Hello all,
I've been told by several sources that the Transmission Control Unit is faulty in my '92 Honda Accord LX station wagon. I'd like to try my hand at replacing it myself.

I came across very clear instructions online (with photographs) for removing one from a '91 Accord. Looks like something even I could do!

But, does anyone know if these 1991 Accord instructions would apply to a 1992 Accord? Everything looks the same as far as "surface features" go.

Thanks,
Bill

 

more then likely most of it would apply the only bad part is be prepared for something to break you never know. the only good part about paying someone else to do the work for you is if they break it they buy it ha it's a horse a peace never know till you try

 

You can say that again, tnutz!

My first car was a '68 Beetle. I would work on it on my gravel driveway and invariably drop the smallest fastener. The time I'd waste searching through the rocks for parts!

If you'd like, I can let you know how this turns out.

I miss my Bug.

Bill

 

I found a moment to pull back the carpet and expose the plate that holds the TCU in my '92 Accord per John Bennett's instructions (I'm happy to report that the '92 is the same as a '91 in this regard). I unfastened the four nuts holding the plate in place but I'm stymied at the next step which is disconnecting the two cables at the bottom.

All John says is "Unhook the two electrical plugs in the bottom of the TCU." As you can see, the cables are a mass of small wires and I'm a little leery of pulling too hard. There is obviously a locking device of some sort but it's not apparent. There isn't much room down there to work so it's hard to get a really good grip on the connectors themselves, and there is NO WAY I'm gonna start tugging on those bundles of wires!

Does anyone know the trick here to loosen these connectors? This looks like it will be my only road block to possibly fixing this problem by myself (and maybe saving myself a boatload of money!).

Thanks,
Bill

 

I got the connectors loose, removed the TCU, opened the case, and saw that one of the capacitors looked damaged. I called around and found someone who could handle the replacement — a TV and radio repairman. He looked at the computer, confirmed that the capacitor was damaged, told me where to buy a replacement, and gave me a price.

I bought the capacitor, took it and the computer back to the TV repairman, picked it up the next day, reinstalled it in the car, and it works! The D4 indicator on the dash only lights up when it's supposed to, the car shifts as it's supposed to, and the great part is that I only spent $28.78! $2.03 for the capacitor and $26.75 for the replacement.

The hardest part was getting the connectors loose and putting the kickplate back in place! I figure that I saved around $1,000! This was the estimate that I received from the transmission guy I originally called. I AM HAPPY!

Bill

 

I used the car all weekend for errands around town with no problem. Today, Tuesday, the same problem cropped up again (D4 on constantly — stuck in second gear/limp mode) so I pulled the TCU again to see if any other components looked damaged.

Everything LOOKED fine. Mind you, I'm no electronics expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I do know how parts look when they're visibly damaged . . . well, they look damaged!

Not knowing what else to do, I plugged the TCU back in without fastening it onto the cover plate. It's simply lying on the floorboard. I turned the ignition on, the D4 light came on, then blinked off! I guess this can be chalked up as "one of those things."

Perhaps disconnecting the computer, then reconnecting it was enough to reset it? But I reset it (or so I thought) when I reinstalled it Friday by unhooking the negative cable on my battery for 20 seconds as John Bennett suggested on his page.

So does anyone have any ideas here?

You gotta wonder how many Hondas have been left for dead because of this problem!

Gorillamo

 

I had the TCU fixed - ran great for a couple weeks and getting the same problems back - anyone else have this problem and actually get a fix?

 

Hi Hammer90,
Sorry your repair didn't take. I think my situation was a fluke! My repair held for two years including a long cross-country trip, but then my Honda was sidelined with bad connecting rod bearings so I'm not starting it. The next time it moves will be behind a wrecker to my mechanic's shop, happily just around the block.

But in response to your question, yes, my repair seems to have held. Of course, I can't say with 100% certainty until I get my Honda to my mechanic for the above-mentioned repair.

Since your repair didn't hold, you may need to resort to buying a replacement TCU. Try a place like www.rockauto.com. This is where I bought a refurbished blower motor for my Honda. Seems they carry quite an assortment.

I wish you luck!

Bill

 

The guy who fixed the TCU really knew what he was doing on electronics. Seems as if other people have had temporary success and then the problem returns. Did the voltage click test on the shift control and throttle position sensors and they seem ok. Not sure how to do an ohm test - lots of references to it - but not really good directions as to how to do it - I need them on first grade level - lol. I guess it is off to the garage now. Never did find the service check connector - but had an updated radio and XM module put in - the installer may have used those wires - its the only thing that looks plausible when I look under there - and believe me I have really looked hard a number of times.

 

Good luck on that!

Keep me (and any others with this situation) posted through this thread, if you would, as I also have a '93 Honda Accord. Two Hondas! Double the mystery problems! But at least they are very similar cars, although I can't put the wheels of one on the other. Go figure.