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MDX stalls while driving

50K views 52 replies 16 participants last post by  kenpet 
#1 ·
Hi all, first time poster to this forum and unfortunately did not see a lot on this topic. My 2002 MDX is stalling randomly while the vehicle is moving. I am concerned that this is going to be an expensive part swapping exercise. Has anyone else had a similar issue?

Vehicle: 2002 MDX, 153K miles.

Symptoms/Scenario:

MDX stalled several times in the past month while driving at speeds greater than 40 miles per hour. When the condition occurs, the engine becomes non responsive to accelerator changes, engine RPM slowly bleeds down to zero. Power steering and brakes are lost. After putting the transmission in park and attempting a restart, the engine will not start anywhere from 2 to 10 minutes. The engine will turn over, but will not start (not a battery problem). After this time, the vehicle will start and operate normally with no fault codes displayed whatsoever. All electrical systems appear to be functioning properly when this event occurs (not an electrical power disruption, at least not in the cabin).
The problem seems to be random, it occurred with the transmission set in 5th gear, 4th gear, and 3rd gear.
Timeline:
1. First occurrence, after running for about 30 minutes, engine died and restarted 10 minutes later. Drove vehicle home and tried several engine starts. Engine sputtered but would not start in driveway. Next morning, the vehicle was fine.
2. Second occurrence was about a week later. Vehicle was running for at least 30 minutes when it happened.
3. Replaced the EGR valve and added a can of seafoam to the tank. I was thinking perhaps I had bad gas. I have had two EGR valves replaced already on this car, thought it might be the problem again.
4. Problem did not occur for two weeks, I thought I had it solved.
5. Problem reoccurred about 1.5 hours into a drive to North Carolina.
6. On trip back from North Carolina through high elevation and hilly terrain, problem occurred 4 times, about 20 minutes apart. After this period, problem did not reoccur for the remainder of the drive to Atlanta (about 1.5 hours).
7. Dealer replaced fuel pump due to low fuel pressure and debris in the pump.
8. Vehicle stalled 45 minutes into the drive home from the dealer, but this time the vehicle died while accelerating through a stop light. The engine would sputter when a restart was attempted, then would not sputter at all. Engine restarted 5 minutes later.

Any insight would be appreciated!
Shack
 
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#48 ·
It's a good idea to do those procedures, as it will allow the car to learn the "new normal" very quickly. OTOH, if it's running fine now, I wouldn't get my knickers in a twist over it, but would certainly recommend doing both if/when you get access to a laptop running HDS.
 
#50 ·
Nope - happily, you can buy an HDS clone (the software and the cable) for not too much money. The one I've used for years has a clunky interface "box" - some of the newer systems appear to work with a more generic cable, but I have no way of knowing if / how those work. I did use the HDS to track down a lot of issues with several cars (personal and those of friends). It's nice, for example, to be able to monitor the status of all the shift solenoids and pressure sensors real-time while driving around, trying to figure out why the tranny isn't shifting correctly.

If you're reasonably tech-savvy, and especially if you have (or are willing to buy for chump change...) a laptop running XP operating system, it's well worth the time and effort, IF you plan to keep the car (or another Honda) for a while.
 
#51 · (Edited)
Nope - happily, you can buy an HDS clone (the software and the cable) for not too much money. The one I've used for years has a clunky interface "box" - some of the newer systems appear to work with a more generic cable, but I have no way of knowing if / how those work. I did use the HDS to track down a lot of issues with several cars (personal and those of friends). It's nice, for example, to be able to monitor the status of all the shift solenoids and pressure sensors real-time while driving around, trying to figure out why the tranny isn't shifting correctly.

If you're reasonably tech-savvy, and especially if you have (or are willing to buy for chump change...) a laptop running XP operating system, it's well worth the time and effort, IF you plan to keep the car (or another Honda) for a while.
The HDS clone runs on XP only? Not Win 7 or 10 or 11? Can u PM me a link where to get this? How much would the cost be if I were to do this idle learn stuff at the dealer? I am planning to keep the car for next few years if possible. The car is in very good condition even cosmetically.

BTW, the idle speed is very much the same as before. When I start the car, RPM is slightly higher than before for a 3-5 seconds. Then it is very much the same as before. I have replaced batteries several times and have never performed this PCM Idle Learn procedure. Just trying to figure out the priority for this. I will monitor the mileage/gallon to see if anything has shifted materially. I do feel a bit more power when I press the gas pedal...cleaning up the throttle body area and replacing it with MAF and IACV sensors may be the reason for this better acceleration?

Thanks a lot.
 
#52 ·
It's been too many years since I searched all this out, so any info I might provide is way past its expiration date. ;-) I know that the XP app would run on a virtual machine (XP operating system running on top of the Windows 10 environment). That's not in everyone's wheelhouse though. ;-)

No idea what a dealer programming session costs (never been to one).
 
#53 · (Edited)
Thanks. I will inquire about the price. The PCM Idle learn procedure controls just the idle rpm speed or both the speed and the fuel+air mixture? Thanks

FYI - On a cold morning start (cold NE winter) , engine idles at 1200 rpm. After a mile or two, at a stop light, it idles at 800 rpm. No hesitation of any kind in terms of engine speed.
 
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