2003 HONDA S2000 ignition

The spark plugs in your car are a
special platinum-tipped design f or
longer lif e. They only need to be
replaced every 7 years or 105,000
miles (168,000 km), whichever
comes f irst.
Clean the hood latch assembly with a
mild cleaner, then lubricate it with a
multipurpose grease. Lubricate all
the moving parts (as shown),
including the pivot. Follow the time
and distance recommendations in
the Maintenance Schedule. If you
are not sure how to clean and grease
the latch, contact your Honda dealer. Clean off any dirt and oil that have
collected around the ignition coils. Remove the four hexagon socket
head cap bolts holding the ignition
coil cover.
1.
2.
ReplacementSpark Plugs
Hood L atch
Maint enance
Hood L at ch, Spark Plugs
178
PIVOTS

Put the new spark plug into the
socket, then screw it into the hole.
Screw it in by hand so you do not
crossthread it.Torque the spark plug. (If you do
not have a torque wrench, tighten
the spark plug two-thirds of a turn
after it contacts the cylinder head.)
Tightening torque:
Remove the bolt holding the
ignition coil and pull the ignition
coil straight up slightly.
Disconnect the ignition coil
connector by pushing the tab and
pulling the connector back.
Pull the ignition coil all the way up.
Remove the spark plug with
a f ive-eighths inch (16 mm) spark
plug socket.
3.
4.
5.
6.
CONT INUED
Spark Plugs
Maint enance179
18 lbf·ft (25 N·m , 2.5 kgf·m)

´
µ
Repeat this procedure f or the
other three spark plugs. Install the ignition coil. Reinstall
the bolt.
Reinstall the cover on the cylinder
bank. Reinstall the f our hexagon
socket head cap bolts.Spark Plug Gap:
7.
8.
9. NGK:
DENSO:
Spark Plugs
Maint enance
Specif ications:
180
PK22PR-L11S PFR7G-11S
0.04 in (1.1 mm)
0
0.1 mm
Tighten the spark plugs caref ully. A
spark plug that is too loose can
overheat and damage the engine.
Overtightening can cause damage to
the threads in the cylinder head.

If you have a f lat tire while driving,
stop in a saf e place to change it.
Stopping in traf f ic or on the shoulder
of a busy road is dangerous. Drive
slowly along the shoulder until you
gettoanexitoranareatostopthat
is far away from the traffic lanes.Open the trunk. Lif t up the tool
box lid and take the jack, wheel
wrench, and extension out of the
tool box.
Thesizedifferencemayalsocause
damage to the rear dif f erential, so do
not mount the compact spare on the
rear. If either rear tire goes f lat,
remove the f ront tire on that same
side, mount the compact spare tire
on the f ront, then mount the f ront
tire on the rear.
Park the car on f irm, level, non-
slippery ground away f rom traf f ic.
Put the transmission in Reverse.
Apply the parking brake.
Turn on the hazard warning lights
and turn the ignition switch to
LOCK (0). Have your passenger
get out of the car while you
change the tire.
Thecompactsparetireissmaller
than a standard tire, which will affect
the vehicle’s handling. Drive
cautiously when this spare is
mounted on your vehicle. 3.
1.
2.
CONT INUED
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed
Changing a Flat T ire
219
TOOL BOX LID
JACK
The car can easily roll off the
jack, seriously injuring anyone
underneath.
Follow the directions for
changing a tire exactly, and
never get under the car when it
is supported only by the jack. Use the jack that came with your car. If
you try to raise another car with this
jack or use another jack to raise your
car, the car or jack can be damaged.

You hear nothing, or almost
nothing. The engine’s starter
motor does not operate at all, or
operates very slowly.
You can hear the starter motor
operating normally, or the starter
motor sounds like it is spinning
f aster than normal, but the engine
does not start up and run.Your car has the Immobilizer
System. You should use a
properly-coded master or valet key
to start the engine (see page ).
A key that is not properly coded
will cause the immobilizer system
indicator in the dash panel to blink
rapidly.
Check these things:
Diagnosing why your engine won’t
start f alls into two areas, depending
on what you hear when you press
the ENGINE START button.
When you press the ENGINE
START button, you do not hear the
normal noise of the engine trying to
start. You may hear a clicking sound
or series of clicks, or nothing at all. Turn the ignition switch to ON (II).
Turn on the headlights and check
their brightness. If the headlights
are very dim or don’t light at all,
the battery is discharged. See
on page .
Press the ENGINE START button,
then release it. If the headlights do
not dim, check the condition of the
f uses. If the f uses are OK, there is
probably something wrong with
the electrical circuit f or the
ignition switch or starter motor.
You will need a qualif ied
technician to determine the
problem. (See on page .)
59 226
245
Nothing Happens or the Starter
Motor Operates Very Slowly
Jump Starting
Emergency
Towing
If Your Engine Won’t Start
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed224

There may be an electrical
problem, such as no power to the
f uel pump. Check all the f uses
(see page ).
If youfindnothingwrong,youwill
need a qualif ied technician to f ind
the problem. See on page .
Do you have f uel? Turn the
ignition switch to ON (II) for a
minute and watch the f uel gauge.
The low f uel level warning light
may not be working, so you were
not reminded to f ill the tank. Are you using the proper starting
procedure? Ref er to on page .
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 connections
(see page ). You can then try
jump starting the car from a booster
battery (see page ).
In this case, the starter motor’s
speed sounds normal, or even f aster
than normal, when you press the
ENGINE START button, but the
engine does not run.
181
226 135239
245
T he Starter Operates Normally
Emergency
Towing
Starting the
Engine
If Your Engine Won’t Start
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed225

This indicator should light when the
ignition switch is ON (II), and go out
af ter the engine starts. It should
never come on when the engine is
running. If it starts f lashing, it
indicates that the oil pressure
dropped very low f or a moment, then
recovered. If the indicator stays on
with the engine running, it shows
that the engine has lost oil pressure
and serious engine damage is
possible. In either case, you should
take immediate action.Start the engine and watch the oil
pressure indicator. If the light
does not go out within ten seconds,
turn of f the engine. There is a
mechanical problem that needs to
be repaired bef ore you can
continue driving. (See
on page .)
Saf ely pull of f the road and shut
of f the engine. Turn on the hazard
warning indicators.
If necessary, add oil to bring the
level back to the full mark on the
dipstick (see page ). Letthecarsitforaminute.Open
the hood and check the oil level
(see page ). 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.
1.
2.
3. 4.
123 161 245
Emergency
Towing
L ow Oil Pressure Indicator
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed232
LOW OIL PRESSURE INDICATOR
Running the engine with low oil
pressure can cause serious mechanical
damage almost immediately. Turn of f
the engine as soon as you can saf ely get
the car stopped.

This indicator should come on when
the ignition switch is ON (II), and go
out af ter the engine starts. If it
comes on brightly when the engine
is running, it indicates that the
charging system has stopped
charging the battery.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.
Immediately turn of f all electrical
accessories:radio,heater,A/C,
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.
Charging System Indicator
T aking Care of t he Unexpect ed233
CHARGING SYSTEM INDICATOR