I have a 1988 honda accord that lost power the other night and I thought I ran out of gas. Pushed in to gas station and put 25$ worth of fuel in it and it wouldn't start.there was a honda mechanic getting gas at the time and checked for spark and fuel he said it was either my rotor or my fuel pump. I changed the rotor that evening still the same. It's a stick and I tried roll starting it and that didn't work. Towed home and changed the fuel pump. Still the same. Checked for spark and fuel all the way to the injectors. I have both spark and fuel. Replaced the main relay and all fuses are good! Where do I go next? The ecu maybe?

If the Check Engine Light comes on for 2 seconds and then goes out, when the ignition switch is turned to ON (Position II), I would test/replace the Ignition Control Module (ICM). Be sure to coat the back of the ICM with heat transfer silicone grease; otherwise, the ICM won't last long. If the problem persists, consider replacing the distributor housing (Honda only). Internal sensors (CKP, CYL, and TDC) may be damaged and preventing the car from running. Distributors tend to go around 90,000 miles.

Does the fuel pump run for 2 seconds, when the ignition switch is turned to ON? I have yet to see a bad Honda fuel pump, even though many people replace them.

If you prefer, run the tests in Sections A and B below:

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/cars-trucks/faq-how-troubleshoot-repair-maintain-hondas-46563.html

Yes the fuel pump does run. Would the icm being bad make the car die going down the road though? If my plugs and plug wires were fouled or the gapping in them from severe heat no longer in limits could this make the car die?

The reason I ask is because it was starting to miss a couple days prior it dying! I was told by a friend that when the plugs get hot and can expand out of limits on hondas they won't start!

I actually had a problem similar to this with a 93 Civic. I thought it was either the ICM or the coil. Both parts were like $80 each. So, instead of trying to replace those parts, I ended up just getting a reman distributor from Autozone for a little cheaper then both those parts would have been combined. And the distributor came with a coil and ICM. Not sure if your car has the coil inside the distributor or not, but mine did.
I replaced the distributor (10 minute job) and she fired right up.

Yes, a bad ICM will make a car die going down the road--it happens all the time. I would replace the ICM and, if it doesn't solve the problem, install a new Honda distributor housing. You would then install your new ICM in the new housing and you won't waste any money.

Mine did the same thing. I was driving down the road and it just died. I replaced the distributor, plugs and wires and it started right up. But lately when I go to crank it up in the mornings it doesn't crank, but later in the evening it will? I put on a distributor cap and rotor from advance, does that have anything to do why it doesn't crank in the mornings?

tashley, does your car "crank (starter motor runs) but not start?" Remember, on this site we have had lot of problems with aftermarket distributors for Hondas. My advice is to only use genuine Honda distributor housings and install an aftermarket ICM and coil, if you want.

Yea the car turns over but did not start. I pulled the main relay out and looked at it and it looked OK. No black spots or anything on it. I switched out the map sensor yesterday and when I tried the car this morning it started. Not sure if the map sensor had anything to do with it? What kind of spark plugs shoud I use? It's a 1.6 v-tech.

tashley, only use NGK spark plugs.

How can you tell if the main relay is bad or going bad?

Cold solder joints on PCB.

But let me ask this if it was anything to do with the distributor or coil would I still be getting spark? Where is the icm located?

The ICM and coil is located inside the distributor. Yes, you can have spark but it's not really firing at the proper time, due to a faulty ICM or faulty sensors inside the distributor.