civic mysteriously losing power

My 2001 civic intermittently stops accelerating and then kicks back into
gear while driving. It's not a stall, because the car doesn't completely
lose power (the radio, a/c, etc. keep working), but the car stops moving.
It almost feels like trying to drive with something stuck under the wheels
-- I press on the accelerator pedal but the car doesn't move. No
indicator lights appear, nor are any problems coming up in computer
diagnostics. The service people thought the problem was in the fuel
supply and have tried a couple of things, including replacing the fuel
pump, but there has been no change. They've basically admitted that they
have no idea what the problem is, but the car isn't safe to drive. It
only has 49,000 miles on it.

Does anyone have any ideas at all?

 

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First, perform the Lamp Check to be sure all your dash lights are
indicating properly. Then follow your owner's manual and check the
tranny fluid level. Wipe some on a piece of paper and tell us the color.
Smell it. Let us know. Who talked you into a fuel pump?

'Curly'

 

Start by describing the problem a bit better.

What does "stops accelerating and then kicks back into
gear" mean? You're driving along and then the engine "loses power"
and you slow down or what? Or this happens when you're trying to
accelerate? When you press the accelerator and the car doesn't move,
is the engine revving or nothing is happening at all?

 

The engine stops revving despite pressure on the accelerator and the car
coasts and then slows. Then, the problem will stop, the RPMs will
increase and the engine will rev commensurate with the pressure on the
pedal. The problem has been intermittent, so it might happen for 10 or 15
seconds at a shot, though it's becoming more frequent. The car literally
stopped moving while I was making a left turn across traffic the last time
I had it out, and I was almost side-swiped. I kept my foot on the
accelerator and a second later, it jumped forward.

I've had it at my local Honda dealership for the repairs. Admittedly, I
can only assume they know what they're doing, though I've only had
positive experiences there before.

Thanks!

 

The engine stops revving despite pressure on the accelerator and the car
coasts and then slows. Then, the problem will stop, the RPMs will
increase and the engine will rev commensurate with the pressure on the
pedal. The problem has been intermittent, so it might happen for 10 or 15
seconds at a shot, though it's becoming more frequent. The car literally
stopped moving while I was making a left turn across traffic the last time
I had it out, and I was almost side-swiped. I kept my foot on the
accelerator and a second later, it jumped forward.

I've had it at my local Honda dealership for the repairs. Admittedly, I
can only assume they know what they're doing, though I've only had
positive experiences there before.

Thanks!

 

jeez ... that sounds scary.

it sounds like an electrical problem to me but they're the experts.
My guess is something in the ignition system is starting to fail but
finding intermittent problems like this can be a real challenge.

 

I'm thinking fuel delivery problem, possibly a loss of power to the fuel
pump. (Fuel pumps themselves don't often become intermittent; they usually
just up and die.) My reasoning is that electrical problems, whether ignition
or anything in the injector control, is almost always very abrupt, like
turning the ignition off and back on.

The ECU in my '84 Nissan 300ZX went insane and decided the engine wasn't
running and would shut down the fuel pump every 30 or 60 seconds. It
produced symptoms like you describe - a fading away over a period of a
second or so, quicker at higher speed and slower at low speeds. But I would
more strongly suspect the Main Relay
(http://tegger.com/hondafaq/startproblems.html#mainrelay) in the Civic.

Mike

 

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This is a dark mystery . . . . .

So, it never actually stalls, but does it only do it at lower speeds, or
highway as well? Does it matter if you're climbing a hill / coasting
down a hill? What about hot or cold days? We don't know what country
you're in, but have you tried some gasohol, or injector cleaner to be
sure it's not water in the gas? I think it's more like a loose ground
wire on the engine or electronics , but some of that should show up as a
CODE.

Have you tried appealing to Honda's Head Office to see if they will help
out, since it's a SAFETY ISSUE???? I bet they'd be helpful.

'Curly'