How To Test The Ignition System (1995-1997 2.7L Honda Accord)

TEST 5: Making Sure The Ignition Coil And Igniter Are Getting Power

The ignition coil and the igniter (ignition control module) get 12 Volts from the same circuit.

This circuit, or rather this wire is the black with yellow stripe (BLK/YEL) wire of the ignition coil's 4-wire electrical connector.

This BLK/YEL wire connects to the female terminal labeled with the number 1 of the ignition coil's 4-wire connector in the photo above.

Now, if this test result confirms that the ignition coil is getting power, you can also conclude that the igniter is too.

If the ignition coil and igniter are getting power, we'll move on to TEST 6.

WIRING DIAGRAM: You can see the ignition coil's power circuit in this wiring diagram here: Ignition System Wiring Diagram (1995-1997 2.7L Honda Accord).

These are the test steps:

1. 1

   Disconnect the ignition coil from its electrical connector.

2. 2

   Place your multimeter in Volts DC mode.

3. 3

   Connect the black multimeter test lead to the battery negative (-) terminal.

4. 4

   Turn the key ON but don't crank the engine.

5. 5

   With the red multimeter test lead, gently probe the terminal labeled with the number 1 of the ignition coil's electrical connector (see photo above).

6. 6

   Your multimeter should register 10 to 12 Volts DC.

Let's find out what your test result means:

CASE 1: 10 to 12 Volts are present in terminal #1. Then both the igniter (ignition control module) and the ignition coil are receiving 12 Volts.

The next step is now to make sure that the igniter is activating the ignition coil to spark. For this test go to: TEST 6: Testing The Ignition Coil's Switching Signal.

CASE 2: 10 to 12 Volts ARE NOT present in terminal #1. Without 10 to 12 Volts, the ignition coil and the igniter will not function.

Your next step is to find out why this voltage is missing and restore it to the circuit. Once power is restored, the ignition system should start producing spark once again.

TEST 6: Testing The Ignition Coil's Switching Signal

In this test step, we're gonna' make sure that the igniter (ignition control module) is activating the ignition coil to spark.

We'll accomplish this by connecting a 12 Volt automotive test light to the green (GRN) wire of the distributor's 3-wire electrical connector.

The test light should flash ON and OFF, while cranking the engine, if the ignition coil's activation signal is present in the GRN wire.

IMPORTANT: If in TEST 3 you got spark from the ignition coil's high tension wire, you don't have to perform this test step. This test step checks for the Switching signal which is responsible for making the ignition coil spark, so a spark result in TEST 3 confirms that the Switching signal exists.

NOTE: The ignition coil and the distributor must remain connected to their electrical connectors for this test to work.

These are the test steps:

1. 1

   Connect the alligator clip of the test light to the battery positive (+) terminal.

2. 2

   With the probe end of the test light, probe the GRN wire of the distributor's 3-wire connector.
   
   IMPORTANT: The ignition coil and the distributor must remain connected to their electrical connectors for this test to work.
   
   Re-connect the ignition coil's high tension wire back onto the distributor, if you haven't done so already.

3. 3

   Have your assistant crank the engine while you observe the test light.

4. 4

   If the activation signal is present, the test light will flash ON and OFF continuously as long as your assistant is cranking the engine.

Let's interpret the results of this test:

CASE 1: The test light flashed ON and OFF while the engine was cranking. This is the correct test result and it tells you that the ignition coil is getting its activation signal.

You can conclude that the ignition coil is bad if you have:

• Confirmed that none of the spark plug wires are sparking (TEST 1).
• Confirmed that no spark is coming out of the ignition coil's high tension wire (TEST 3).
• Confirmed that no spark is coming out of the ignition coil's tower (TEST 4).
• Confirmed that the ignition coil and igniter are getting power (TEST 5).
• Confirmed, in this test section, that the ignition coil is getting its activation signal.

CASE 2: The test light DID NOT flash ON and OFF while the engine was cranking. Without an activation signal, the ignition coil will not fire spark.

There's a good chance that this lack of an activation signal is due to an igniter problem. The next step is to go to: TEST 7: Testing The Igniter's Activation Signal.

Here's why: The igniter (ignition control module) is the one that activates the ignition coil. It could be bad or maybe it's not receiving its own activation signal from the fuel injection computer, therefore, we need TEST 7 to further investigate this.

TEST 7: Testing The Igniter's Activation Signal

The igniter (ignition control module) only activates the ignition coil when it receives its own activation signal from your 2.7L V6 Honda Accord's fuel injection computer.

So in this test, you're gonna' check to see if the fuel injection computer is generating and sending an activation signal to the igniter.

The test you're about to do is accomplished with an LED light. You can not use a 12 Volt test light to verify the presence of the igniter's activation signal.

You can use a multimeter that is able to read Hertz (Hz) frequency, since the signal has to be measured in Hertz. The following test assumes that you're using an LED light.

You can see this specific test step done here in this YouTube video (although it involves a 2.0L Honda CR-V, the test steps are very similar): How To Test The Ignition Coil (1999-2001 2.0L Honda CR-V).

IMPORTANT: This test must be done with the distributor and the ignition coil connected to their electrical connectors.

Let's get started:

1. 1

   With an appropriate tool (like a wire-piercing probe) pierce the yellow with green stripe (YEL/GRN) wire of the 3 wire distributor connector.
   
   NOTE: This test is done with both connectors connected.

2. 2

   Connect the red lead of the LED to the battery positive (+) terminal.

3. 3

   Connect the black lead of the LED to the tool that's piercing the YEL/GRN wire.

4. 4

   Have your assistant crank the engine while you observe the LED light.

5. 5

   The LED light should flash ON and OFF continuously as long as your assistant cranks the engine.

Let's examine your LED light test result:

CASE 1: The LED light flashed ON and OFF while the engine was cranking. This is the correct test result and it confirms that the fuel injection computer is generating and sending the igniter (ignition control module) an activation signal.

You can correctly conclude that the igniter is bad, and needs to be replaced if you have:

• Confirmed that none of the spark plug wires are sparking (TEST 1).
• Confirmed that no spark is coming out of the ignition coil's high tension wire (TEST 3).
• Confirmed that no spark is coming out of the ignition coil's tower (TEST 4).
• Confirmed that the ignition coil and igniter are getting power (TEST 5).
• Confirmed that the ignition coil IS NOT getting its activation signal (TEST 6).
• Confirmed, in this test section, that the igniter is getting its activation signal.

CASE 2: The LED light DID NOT flash ON and OFF while the engine was cranking. Without an activation signal from the fuel injection computer, the igniter will not activate the ignition coil.

The most likely cause of this missing igniter activation signal is a failure of one of the crankshaft position sensors that the fuel injection computer needs to activate the igniter.

Although testing the crankshaft position sensors is beyond the scope of this tutorial, you have now eliminated the following as the causes of your Honda Accord's 'no-spark no-start' problem:

1. Igniter (ignition control module).
2. Ignition coil.
3. Distributor cap and rotor.
4. Spark plug wires.
5. Main relay.

More 2.7L V6 Honda Accord Tutorials

You can find a complete list of 2.7L V6 Honda Accord tutorials in this index:

• Honda 2.7L Index of Articles.

Here's a small sample of the tutorials you'll find in the index:

• Ignition System Wiring Diagram (1995-1997 2.7L Honda Accord).
• How To Test Engine Compression (1995-1997 2.7L Honda Accord).
• How To Test The Head Gaskets (1995-1997 2.7L Honda Accord).
• P0420 -What Does It Mean? (1996-1997 2.7L Honda Accord).