2001 Acura Integra light

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 233. 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 ignitionswitch or starter motor. You will
need a qualified technician to determine the problem. (See
Emergenc y Towin g on page 248.)
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 233 ).
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 243).
If you find nothing wrong, you will
need a qualified technician to find
the problem. See Emergenc y
Towin g on page 248. 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 anautomatic transmission by pushingor pulling it.

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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.

Jum
p Startin g
To jump start your car, follow these directions closely:
1. Open the hood and check the physical condition of the battery(see page 191 ). 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 orPark and set the parking brake. 3. Connect one jumper cable to the
positive (+) terminal on your
Acura's battery. Connect the other end to the positive (+) terminalon the booster battery. 4. Connect the second jumper cable
to the negative (—) terminal on
the booster battery. Connect theother end to the grounding strap
as shown. Do not connect this
jumper cable to any other part of the engine.
5. If the booster battery is in another vehicle, have an assistant startthat vehicle and run it at a fast idle.

Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d

NOTIC
E

Lo
w Oi l Pressur e Indicato r
This indicator should light when the ignition switch is ON (II), and go out
after the engine starts. It should
never come on when the engine is
running. If it starts flashing, it
indicates that the oil pressuredropped very low for a moment, then
recovered. If the indicator stays on
with the engine running, it shows that the engine has lost oil pressureand serious engine damage is
possible. In either case, you should
take immediate action.
Running the engine with low oil
pressure can cause serious mechanical damage almost immediately. Turn offthe engine as soon as you can safely get
the car stopped.

1. Safely pull off the road and shut off the engine. Turn on the hazard
warning indicators.
2. Let the car sit for a minute. Open the hood and check the oil level(see page 127). Although oil level
and oil pressure are not directly
connected, an engine that is very
low on oil can lose pressure during cornering and other driving

maneuvers.

3. If necessary, add oil to bring the level back to the full mark on thedipstick (see page 173). 4. Start the engine and watch the oil
pressure indicator. If the lightdoes not go out within ten seconds,
turn off the engine. There is a
mechanical problem that needs to
be repaired before you can
continue driving. (See Emergenc y
Towin g on page 248.)
Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d
LO
W OI L PRESSUR E INDICATO R
NOTIC
E

Brak
e Syste m Indicato r

*U.S . indicato r show n

The Brake System Indicator normally comes on when you turn
the ignition switch ON (II). It is a
reminder t
o check the parking brake.
It comes on and stays lit if you do not
fully release the parking brake.
If it comes on at any other time, it
indicates a problem with the car's
brake system. In most cases, the problem is a low fluid level in the
brake fluid reservoir. Press lightly on the brake pedal to see if it feels normal. If it does, check the brake
fluid level the next time you stop at a service station (see page 186). If the
fluid level is low, take the car to your dealer and have the brake system
inspected for leaks or worn brake

pads.

However, if the brake pedal does not
feel normal, you should take immediate action. Because of the
brake system's dual-circuit design, a
problem in one part of the system
will still give you braking at two
wheels. You will feel the brake pedal go down much farther before the car
begins to slow down, and you will
have to press harder on the pedal.
The distance needed to stop will be much longer. Slow down by shifting to a lower
gear, and pull to the side of the road
when it is safe. Because of the
longer distance needed to stop, it is hazardous to drive the car. You should have it towed, and repaired as
soon as possible. (See Emergenc y
Towin g on page 248 .)
If you must drive the car a short
distance in this condition, drive
slowly and cautiously.

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BRAK
E SYSTE M INDICATOR *

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 246 and 247, 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 wireinside. 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.

Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d
BLOW
N
FUS
E PULLE R

Fuse
s
5. Look for a burned wire inside the fuse. If it is burned, replace it withone 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 the same 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 thechances of damaging the electrical
system. If you do not have a replace- ment fuse with the proper rating for thecircuit, 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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BLOW
N
NOTICE

Specification
s

Technica l Informatio n

page 246
page 247

* : Except high-mount brake light installed in rear spoiler
*
1 : SE
* 2 : LS, GS, GS-R
* 3 : Type-R
*
: Type-R
*
1 : Type-R
* 2 : SE, LS, GS, GS-R