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Limp home mode, undiagnosed problem

J

JimmyMac

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Messages
23
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3
Location
Scotland
Car
Accord 2.2i CDTi
Last weekend my 2006 Accord tourer started hesitating then went in and out of limp home mode five times in a fifteen mile journey home. The engine warning light stayed on throughout. The VSA light was coming on each time the car went into limp home mode but went out after stopping the car and starting it again. I left it at the Honda dealer Monday morning. The error codes indicated a problem between the accelerator pedal and the throttle. It's been at the garage over four days now and it looks like they're reduced to 'trial and error.' They want to try a replacement Accelerator Pedal Position (APP) sensor to see if that removes the warning light and error codes. On Wednesday they told me they were waiting for a sensor to come in. On Thursday, after further enquiry, I found the truth was they were waiting for a car of a similar age and type to mine to come onto the forecourt so they could remove the sensor from it and try it in mine. I asked how long this might take and got the reply "How long is a piece of string?" and "We hardly ever get cars similar to yours nowadays." I have to say I remain staggered by this attitude from a Honda dealer. Does anyone have any opinions/suggestions as I feel snookered on this one. Honda say the car is unsafe to drive and won't release it to me unless I sign a waiver. Naturally I want my car fixed and safe but at this rate I might not see it again for months.
 
Those faults are consistent with a faulty APP sensor and it's a relatively common problem on these cars so I would say a safe bet to try it.
 
Thanks but why are Honda wanting to deprive me of my car potentially for months while they wait for a similar car to mine to come in to try a trial and error fix, rather than backing their judgement and odering in an APP sensor to try it the next day? They say they won't do this as if their mechanic is wrong they'll be left with the part. Is this normal behaviour for Honda? It seems a ridiculous way of doing business.
 
It does rather demonstrate a lack of faith in their knowledge and diagnostic equipment. But, on the other hand, at least they're not simply swapping parts until it works then presenting you with a massive bill!

Find out what the diagnostic trouble code was and maybe source your own secondhand APP sensor?
 
But first check your service records and reference to the fuel filter being changed. Tell the techie to squeeze the priming bulb till its hard then drive the car. Some of these wizz kids are overtrained IMHO.
 
Thanks for the replies guys. I can't think of any other business that would guess the cause of your fault, ask you to pay for the replacement part then not give you your money back if their guess was wrong. I suppose it's because people are so reliant on cars they think they can bully you into accepting anything.
 
I've just found this really good thread
http://typeaccord.co.uk/forum/topic/8697-throttle-position-sensor-replacement-icdti-07/

However I'm now confused as the photos show what I think is the Accelerator pedal position sensor but it's described in the thread as the throttle position sensor. Are they one and the same?
Personally I think of the accelerator pedal and the throttle as two different things. I'm following Jon_G's advice on getting a used part and want to make sure I'm buying the right thing.
 
As a somewhat late update, Fahad was spot on and a replacement APP sensor solved the problem. Interisting that a guy 300 miles away solved the problem within 5 hours of me posting on here whereas Aberdeen Honda couldn't do it within a week.
 
Lol wouldn't be the first time ;)

Thanks for updating us mate.
 
To be fair Jon, the garage didn't charge me for all the time they'd spent on trial and error and said if I bought a replacement they'd fit it for free. In the circumstances I went for a new part as I didn't want the hassle of potential faults with a second hand one. The following might be of interest.

The garage finally sourced a similar car to mine and swapped the APP sensors. The other car worked fine with my dodgy APP sensor, and my car started working fine when they put it back! It was another month before my car started playing up again and that's when I got the new one fitted.
 
It's due to a failing potentiometer inside the unit..
 
Aye John, I had it replaced last June and no problems since (touch wood of course!).
 
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