I have a 98 Honda Accord that recently will exhibit something that looks like a fuel cutout. At any speed, cruisin' along, suddenly the tach drops to <1000rpm and the car slows down, If I feed a little gas, it doesn't respond, Then as I press the accelerator further, it will jump and speed ahead.
It will drive along fine, sometimes for 2 days without this problem, and then... starts all over again. Sometimes it will continue for 20-30 miles, sometimes only once.

txgreasemonkey

Your car exhibits classic signs of ICM (igniter) failure. Erratic tachometer readings are characteristic of a failing ICM. The Blue wire from the ICM, which is in the distributor, goes directly to the tachometer. Honda will replace the ICM and coil as a package. I wouldn't be surprised if most Honda dealerships do this on several cars a day--it's that common. Not only would I replace the ICM and coil, but I would replace the main relay, as well, because of the age of the car. Doing this should restore "like new" performance and reliability in your Accord.

jmr34

Thanks Tx,
I had a feeling it was related to ICM somehow but does this mean everything electrical shuts off at the same time? I don't notice the lights going off. Is there a fuel cutoff switch in this car? Had an 84 Merc that would trip this relay in moist weather but there was a reset button on that.

txgreasemonkey

No, the intermittant ICM failure only affects the ignition. Eventually, it will fail completely. Normally, the microchip in them starts to go, over time, due to heat. The full name of the main relay is PGM-FI Main Relay, which is, in essence (among other things) a fuel cutoff switch. No reset button, here.

I wouldn't buy these items from Honda. I would shop around and look at RockAuto.com for the best price. These are not difficult items to install. If you take care of it, your Accord should go 250,000 miles. The weak link is the automatic transmission. Make sure you change the ATF and filter regularly, preferably with a full-synthetic fluid.