'03 honda civic v-tec, man tran: i took it to get the code checked and they said their code checker wasn't giving them a code, even though the check eng light was on. Symptoms: seconds after i start the engine the battery light comes on (the battery is only about a year old, and is still good) the check engine light comes on for a second and turns off. When it turns off i hear a click sound out of the area under the glove box, and the engine does some little fluxuation and then settles down. Then the engine light comes back on and goes through the little cycle of the clicks. After that 'cycle' happens several times the check engine light stays on and the battery light turns off. Now here is the weird part, the tachometer and the engine temp needles are non responsive and are all the way down! and when i rev the engine or begin driving the engine rpm's reach about 2k it kinda sputters and won't go any higher, and while driving i am forced to shift gears very quickly (literally every 10 mph) i have read a little into it and came across that it might be something wrong with the ecu, and what about getting it repregramed? Can i get this fixed and/or will it involve spending like $2k!?

 

It could be the ECU,sounds like it is trying to reset itself,try disconnecting the battery and wait about 10 min to reconnect. see what happens.

 

There must be something in the codes that has put the car in limp mode.Most cars if a code is thrown(check engine light) it gives you a few miles before going into limp mode if there is a serious problem. Take it to Honda dealer.

 

ya i was afraid of it being a bad ecu. i was able to get it to a dealer and... it is a bad ecu and i have to replace it, which looks like $500 or so (if the dealer replaced it with a new one), but i think i am going to just get a used one for about $160 and do it myself, and it won't be hard to do. the screwed up part is they told me the alternator had a loose screw that was the ecu ground and caused it to short out or something. so i have to make sure that i fix the alternator first. (if it isn't one damn thing it's another). but thank you guys for the responses they did help.

 

You will have to take the new ECU into the dealer to get it programed to your car ,to take care of the immobilizer and to match your key.Good luck buddy.