Service Indicator Stuck, Part II

The service indicator's stuck again on my 1991 Accord, at 224K. It's
been a couple hundred miles now and it still refuses to reset when the
key is pushed into the reset slog. In a couple hundred more, I'll just
put the mileage when the oil change is due on a sticker like the good
ol' days. But just out of curiosity: Anyone happen to trip across an
explanation other than "age and wear"?

 

Update: A sharp rap on the dashboard enabled it to be reset. (I knew it
was something mechanical, so I just had to try. ;-) It's green
again...at least, for 7K miles or so...

 

Good update.

I have been reading about and also maintained Hondas for about a
decade now. My impression is that the main problems of middle aged and
older Hondas are aged electrical connections. Soldered joints are
typically the problem. Engine and tranny wear is far less likely.

Maybe the problem is that soldering technology is not at the point
that most soldered joints exposed to heat cycling like that seen in a
car can be guaranteed beyond about ten years.

 

that service indicator is mechanical, not electrical. it works just
like the trip counter reset.

 

The light is electrical. It may be set off by the odometer, and I
agree there may be a failing in the mechanical signaling system, but
there is still an electrical connection. Either may be at fault here.

 

what light? it's a little disk with green, yellow, and red bits on it.
it rotates with mileage.

 

This one actually a little plastic wheel that turns with the odometer. The
reset mechanism is identical to that used for the trip odometer, just
operated with the ignition key, not with a pushrod. Same as with the trip
odo, you use it enough and it breaks.

 

The wonderful world of plastics... Not one of the trip odometers on my
gen II Civics work.

JT

 

Tegger's right about it being mechanical.

Perhaps interestingly, the trip odometer is reset every time I fill the
gas tank, far more often than the service indicator. It seems possible
that the opposite is the problem--that the service indicator does not
get reset often enough to keep it clear of accumulated dust over a
nearly 20-year period, for example, and the infrequency of use (once
every 7500 miles vs. once every 350-400 miles) is the root of the
problem. As my lathe reminded me yesterday, many mechanical devices
just hate to sit around...

Maybe I'll spray some Teflon around the edges of the reset slot and see
whether the thing wants to reset next time without rapping on the dash.

As far as the engine and transmission go, most of the stuff on this car
seems likely to outlast the body, which weighs a bit less, it seems,
every day. ;-)

 

My boo-boo. Got it now, thanks.

 

I didn't realize this myself until my own mistake was corrected by somebody
else in this group or in another.

 

My wife broke the one on her MR2; she reset it with each and every gas
fillup. I've told her to leave it alone on the Tercel unless she /really
needs it/. It still works.

I've used the trip odo maybe once or twice on the '91 Integra, and it still
works. Been wondering about my tape-player, though. It's NEVER been used
during the whole 19-years I've had the car. Does it even work? I'm afraid
to try...

 

Try it. If it won't work, clean the heads. Did you know there is a
$20 gizmo that allows an MP3 player to be operated with your cassette
tape player? The MP3 player plugs into a cassette gizmo or something,
and the recording plays through the car's sound system.

 

The tape player probably would be fine IF you replaced the belt(s).
Even the temperate temperatures can have a detrimental effect after that
many years.

JT

 

car cassettes usually use capstan wheels, not belts. but they do have
an elastomer track, and they do also deteriorate. mp3 players are much
more capable and don't get tangled, and as m.a.s. says, converter
"gizmos" are only a few bucks.

 

(M.A. Stewart) wrote in

Yeah, my wife's original iPod-player was one of those. It was a major pain.
Her newest one plays through the radio via an unused frequency.
/Way/ better than the tape-player one.

 

I think I'm just going to leave it alone. I kinda like the idea that it's
never been used, same as the cigarette lighter.

 

The cassette only (no CD capability) stereo is the only part on the 1995
Accord that I want to replace, though a gadget that lets me play MP3's
through the radio will solve the problem.

That, and a new set of speakers that don't snap, crackle and pop. I am
not worried about ultra-high quality sounds, and definitely no bass
thumping, just something that sounds decent.

What brand of device did you go with for using MP3's and how much was it?

Thanks!

Pat

 

It says "Griffin" and "iTrip" on it. I forget how much it cost.

Wife uses it with her brand-new iPod that looks exactly like an iPhone. No
idea what model it is.

 

A friend bought a house back in the early 1980's then got transferred
about seven years later so he put it up for sale. He had never used the
dishwasher, not once...

JT