2000 Acura Integra Electrical

Batter
y

Check the battery terminals for
corrosion (a white or yellowish
powder). To remove it, cover the
terminals with a solution of baking soda and water. It will bubble up and
turn brown. When this stops, wash it off with plain water. Dry off the
battery with a cloth or paper towel. Coat the terminals with grease to
help prevent future corrosion. If the terminals are severely cor-
roded, clean them with baking soda
and water. Then use a wrench to
loosen and remove the cables from
the terminals. Always disconnect the negative (—) cable first and recon-
nect it last. Clean the battery termi-
nals with a terminal cleaning tool or
wire brush. Reconnect and tighten the cables, then coat the terminals
with grease.
If you need to connect the battery to
a charger, disconnect both cables to
prevent damage to the car's electrical system.

Maintenanc e
The battery gives off explosive

hydrogen gas during normal

operation.

A spark or flame can cause the battery to explode with enough
force to kill or seriously hurt you.
Wear protective clothing and a
face shield, or have a skilled mechanic do the battery

maintenance.

Light
s

Replacin g a Headligh t Bul b
Your car has two bulbs on each side, four in total. Make sure you arereplacing the bulb that is burned out.
Your car uses halogen headlight bulbs. When replacing a bulb, handle
it by its plastic case and protect the
glass from contact with your skin or
hard objects. If you touch the glass,clean it with denatured alcohol and a
clean cloth.

Halogen headlight bulbs get very hot when lit. Oil, perspiration, or a scratch
on the glass can cause the bulb to
overheat and shatter.
1. Open the hood.
If you need to change the high
beam headlight bulb on the
passenger's side, remove the
radiator reserve tank by pulling it straight up.

2. To disconnect the bulb from the

electrical harness, push on the end
of the lock tab to release the
connector then push the connec-
tor straight down.

3. Turn the bulb about one-eighth

turn counterclockwise to unlock it
from the headlight assembly.

4. Remove the bulb by pulling it

straight out of its recess.

5. Align the tabs on the new bulb
with the slots in the headlightassembly and push it into place.
6. Turn the bulb clockwise to lock it

in place. Do not force it. Check the seating of the bulb's tabs in the
slots if the bulb will not return to
its original position.

7. Reinstall the harness connector on

the bulb connector. Make sure it
locks in place.
Turn on the headlights to test the new bulb.

8. (Passenger's side)

Reinstall the radiator reserve tank.

Maintenanc e

NOTIC
E

I
f You r Engin e Won' t Star t
Nothin g Happen s o r th e Starte r
Moto r Operate s Ver y Slowl y
When you turn the ignition switch to START (III), you do not hear the
normal noise of the engine trying tostart. You may hear a clicking sound
or series of clicks, or nothing at all.Check these things: Your car has the Immobilizer
System. You should use a
properly-coded master or valet key
to start the engine (see page 72 ).
A key that is not properly coded will cause the immobilizer systemindicator in the dash panel to blink
rapidly. Check the transmission interlock.
If you have a manual transmission,
the clutch pedal must be pushed all the way to the floor or thestarter will not operate. With an
automatic transmission, it must be
in Park or Neutral. Turn the ignition switch to ON (II).
Turn on the headlights and check
their brightness. If the headlightsare very dim or don't light at all,
the battery is discharged. See
Jum p Startin g on page 231. Turn the ignition switch to START
(III). If the headlights do not dim,
check the condition of the fuses. If
the fuses are OK, there is proba-
bly something wrong with the electrical circuit for the ignition
switch or starter motor. You will
need a qualified technician to determine the problem. (See
Emergenc y Towin g on page 245.)
If the headlights dim noticeably or
go out when you try to start the
engine, either the battery is dis-
charged or the connections are
corroded. Check the condition of
the battery and terminal connec-
tions (see page 189). You can
then try jump starting the car from a booster battery (see page
231).
Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d

I
f You r Engin e Won' t Start , Jum p Startin g
Th e Starte r Operate s Normall y
In this case, the starter motor's speed sounds normal, or even faster
than normal, when you turn the ignition switch to START (III), but
the engine does not run. Are you using the proper starting
procedure? Refer to Startin g th e
Engin e on page 137. Do you have fuel? Turn the
ignition switch to ON (II) for a
minute and watch the fuel gauge.
The low fuel level warning light may not be working, so you were
not reminded to fill the tank. There may be an electrical
problem, such as no power to the
fuel pump. Check all the fuses (see page 240).
If you find nothing wrong, you will
need a qualified technician to find
the problem. See Emergenc y
Towin g on page 245 . Jum
p Startin g
If your car's battery has run down,
you may be able to start the engine
by using a booster battery. Although this seems like a simple procedure,
you should take several precautions.
You cannot start an Acura with an automatic transmission by pushing
or pulling it. To jump start your car, follow these
directions closely:
1. Open the hood and check the
physical condition of the battery(see page 189). In very cold
weather, check the condition of
the electrolyte. If it seems slushy or like ice, do not try jump starting
until it thaws.

If a battery sits in extreme cold, the
electrolyte inside can freeze.
Attempting to jump start with a frozen battery can cause it to rupture.

2. Turn off all the electrical acces-

sories: heater, A/C, stereo system,
lights, etc.
Put the transmission in Neutral or
Park and set the parking brake.

CONTINUED

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NOTIC
E
A battery can explode if you do
not follow the correct procedure,

seriously injuring anyone
nearby.

Keep all sparks, open flames,

and smoking materials away

from the battery.

Chargin
g Syste m Indicato r

This indicator should come on when the ignition switch is ON (II), and goout after the engine starts. If it
comes on brightly when the engine
is running, it indicates that the charging system has stopped
charging the battery. Immediately turn off all electrical
accessories: radio, heater, A/C, rear
defogger, cruise control, etc. Try not
to use other electrically-operated controls such as the power windows.
Keep the engine running and take
extra care not to stall it. Starting the
engine will discharge the battery
rapidly. By eliminating as much of the
electrical load as possible, you can
drive several miles (kilometers)
before the battery is too discharged
to keep the engine running. Drive to a service station or garage where
you can get technical assistance.
Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d
CHARGIN
G SYSTE M INDICATO R

Fuse
s

All the electrical circuits in your car have fuses to protect them from ashort circuit or overload. These
fuses are located in two or three fuse
boxes.

The interior fuse box is underneath the dashboard on the driver's side.
Remove the fuse box lid by swinging
the lid down and pulling it straight
out of its hinges. The under-hood fuse box is located
in the engine compartment next to
the battery. To open it, push the tab
as shown.
Cars equipped with ABS have a third
fuse box for the ABS. It is in the
front of the engine compartment on
the passenger's side.

Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d

INTERIO
R
UNDER-HOO
D
TAB
ABS FUS E BO X

Fuse
s
Checkin g an d Replacin g Fuse s
If something electrical in your car stops working, the first thing you
should check for is a blown fuse.
Determine from the chart on pages 243 and 244, or the diagram on the
fuse box lid, which fuse or fuses control that component. Check those
fuses first, but check all the fuses
before deciding that a blown fuse is not the cause. Replace any blown
fuses and check the component's
operation.

1. Turn the ignition switch to LOCK(0). Make sure the headlights and
all other accessories are off.
2. Remove the cover from the fuse
box.

FUS E

3. Check each of the large fuses in
the under-hood fuse box by
looking through the top at the wire inside. Removing these fuses
requires a Phillips-head screw-
driver.
4. Check the smaller fuses in the
under-hood fuse box and all the
fuses in the interior fuse box by
pulling out each fuse with the fuse
puller provided in the interior fuse
box.

CONTINUED

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BLOW
N
FUS
E PULLE R

Fuse
s
5. Look for a burned wire inside thefuse. If it is burned, replace it with one of the spare fuses of the same
rating or lower.
If you cannot drive the car without
fixing the problem, and you do not have a spare fuse, take a fuse of thesame rating or a lower rating from
one of the other circuits. Make sure
you can do without that circuit temporarily (such as the cigarette
lighter or radio). If you replace the blown fuse with a
spare fuse that has a lower rating, it
might blow out again. This does not
indicate anything wrong. Replace the
fuse with one of the correct rating as
soon as you can.

Replacing a fuse with one that has a higher rating greatly increases the
chances of damaging the electrical
system. If you do not have a replace-
ment fuse with the proper rating for the
circuit, install one with a lower rating.

6. If the replacement fuse of the
same rating blows in a short time,
there is probably a serious electrical problem in your car.
Leave the blown fuse in that
circuit and have your car checked
by a qualified mechanic.
If the radio fuse is removed, the
audio system will disable itself. The
next time you turn on the radio you
will see "Code" in the frequency display. Use the Preset buttons to
enter the five-digit code (see page
119).

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NOTIC
E
BLOW
N