfortune, though, ST. I hope the solution is found quickly!)

 

I had an '89 Accord that did just that--it took a while but the problem
turned out to be the fuel pump that was located inside the gas tank The
pump had a inlet screen that would intermittently clog shutting off a major
portion of the fuel flow to the engine. The screen was an integral part of
the pump requiring a pump replacement. The screen, instead of being a nut
and bolt catcher, was as fine or finer than the engine compartment fuel
filter. I saw what it looked like when the pump was removed and it was a
wonder that anything got through it. Later in time they made the screen a
separate, replaceable, part.
MLD