2003 HONDA ACCORD COUPE manual transmission

2003 Accord Coupe Online Reference Owner's Manual Use these links (and links throughout this manual) to navigate through\
this reference.
For a printed owner's manual, click on authorized manuals or go to www.h\
elminc.com.
Contents

Owner's Identification Form
Introduction ........................................................................\
................................................................. i
A Few Words About Safety ........................................................................\
......................................... ii
Your Car at a Glance ........................................................................\
................................................... 2
Driver and Passenger Safety ........................................................................\
...................................... 5
Proper use and care of your car's seat belts, and Supplemental Restraint\
System.
Instruments and Controls ........................................................................\
......................................... 59
Instrument panel indicator and gauge, and how t o use dashboard and steering column controls.
Comfort and Convenience Features ........................................................................\
...................... 121
How to operate the climate control system, the audio system, and other c\
onvenience features.
Before Driving........................................................................\
.......................................................... 223
What gasoline to use, how to break -in your new car, and how to load luggage and other cargo.
Driving ........................................................................\
...................................................................... 239
The proper way to start the engine, shift the transmission, and park, pl\
us towing a trailer.
Maintenance ........................................................................\
............................................................. 271
The Maintenance Schedule shows you when you need to take your car to the\
dealer.
Appearance Care ........................................................................\
...................................................... 355
Tips on cleaning and protecting your car. Things to look for if your car e\
ver needs body repairs.
Taking Care of the Unexpected ........................................................................\
.............................. 363
This section covers several problems motorists sometimes experience, and\
how to handle them.
Technical Information ........................................................................\
............................................. 393
ID numbers, dimensions, capacities, and technical information.
Warranty and Customer Relations (U.S. and Canada) ................................................................409
A summary of the warranties covering your new Honda, and how to contact \
us.
Authorized Manuals (U.S. only) ........................................................................\
.............................. 413
How to order manuals and other tech nical literature.
Index ........................................................................\
........................................................................\
..... I
Service Information Summary
A summary of information you need when you pull up to the fuel pump.

Your Car at a Glance
2
POWER WINDOW
SWITCHES
MIRROR CONTROLS
AUDIO SYSTEM
DIGITAL CLOCK
INSTRUMENT PANEL (P.
61)
POWER DOOR LOCK
MASTER SWITCH
HOOD RELEASE
HANDLE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
MANUAL TRANSMISSION HEATING/COOLING
CONTROLS
(P.122)
CLIMATE CONTROL
SYSTEM
(P.129)
FUEL FILL DOOR/
TRUNK RELEASE HANDLE
(P.108)
(P.86)
(P.103)
(P.225, 91)
(P.226) (P.243,
245)
(P.248) (P.153,
171,193)
(P.148,
163,187)
HAZARD WARNING LIGHTS
(P.79)

During this period:Avoid full-throttle starts and rapid
acceleration.
Avoidhardbraking.Newbrakes
need to be broken-in by moderate
use f or the f irst 200 miles (300
km).
Help assure your car’s f uture
reliability and perf ormance by paying
extra attention to how you drive
during the f irst 600 miles (1,000 km).
Youshouldfollowthesesamere-
commendations with an overhauled
or exchanged engine, or when the
brakes are relined.
Do not change the oil until the
recommended time or mileage
intervalshowninthemaintenance
schedule. Your Honda is designed to operate
on unleaded gasoline with a pump
octane number of 86 or higher. Use
of a lower octane gasoline can cause
a persistent, heavy metallic rapping
noise in the engine that can lead to
mechanical damage.
In Canada, some gasolines contain
an octane-enhancing additive called
MMT. If you use such gasolines,
your emission control system
perf ormance may deteriorate and
the Malf unction Indicator Lamp on
your instrument panel may turn on.
If this happens, contact your
authorized Honda dealer f or service.
Using gasoline containing lead will
damage your vehicle’s emissions
controls. This contributes to air
pollution. We recommend gasolines containing
detergent additives that help prevent
f uel system and engine deposits. If you drive with the low engine
speed (below than about 1,000 rpm),
you may f eel the engine knocking. In
this case, you can use premium
unleaded gasoline with a pump
octane number of 91 or higher to
prevent the engine f rom knocking.
On EX-V6 with manual transmission
Bef ore Driving
Break-in Period Gasoline
Break-in Period, Gasoline
224

This section gives you tips on
starting the engine under various
conditions, and how to operate the
5-speed/6-speed manual and
automatic transmissions. It also
includes important inf ormation on
parking your car, the braking system,
the Traction Control System, and
f acts you need if you are planning to
tow a trailer.........................
Preparing to Drive .240
.......................
Starting the Engine .241
Starting in Cold Weather ....................
at High Altitude .242
....
5-speed Manual Transmission . 243
.....
Recommended Shif t Points . 244
..............
Engine Speed Limiter . 244
....
6-speed Manual Transmission . 245
.....
Recommended Shif t Points . 246
..............
Engine Speed Limiter . 246
.......................
Reverse Lockout .246
..............
Automatic Transmission . 248
.
Shif t Lever Position Indicator . 248
................
Shif t Lever Positions . 248
..............
Engine Speed Limiter . 251
....................
Shif t Lock Release . 251
...........................................
Parking .253
..............................
Parking Tips .253
.....................
The Braking System .254
.............
Brake Wear Indicators . 254
...............
Brake System Design . 255
.......................
Anti-lock Brakes .255
Important Saf ety .........................
Reminders .256
........................
ABS Indicator .256 ..............
Traction Control System . 258
...............
TCS ON/OFF Switch . 259
.........
TCSActivationIndicator . 259
...............
Driving in Bad Weather . 261
...........................
Towing a Trailer .263
Driving
Driving239

Push the clutch pedal down all the
way. START (III) does not
f unction unless the clutch pedal is
depressed. Apply the parking brake.
In cold weather, turn of f all
electrical accessories to reduce
the drain on the battery.
Make sure the shif t lever is in
Park. Press on the brake pedal.If the engine still does not start,
press the accelerator pedal all the
way down and hold it there while
starting in order to clear f looding.
As bef ore, keep the ignition key in
the START (III) position f or no
more than 15 seconds. Return to
step 5 if the engine does not start.
If it starts, lif t your f oot of f the
accelerator pedal so the engine
does not race.
Without touching the accelerator
pedal, turn the ignition key to the
START (III) position. If the engine
does not start right away, do not
hold the key in START (III) f or
more than 15 seconds at a time.
Pause f or at least 10 seconds
bef ore trying again.
If the engine does not start within
15 seconds, or starts but stalls
right away, repeat step 4 with the
accelerator pedal pressed half-way
down. If the engine starts, release
pressure on the accelerator pedal
so the engine does not race.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.6.
Automatic Transmission:
Manual Transmission:
Starting the Engine
Driving241

Come to a full stop before you shift
into Reverse. You can damage the
transmission by trying to shif t into
Reverse with the car moving. Push
down the clutch pedal, and pause f or
a f ew seconds bef ore shif ting into
Reverse, or shif t into one of the
f orward gears f or a moment. This
stops the gears so they won’t ‘‘grind.’’
When slowing down, you can get
extra braking f rom the engine by
shifting to a lower gear. This extra
braking can help you maintain a safe
speed and prevent your brakes f rom
overheating while going down a
steep hill. Bef ore downshif ting,
make sure engine speed will not go
into the tachometer’s red zone in the
lower gear.
The manual transmission is syn-
chronizedinallforwardgearsfor
smooth operation. It has a lockout so
you cannot shift directly from Fifth
to Reverse. When shif ting up or
down,makesureyoupushtheclutch
pedal down all the way, shift to the
next gear, and let the pedal up
gradually. When you are not shif ting,
do not rest your f oot on the clutch
pedal. This can cause your clutch to
wear out faster.
On all 4-cylinder models
Driving
5-speed Manual T ransmission
243
Rapid slowing or speeding-up
can cause loss of control on
slippery surfaces. If you crash,
you can be injured.
Use extra care when driving on
slippery surfaces.

The manual transmission is synchro-
nizedinallforwardgearsforsmooth
operation. It has a lockout so you
cannot shift directly from Fifth to
Reverse instead of Sixth (see page). When shif ting up or down,
make sure you push the clutch pedal
down all the way, shift to the next
gear, and let the pedal up gradually.
When you are not shif ting, do not
rest your f oot on the clutch pedal.
This can cause your clutch to wear out f aster.
Come to a full stop before you shift
into Reverse. You can damage the
transmission by trying to shif t into
Reverse with the car moving. Push
down the clutch pedal, and pause f or
a f ew seconds bef ore shif ting into
Reverse, or shif t into one of the
f orward gears f or a moment. This
stops the gears so they won’t ‘‘grind.’’
When slowing down, you can get
extra braking f rom the engine by
shifting to a lower gear. This extra
braking can help you maintain a safe
speed and prevent your brakes f rom
overheating while going down a
steep hill. Bef ore downshif ting,
make sure engine speed will not go
into the tachometer’s red zone in the
lower gear.
Your car is equipped with an
aluminum shif t lever. If you leave the
car parked outside f or a long time on
a hot day, be caref ul bef ore moving
the shif t lever. Because of the heat,
the shif t lever may be extremely hot.
If the outside temperature is low, the
shif t lever f eels cold.
246
On EX-V6 model
6-speed Manual T ransmission
Driving245
Rapid slowing or speeding-up
can cause loss of control on
slippery surfaces. If you crash,
you can be injured.
Use extra care when driving on
slippery surfaces.

Drive in the highest gear that lets
the engine run and accelerate
smoothly. This will give you the best
f uel economy and ef f ective emis-
sions control. The f ollowing shif t
points are recommended:If you exceed the maximum speed
f or the gear you are in, the engine
speed will enter into the tachometer’s
red zone. If this occurs, you may f eel
the engine cut in and out. This is
caused by a limiter in the engine’s
computer controls. The engine will
run normally when you reduce the
RPM below the red zone.
Shif t up
1st to 2nd
2nd to 3rd 3rd to 4th4th to 5th
5th to 6th Normal acceleration
15 mph (24 km/h)
25 mph (40 km/h)
40 mph (64 km/h)
47 mph (75 km/h)
52 mph (83 km/h) Bef ore downshif ting, make sure the
engine will not go into the
tachometer’s red zone. The 6-speed manual transmission
has an electric lockout so you cannot
accidentally shif t f rom Fif th to
Reverse instead of Sixth while the
car is moving. If you cannot shif t to
Reverse when the car is stopped:
Recommended Shif t Points Engine Speed L imiter
Reverse L ockout
6-speed Manual T ransmission
Driving246