# Acura Integra - distributor ?, no start (SOLVED) **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** integra, acura\ **Created:** [September 3, 2017, 5:12pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487 "2017-09-03T17:12:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cougar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cougar/32/21348_2.png) [@Cougar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cougar)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 5:31am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/21 "2017-09-06T05:31:40Z")
You need to verify power is getting to the ignition module. If that checks okay then I would suspect the crank sensor next. Check the error codes also. ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 12:13pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/22 "2017-09-06T12:13:59Z")
I already checked there’s no error codes. also I checked for power at the ignition module as part of checking the ignition module on the car. I installed the distributor with all four wires to the ICM unhooked and followed the test procedures for checking the ICM. are there any fuses in the kick panel that could cause the car not to start? the fuse Mark IGN in the kick panel was bad but replacing it made no change. ---
**Author:** ![Cougar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cougar/32/21348_2.png) [@Cougar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cougar)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 10:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/23 "2017-09-06T22:11:33Z")
It is interesting the IGN fuse was blown. There may be trouble down steam from that fuse circuit. Verify that the ignition coil is getting power to it on the blk/yel wire while the ignition is ON. Also verify that fuse 31 in the panel under the hood is passing power along with fuse 32 next to it. If power is getting to the coil make sure that the coil has good resistance readings between the common blk yel wire connection and the two other connections of the coils. One wire ties to the center disty lead. Perhaps one of the coil lead windings has opened. You did state earlier that the coil tested good but maybe power isn’t getting to it. ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 11:05pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/24 "2017-09-06T23:05:41Z")
I should clarify about the ignition fuse when I checked it that would be the ignition fuse in the kick panel inside the car there was a weird black fuse with no test points in the fuse block where the 20 amp IGN fuse should have been. When I pulled it out to test it since it had no open test points on the back it broke it literally fell apart one of the legs broke off and got stuck in the fuse box for a second Etc. So I don’t know whether it was passing current or not before I swapped it for a new fuse I do know I had proper voltage on all the tests for the ICM with it in the car I will have to check the rest of those test procedures you listed when I get a chance to get to the car this week Thanks again everyone! ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 11:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/25 "2017-09-06T23:07:58Z")
also I do think I will swap distributors with the spare I picked up give it a crank and then if no go well… more tests hopefully power is getting where it needs to go. I’m not sure number-wise which fuses I checked under the hood but I did check all of the big screw down fuses and they all have continuity ---
**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 11:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/26 "2017-09-06T23:41:00Z")
Have you checked for a healthy visible spark at a spark plug tip during cranking? ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 1:33am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/27 "2017-09-07T01:33:15Z")
Not since the car died. Have fuel & compression. Didn’t want to bork things up more without a real plug tester or an extra plug - i figured a screwdriver in a green corroded plug wire couldn’t possibly help anything! ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 3:21pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/28 "2017-09-07T15:21:53Z")
sometimes being self-employed is great. looks like I get about an hour and a half or so right now to work on this car bit more. I’m on my way to pick up some plug wires and I’ve got a random spark plug that’s not necessarily for this car that I could use to check for spark. I’m really hoping I just slap a distributor on there and drive off into the sunset though. God bless half off day at the junkyard on Labor Day ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 3:23pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/29 "2017-09-07T15:23:17Z")
And I just realized I’m a bit of an idjit. I don’t have a remote start switch. I don’t have a helper. And my buddy who owns this car is I think annoyed with me enough at this point that I doubt I could get him to come out and crank the car. Keeping my fingers crossed ---
**Author:** ![insightful](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/insightful/32/2732_2.png) [@insightful](https://community.cartalk.com/u/insightful)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 4:01pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/30 "2017-09-07T16:01:38Z")
> [@markvickroyjr](#): > > And I just realized I’m a bit of an idjit. Welcome to the human race… ;-] ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 6:28pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/31 "2017-09-07T18:28:48Z")
so I’ve got the car running my friend was happy enough and it turns out his wife was really the one who was annoyed that I ended up with a notarized bill of sale for $1 vehicle. for anyone else that is in a similar situation Civic Distributors are exactly the same except for the mounting tabs. also the ICM looks a little different but mounts into the distributor body the same and bolts up the same inside the distributor. So I ended up crossing my fingers and hoping that the pickup hall effect sensor inside my Acura distributor body was not damaged and swapped in some new parts plugged everything up and we are a go. I threw a set of plug wires on there as well because the ones I had were terrible and a good aftermarket used cap that came from the junkyard. Looking back on everything I would guess that it was probably the coil that was bad or at least not within spec combine that with a corroded worn-out cap and rotor and two of the four plug wires also being corroded and we have got the cause of the problem. I am now the proud owner of a $400 1996 Acura Integra with no radio plenty of bumper dings front back left and right and in need of a driver side upper a arm ball joint thingy whatever it’s called on this car with only a hundred fifty thousand miles on it I think I did pretty good. Thanks for everyone who weighed in on the situation and my buddy is definitely more buddy and less pissed now that that car is out of his garage and his wife is no longer mad LOL ---
**Author:** ![VOLVO-V70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8e8cbc/32.png) [@VOLVO-V70](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VOLVO-V70)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 6:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/32 "2017-09-07T18:31:55Z")
@markvickroyjr It would be nice if you marked this thread as " Solved ". ---
**Author:** ![Cougar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cougar/32/21348_2.png) [@Cougar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cougar)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 6:50pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/33 "2017-09-07T18:50:01Z")
Glad you got the problem solved and you’re welcome for the help. I have to think that whatever was in place in the IGN fuse position that you replaced, had to be the major factor in the problem you had. Maybe someone installed a circuit breaker instead of using a normal fuse. ---
**Author:** ![TwinTurbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8baadc/32.png) [@TwinTurbo](https://community.cartalk.com/u/TwinTurbo)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 6:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/34 "2017-09-07T18:55:20Z")
> [@markvickroyjr](#): > > Looking back on everything I would guess that it was probably the coil that > > was bad or at least not within spec combine that with a corroded worn-out > > cap and rotor and two of the four plug wires also being corroded and we > > have got the cause of the problem. Those certainly did not help but I suspect this was the cause of the problem- > [@markvickroyjr](#): > > I pulled plug wires one at a time, engine running. > > When I pulled plug wire #3 the car abruptly died & would not re-start This is what ultimately damaged the electronics. It is never a good idea to allow coil voltage to build up with no defined path to dissipate that energy. It builds to the point it finds the path of least resistance and that is usually through some unintended device that gets blown in the process. ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 7:39pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/35 "2017-09-07T19:39:55Z")
It would be nice if a total non-contributor to this thread except to complain about “solved” would not be an a\*\*. Sorry - didn’t realize I could or needed to mark this thread as solved. Also - please read the posts following yours - they give more insight in to the CAUSE of the issue than my solution - and may not have been posted if the thread was marked solved, which potentiality could have lead someone else to make the same mistake I made. Go drive your Volvo. Everyone else - THANKS AGAIN! problem solved, cause determined! Since my email - which I have been corresponding with the forum through -doesn’t mention marking anything solved or not - I will log on formally & mark as solved. -Mark ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 7:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/36 "2017-09-07T19:41:53Z")
Most definitely - pulling the plug wires blew either the coil (most likely given the tests) or the ICM. Don’t do that on a Honda for sure! ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 7:44pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/37 "2017-09-07T19:44:37Z")
I would tend to agree - except the car didn’t start until I replace the distributor guts. who knows that fuse probably was okay and fell apart when I removed it. It was just a weird fuse but replacing it did not fix the issue although I am glad I replaced it of course. ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 7:49pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/38 "2017-09-07T19:49:46Z")
there are so many ads for Compu tell or something and not much in the way of things to click on accessing this forum via my Gmail that I had a very hard time even scrolling to the beginning of the thread and I do not see unfortunately how to mark this as solved so I added solved to the thread title hopefully that is acceptable ---
**Author:** ![shanonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de053/32.png) [@shanonia](https://community.cartalk.com/u/shanonia)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 8:10pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/39 "2017-09-07T20:10:13Z")
Congrats on what sounds like a good buy and successful repair! As to the front A-arm and ball joint: I replaced these on my 1999 Civic about 3 years ago using Moog parts. It’s not an especially hard job, and the Haynes manual gave good instructions. After a couple years the replacements began to squeak and clunk, but Rock Auto provided replacements gratis. Considering the Honda parts lasted about 14 years and the aftermarket only 2 or so, my confidence in Honda continues. You definitely should replace those parts if they are suspect. One hint: before tightening the big nuts or bolts that secure the A-arm to the wheel well, lower the car to the ground so it’s at normal ride position. Then tighten to spec. Good luck with your Honda! ---
**Author:** ![MarkyMayhem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@MarkyMayhem](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MarkyMayhem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 8:26pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487/40 "2017-09-07T20:26:34Z")
thanks for the heads up but I think I am calling the part the wrong name. it’s not the a-arm in other words the part that carries the lower ball joint. on the Acura there is what to me looks like another a arm with an upper ball joint at the top part of the strut Tower. that is what needs to be replaced but I certainly do need to replace it! [Previous page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487.md?page=1) [Next page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/acura-integra-distributor-no-start-solved/107487.md?page=3)