1988 Honda Accord

Our 1988 Honda Accord with 60,000 miles on it will not restart on a hot summer day. The engine will turn over but will not restart until allowed sit for a while. On a cool winter day, this is not a problem. Is this a typical problem for this year of Honda? What are some possible reasons?

This is a known problem on Honda. It’s usually caused by a defective pgm-fi relay under the dash.

Also known as the Main Relay.

If you 88 is carb’d, I’d say pay attention to your start-up procedures with a warm engine. The owners manual specifically describes what you should do with a warm engine. My 89 carb’d accord has 436,000 miles on it . . . and starts well in cold, but won’t start (without a bit of cranking) if warm UNLESS you pump the gas 3 times, hold the gas pedal halfway down, and turn the key . . vvvrrrooom! starts every time! If this doesn’t work, try the relay under the dash, which has yet to fail for me (but has for friend of mine with older honda accords). Good luck! ROcketman

Oh, BTW . . . wanna sell it? I’d buy your 60k accord today, depending upon where it is located. Rocketman