[Venomz]

Well, I picked up this 90 DX yesterday, and drove it the 200 miles home - nary a mechanical hiccup. But, the car has 350, 000+ on it, so there's a few things wrong with it.

First, the auto shifter has trouble coming out of park. Once out of park, it works fine in reverse or in any of the three drive positions, but the shift button does not operate correctly when in park. I've taken to leaving it in neutral and applying the parking brake to avoid this nuisance.

Secondly, the ignition key mechanism does not always work properly. Electrically, it's fine, but when you turn the car off and go to remove the key, it won't come out. You have to play with it a lot to get it to come out.

Any thoughts?

 

[jfrolang]

Well it has to be in park for the key to come out, and you have to have your foot on the brake to get it out of park.

If you are doing those things, there is an ignition interlock control box (or something to that effect) under the driver's seat I think. I'm sure someone can clarify this for me and provide more details. (bobski? )

 

[tubafreak]

Sometimes the steering lock will decide that you're trying to turn the wheel and will hold on to your key. Just jiggle the steering wheel back and forth a bit and it should come out. Every car has it's own little nuances that you have to figure out, this is one of them. CRXes are all old cars, they'll have some minor problems, just don't worry about it and you'll be fine.

 

[JKG08]

I've found tht the wheel lock does hold it in occasionally........but one thing I think a lot of people dont think about is the key itself.....350,000+ means that key has been used a lot.....its possible for the key itself to acually wear down a little.....I went and got a spare made and now it works a lot easier than my old one that I used to have to play with too.

 

[downest]

My dad's 89 Accord LXi auto has the exact same 2 problems (among 1000 other ones), with just shy of 300k on the clock.

 

['9445]

Sometimes the steering lock will decide that you're trying to turn the wheel and will hold on to your key. Just jiggle the steering wheel back and forth a bit and it should come out. Every car has it's own little nuances that you have to figure out, this is one of them. CRXes are all old cars, they'll have some minor problems, just don't worry about it and you'll be fine.

Anybody who I have ever lent my CRX to has always had this problem getting the key out of the ignition. It might be because it doesn't have power steering so if the column lock gets engaged there tends to be tension on the mechanism because the steering wheel wants to spring back a little because the rims are turned just a little farther than the tires are. In my case I just have to turn the wheel a little to take the force off of the column lock.

 

[ludesrv]

My dad's 89 Accord LXi auto has the exact same 2 problems (among 1000 other ones), with just shy of 300k on the clock.

My civic had the parking issue but not the key one. I think it's just aging parts. It had like 250XXXkms. Mine used to not read park...it would get changed in between R and P, no light on in the cluster either. Was totally gay. My solution, a 5 speed swap.

 

[w8]

Sounds just like the problem I had with my 90 DX Civic hatch. Replace the Neutral Safety switch. It is located inside the center console on the side of the shifter. Mine had the same problems. Would never know if it would come out of park. And the key would not go past the accessory position on the switch. Kept having to turn the key to the on position and then the back hoping it would eventually turn off.

 

[HeadOfMax]

when keys wear down they get shorter, The nose wears off. I have had my employess cut a honda key off a worn one and then the new one is soo short it does not go in far enough to push the release to get the key out. I have had to go out and cut the head of the key back so it will go in to turn back and get out. This also happens if whoever cuts the key uses the wrong blank...there is a honda blank that is the same keyway just a little shorter. If you have a new key cut, tell the person cutting the key to line the key up off the back of the key instead of the front and leave the front slope of the key how it is on the blank. its kinda hard to explain, but it works.

If anybody is in chicago and needs a worn key recovered I can try, no guarantees, but I have had good luck so far....

 

[Venomz]

Well, I fixed the shifter. It wasn't the Neutral switch. It was the little white peice just under the roller of the lockrod. It goes between the tube and the rod, supposedly to smooth pushing the button, I'd guess. It kept popping out, and when you'd try to push the button, it wouldn't be in the tube, and it would act sort of like a doorstop.

I'm not sure if I explained this well, but it's fixed.

I also fixed a few other things today, including the hatch latch. It wasn't working because the struts are gone, and the rod that goes to the keyhole on the outside was detached. So that's all fixed now too.

Now to fix the key problem and the seatbelt.

 

[jfrolang]

You can fix the key issue by unplugging the interlock control unit under the driver's seat. What's wrong with the seatbelt?

 

[Venomz]

The Seatbelt is fried ... it's frayed in two places and the upper reel-in assembly isn't reeling in the upperportion of the belt any more.

The Seatbelt needs replacement if for no other reason that sheer safety.

I'll try that thing with the key.

 

[Angry]

Side note:

Most honda dealerships can make a new key from the VIN of the car.
I called the dealership and told them my VIN, and told them I was on my way to pick it up. When I got there I just showed them my licence and reg and that was it. Ive had new keys made off my old one and none of the worked right in all the locks.....the OEM one works perfect.