Hi, my check engine light was on and the solenoids were the culprit and they were replaced. At the time that the repair was done, my mechanic said that it is possible that the solenoid going bad may cause the computer to "short out" or to continue to think the solenoid is bad and make the check engine light come on again. He said this happens to about 10 percent of the cars that have the solenoid problem, that it is a known problem at Honda, and that if you are under a certain amount of years old and miles they will replace the computer. Of course, my light came back on, and of course my car is older than and has more miles than they allow. Apparently they had some good will gestures to fix the newer cars that had the problem but the problem was not wide spread enough for them to have a recall. Does anyone know if this sounds right? I would greatly appreciate any information.

I've solved many Honda computer-related problems and it doesn't make sense to me. Yes, the Main Relay, which isn't referred to as a solenoid, must work for the ECM (computer), fuel injectors, and fuel pump to receive power. If the ECM doesn't receive power, the Check Engine Light (CEL) will come on and stay on. However, the CEL will also come on and stay on if the ECM, ignition switch, or ACG (S) fuse is bad. Most Honda ECMs die due to heat, vibration, water (flooding), and, on some models, capacitors leaking. No solid-state component lasts forever. On Hondas, ECMs usually fail on cars with 120,000 miles or more on them. They are not bullet proof. When you take most failed ECMs apart, you see microprocessors that are crazed, due to heat. We all know that PCs must be properly cooled or the microprocessers will fail. The same is true for ECMs, which are nothing but giant circuit boards. Instead of properly cooling them, what does Honda do? I'll tell you--they put heavy carpeting over them with no ventilation.