Have been waiting for 24 hours for a response from a Honda mechanic on your website. Prepaid the $18 but have yet to hear from anyone. We do have a problem with our Honda. We have icons on the IP that flash at certain time. Icons are the “battery”, “door ajar” and “parking brake”. The icons flash when we take our foot off the accelerator and stop when we re-accelerate. Also, if we turn the headlights on during the flashing, it stops.
We have a new battery and alternator. A battery check yesterday showed all functions were normal. Need some advice on what could cause this problem and what to do about it.
Thanks
Mary Keegan
You’re not on the right site. This isn’t a Honda mechanics site, and we don’t charge for help. But, we can help!
Tell us what Honda you have, what year it is, how many miles it has on it, when you first noticed this problem, and any other details about the vehicle operation that you can.
Until then, we can only guess. So far my guess is a frayed wire that’s moving when you accelerate and contacting metal, which tends to make things go crazy.
I think based on a very similar question posted on Fixya that this is a 1999 Honda Accord. One solution offered was that the voltage regulator needed to be replaced.
I agree with you that the unrelated and temporary nature of the flashing display lights indicate a short. I wonder if the dashboard isn’t getting moisture from somewhere like the windshield, and that is causing these unrelated circuits to light up without blowing any fuses?
The symptom could point to a slipping alternator belt or possibly a defective alternator but I assume “all functions are normal” means that this has been taken into consideration by whoever did the check.
This could also be caused by a failing fusible link. These are basically underhood fuses and sometimes with age and heat the solder melts a bit and causes an erratic connection.
Something else to keep in mind is that this model Honda has several Recalls out on it. If these Recalls have not been performed then I would advise that you have them all done. This is all free of charge to you at the Honda dealer and the Recalls involve several on the ignition switch and vehicle lighting. Maybe the switch is behind this problem.
Thanks for your help. It is a 1999 honda accord v6 with 75k miles. Problem was first noticed about a week ago. shortly after, the alternator failed and was replace but the flashing continues. battery is new and tests on it show strong readings.
thanks for your help. flashing started about a week ago and the alternator failed about 2 days later. it was replaced but the flashing continues. we had the battery tested yesterday and it was good. Battery is only 4 months old. would appreciate any additional thoughts you might have.
What’s this $18 prepay???
When we entered our problem on the CarTalk website we had to post $18 pending an satisfactory answer to our issues. We received no reply so we then reposted on this “free” service. If you look on the right side of the CarTalk home page you can contact a experienced car technician and get their advice…for a small fee.
If you used “Ask a Mechanic On Line”, they are an advertiser/suppporter of Car Talk, so your complaint is not being addressed in the proper venue.
Looks like you need to go back to the service provider and ask them when you can expect an answer for your $18.