2003 HONDA ACCORD Owners Manual

Î
ÎThe burning of gasoline in your car’s
engine produces several byproducts.
Some of these are carbon monoxide
(CO), oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and
hydrocarbons (HC). Gasoline
evaporating from the tank also
produces hydrocarbons. Controlling
the production of NOx, CO, and HC
is important to the environment.
Under certain conditions of sunlight
and climate, NOx and HC react to
f orm photochemical ‘‘smog.’’ Carbon
monoxide does not contribute to
smog creation, but it is a poisonous
gas. The United States Clean Air Act
sets standards f or automobile
emissions. It also requires that
automobile manufacturers explain to
owners how their emissions controls
workandwhattodotomaintain
them. This section summarizes how
the emissions controls work.
Scheduled maintenance is on page
.
In Canada, Honda vehicles comply
with the Canadian emission
requirements, as specif ied in an
agreement with Environment
Canada, at the time they are
manuf actured.
Your car has a Positive Crankcase
Ventilation System. This keeps
gasses that build up in the engine’s
crankcase from going into the
atmosphere. The Positive Crankcase Ventilation valve routes them from
the crankcase back to the intake
manif old. They are then drawn into
the engine and burned.
The Onboard Ref ueling Vapor
Recovery (ORVR) system captures
the f uel vapors during ref ueling. The
vapors are adsorbed in a canister
f illed with activated carbon. While
driving, the f uel vapors are drawn
into the engine and burned of f .
As gasoline evaporates in the f uel
tank, an evaporative emissions
control canister f illed with charcoal
adsorbs the vapor. It is stored in this
canister while the engine is of f . Af ter
the engine is started and warmed up,
the vapor is drawn into the engine
and burned during driving.
250
The Clean Air Act
Crankcase Emissions Control
System
Onboard Ref ueling Vapor
Recovery
Evaporative Emissions Control
System
T echnical Inf ormation
Emissions Cont rols
371
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The emissions control systems are
covered by warranties separate f rom
the rest of your car. Read your
warranty manual f or more inf orma-
tion.
The emissions control systems are
designed and certif ied to work to-
gether in reducing emissions to
levels that comply with the Clean Air
Act. To make sure the emissions
remain low, you should use only new
genuine Honda replacement parts or
their equivalent f or repairs. Using
lowerqualitypartsmayincreasethe
emissions f rom your car.
The PGM-FI System uses sequential
multiport f uel injection.
It has three subsystems: Air Intake,
Engine Control, and Fuel Control.
The Engine Control Module (ECM)
or the Powertrain Control Module
(PCM) uses various sensors to
determine how much air is going
into the engine. It then controls how
much f uel to inject under all operat- ing conditions.
This system constantly adjusts the
ignition timing, reducing the amount
of HC, CO and NOx produced.
The exhaust emissions controls
include f our systems: PGM-FI,
Ignition Timing Control, Exhaust
Gas Recirculation and Three Way
Catalytic Converter. These four
systems work together to control the
engine’s combustion and minimize
the amount of HC, CO, and NOx that
comes out the tailpipe. The exhaust
emissions control systems are
separate f rom the crankcase and
evaporative emissions control
systems. The Exhaust Gas Recirculation
(EGR) system takes some of the
exhaust gas and routes it back into
the intake manif old. Adding exhaust
gas to the air/f uel mixture reduces
the amount of NOx produced when
the f uel is burned.
The three way catalytic converter is
in the exhaust system. Through
chemical reactions, it converts HC,
CO, and NOx in the engine’s exhaust
to carbon dioxide (CO ), dinitrogen
(N ), and water vapor.
2
2
Replacement Parts
Exhaust Emissions Controls
Emissions Cont rols
T echnical Inf ormation
PGM-FI Syst em Ignit ion T iming Cont rol Syst em
Exhaust Gas Recirculat ion (EGR)Syst em
Three Way Catalytic Converter
372
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Always use unleaded gasoline.
Even a small amount of leaded
gasoline can contaminate the
catalyst metals, making the three
way catalytic converter inef f ective.
The three way catalytic converter
contains precious metals that serve
as catalysts, promoting chemical
reactions to convert the exhaust
gasses without af f ecting the metals.
The catalytic converter is ref erred to
as a three-way catalyst, since it acts
on HC, CO, and NOx. A replacement
unit must be an original Honda part
or its equivalent.
The three way catalytic converter
must operate at a high temperature
for the chemical reactions to take
place. It can set on f ire any com-
bustible materials that come near it.
Park your car away f rom high grass,
dry leaves, or other f lammables.
A defective three way catalytic
converter contributes to air pollution,
and can impair your engine’s per-
f ormance. Follow these guidelines to
protect your car’s three way catalytic
converter. Keep the engine tuned-up.
Have your car diagnosed and
repaired if it is misf iring, back-
f iring, stalling, or otherwise not
running properly.
Three Way Catalytic Converter
T echnical Inf ormation373
4-cylinder models
6-cylinder models
THREE WAY CATALYTIC CONVERTER
THREE WAY CATALYTIC CONVERTERS
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Make sure the gas tank is nearly,
but not completely, f ull (around
3/4).
Make sure the ambient
temperature is between 20° and
95°F.Without touching the accelerator
pedal, start the engine and let it
idle f or 20 seconds.
If you take your car for a state
emissions test shortly af ter the
battery has been disconnected or
gone dead, it may not pass the test.
This is because of certain ‘‘readiness
codes’’ that must be set in the on-
board diagnostics f or the emissions
systems. These codes are erased
when the battery is disconnected,
and set again only after several days
of driving under a variety of
conditions.
Make sure the car has been
parked with the engine of f f or 8
hours or more.Keep the car in Park (automatic
transmission) or Neutral (manual
transmission). Increase the engine
speed to 2,000 rpm and hold it
there until the temperature gauge
rises to at least 1/4 of the scale
(approximately 3 minutes).
If the testing f acility determines that
the readiness codes are not set, you
will be requested to return at a later
date to complete the test. If you must
get the car re-tested within the next
two or three days, you can condition
the car for re-testing by doing the
f ollowing.
St at e Emissions T est ing
T echnical Inf ormation
T esting of Readiness Codes
374
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Then drive in city/suburban
traffic for at least 10 minutes.
When traf f ic conditions allow, let
the car coast for several seconds
without using the accelerator
pedal or the brake pedal.
If the testing f acility determines the
readiness codes are still not set, see
your Honda dealer.
Select a nearby lightly traveled
major highway where you can
maintain a speed of 50 to 60 mph
(80to97km/h)foratleast20
minutes. Drive on the highway in
D (A/T) or 5th (M/T). Do not use
thecruisecontrol.Whentraffic
allows, drive f or 90 seconds
without moving the accelerator
pedal. (Car speed may vary
slightly; this is okay.) If you cannot
do this f or a continuous 90
seconds because of traf f ic
conditions, drive f or at least 30
seconds, then repeat it two more
times (for a total of 90 seconds).
St at e Emissions T est ing
T echnical Inf ormation375
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376
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U.S. Owners:
Canadian Owners:
Honda dealership personnel are
trained prof essionals. They should
be able to answer all your questions.
If you encounter a problem that your
dealership does not solve to your
satisf action, please discuss it with
the dealership’s management. The
Service Manager or General
Manager can help. Almost all
problems are solved in this way.
If you are dissatisf ied with the
decision made by the dealership’s
management, contact your Honda
Customer Relations Of f ice. In Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin
Islands:
When you call or write, please give
us this inf ormation:
Vehicle Identif ication Number
(see page )
Name and address of the dealer
who services your car
Date of purchase
Mileage on your car
Your name, address, and tele-
phone number
A detailed description of the
problem
Name of the dealer who sold the
car to you 362
Cust omer Relat ions Inf ormat ion
Warrant y and Cust omer Relat ions378
CUSTOMER RELATIONS
RELATIONS AVEC LA CLIENTÉLE
Honda Canada Inc.
715 Milner Avenue
Toronto, ON
M1B 2K8
Tel: 1-888-9-HONDA-9
Fax: Toll-free 1-877-939-0909 Toronto (416) 287-4776 Bella International
P.O. Box 190816
San Juan, Puerto Rico 00919-0816
(787) 250-4318
American Honda Motor Co., Inc.
Automobile Customer Service
Mail Stop 500-2N-7A
1919 Torrance Boulevard
Torrance, California 90501-2746
Tel: (800) 999-1009
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µµ
µ µ
µ µ
µ µ
µ provides prorated
coverage f or a replacement battery
purchased f rom a Honda dealer.
Your new Honda is covered by these
warranties:
provides
coverageforaslongasthepur-
chaser of the muf f ler owns the car.
this warranty gives up
to 100 percent credit toward a
replacement battery. covers
your new car, except for the battery,
emissions control systems, and
accessories, against def ects in
materials and workmanship.
these two
warranties cover your car’s emis-
sions control systems. Time, mileage,
and coverage are conditional. Please
read the warranty manual for exact
inf ormation. a seat
belt that f ails to f unction properly is
coveredfortheusefullifeof thecar.
all exterior body panels are
covered f or rust-through f rom the
inside f or the specif ied time period
with no mileage limit.
genuine Honda Accessories are
covered under this warranty. Time
and mileage limits depend on the
type of accessory and other f actors.
Please read your warranty manual
f or details.
covers all genuine
Honda replacement parts against
defects in materials and workman-
ship. Restrictions and exclusions apply to
all these warranties. Please read the
2003 Honda Warranty Inf ormation
booklet that came with your car f or
precise inf ormation on warranty
coverages. Your Honda’s original
tires are covered by their
manuf acturer. Tire warranty inf or-
mation is in a separate booklet.
Please ref er to the 2003 Warranty
Manual that came with your car.
Replacement Bat t ery L imit ed
Warranty
Replacement Muf f ler L if et imeLimited Warranty
Original Equipment Bat t ery L imit ed Warranty
New Car Limited Warranty
Emissions Cont rol Syst ems Def ect sWarrant y and EmissionsPerf ormance Warranty Seat Belt Limited Warranty
Rust Perf orat ion L imit ed Warrant y
Accessory Limited Warranty
Replacement Part s L imit edWarrantyU.S. Owners
Canadian Owners
Warranty Coverages
Warrant y and Cust omer Relat ions379
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