1998 Honda Civic Very Low Idle

Tiny
NBAKER
  • MEMBER
  • 1998 HONDA CIVIC
  • 4 CYL
  • FWD
  • MANUAL
  • 236,600 MILES
I have a 1998 Civic EX with a 5-speed trans. At times, my engine idle starts to go very very low. The car will shake a little bit from it going so low. It happens usually when I am sitting at a stop light, or I just sit still at all. Sometimes, my engine will shut off when I am turning a corner. I'm not really sure of the problem here. I almost thought it was an alternator issue, but not sure. The idle is also effected by the headlights turning on and applying the brakes.
Tuesday, July 28th, 2009 AT 12:56 PM

3 Replies

Tiny
F4I_GUY
  • MECHANIC
  • 3,302 POSTS
Does your battery light ever come on? If so, it is your alternator.

Does the vehicle mis-fire or hesistate otherwise?

It might be an electrical or charging system issue, so I would get an AVR test done, if that checks out you may want to check your IACV (Idle Air Control Valve) and throttle body. You should try servicing both to see if this cures your issue.
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Tuesday, July 28th, 2009 AT 5:00 PM
Tiny
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Otherwise, no it doesn't hesitate. And no, the battery light does not come on.
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Tuesday, July 28th, 2009 AT 5:25 PM
Tiny
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Just wanted to follow up for any others with this problem. Over the weekend, I took off and cleaned the screen in my IACV. Once I did that, the car is running alot better. It used to idle around 300rpm and lower. Now that I cleaned the IACV, it is now idling at about 600-900rpm.
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Tuesday, August 11th, 2009 AT 10:05 PM

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