7CIVIC7

First I want to thank the folks on this forum for providing some great technical information on how to fix these cars. Your help is always appreciated.

I have been experiencing basically the same problem with my 5-spd '03 Civic EX.

Symptoms: Car starts just fine but within about 30 sec of taking off, I lose all response from the accelerator, and the engine slows down to as low as ~200 rpm and shakes. then it returns to normal for a sec but begins to bog down again. This keeps happening for the first 2-3 minutes of driving. After 2-3 minutes, the car drives just fine. I don't have to be driving for this to happen either. If I just let the car warm-up in the driveway, the idle slows down and the car shakes. Once it's fully warmed up (5-10min of idling in the driveway) the car operates normally. It may be worth mentioning that this car "burns" a considerable amount of oil for its age and mileage (130k). I have also been getting intermittent P0132 (O2 Sensor circuit high voltage 1,1) and P0420 (Cat efficiency below threshold), but the CEL never stays on for very long.

Attempted fixes: Replaced air filter, removed & cleaned throttle body and IAC valve, adjusted (tightened) throttle cable, idle speed relearn.

Anybody have any ideas on what to do next? I know I should replace the O2 sensors, but could bad O2 sensors cause this problem? Could it be related to the amount of oil that the car burns through?

SiG-03-Civic/J

iTrader: (2)

It sounds like we all have the same problem with our 03 civics. Dont know if its just this perticular year or the way we drive!!!

I took it to my mechanic and he said that i needed to replace my whole throttle body. I did everything u listed above and still have the same problem. Take it to 2 - 3 mechanic and then decide, or your best choose is take it in to a honda dealership to have them take a look...

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7CIVIC7

I'm not quite ready to throw in the towel and take it to a dealer. It seems like the type of problem that most mechanix would be inclined to throw parts at until something works. I'm unfortunately not in any position to get screwed over by two or three mechanix right now. Whatever the problem is, it goes away after the car's totally warmed up. This is going to drive me crazy!

mayorz

This is not only for the cars made in 2003, unfortunately. I have a 2001' coupe with manual transmission and have completely the same problem more than 2 years ago!
What I've tried already: replacing air filtre & sparks, cleaning throttle body & IAC, replacing all the 4 injectors (!!!), lelearning idle... neither helped

And yes, this makes me also crazy! It's unbeliveble that there'a no sollution for that.

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

might need new gaskets for tb and iac. if its leaking air, the car will never idle right. did you clean pcv valve??

TopDog

Had this same problem - was the Oxygen Sensor.

jala

did it throw a code indicating the O2 sensor was bad?...or u just changed it...

rhymeboy89

ya this is bad that no one can figure this out. I have the same problem as 7civic7 except i never get a check engine light code. Ya if someone that had the o2 sensor thing work could they specify if they had a check engine light. As well, which sensor did they change the one before the cat or after. I got a obd2 scanner and nothing seems out of the ordinary.

rhymeboy89

hey guys i found a good theory and will be trying it soon. Have any of you changed the fuel filter and fuel pump? Went to my performance mechanic and he said these are symptoms of the fuel pump not getting enough pressure. gunna try it soon and let you know

MKellyR

Read through all of the above threads and have seen many similarites to my existing issue... With the following exceptions:

Check Engine Light is ON
Maintenance Required Light in ON
@ 4000 RPM despite the gear the engine will lurch, bog, sputter
Noticed this at first when I hit 81 MPH... 80 is fine 81 triggers sputtering...
Help please...

MKellyR

I might add it has been unusually cold here along the wasatch front...
Kel

rhymeboy89

Ok lets just get this out right now. I dont mean to be an ******* to anyone or anything but if u have a check engine light THAT IS PROBABLY UR PROBLEM! GO to pepboys or autozone, find out what the code says and then search for a solution. I dont understand why u would have a check engine light and think the problem ur car has could be anything else.

Sorry. Dont mean to sound rude but checking what the check engine light is should be the first step to any diagnoses.

screwgbe

same problem also. NO check engine light..... rymeboy89......

friend said it is the fuel filter he was having the same problem...... i used some dry gas 2day and it havent got the problem yet.

Changing the filter on friday will keep everybody updated on this problem.

2001 civic ex 5 speed

Zander

I am having similar problems with my 03 civic ex (man tran)... bogging during idle, stalling, loss of power. My check engine code says it's my pcv valve and an o2 sensor is out, which I am about to fix. I noticed someone mentioned about the fuel filter. I'll look into that cause my gauge sometimes has been dropping down to almost empty and staying there for only s few min then going back to reg level, also I beleave that the fuel filter is part of the pump, I heard that they have to be replaced together.

green01civic

Fuel level sender might be messed up, or could have some deposits on the contacts of it, making it mess up; you can try dumping a bottle of a high-PEA injector cleaner (Techron Concentrate or Red Line SI-1) to try and clean it off.

As for the fuel filter, it is a component that is replaceable separately... I replaced the fuel filter on mine. It's slightly involved (you do have to get the pump out, and partially disassemble the pump assembly, but it's not too hard).
Fuel Filter: BECK/ARNLEY, Part # 0433012 (~$30).

jackoncruzpr

Did the fuel filter solve your problem?

gqbindc

I have a 2003 LX with 150K miles that bogged The problem was the upstream O2 sensor which cost about $260 for the dealer to change. For the first two days of bogging, there was no check engine light. I took it out on a deserted road and let it bog over and over again, though, and eventually got the light. The code was P0132 for excessive voltage on the upstream O2 sensor.

As the service writer explained it, the O2 sensor was defaulting to sending a signal for a rich fuel mixture at part throttle. Apparently, the rich mixture should only happen when you floor the accelerator. The too-rich fuel mixture is what was causing the engine to hang and want to stall.

Anyhow, I have a new sensor now and the problem hasn't recurred for over a week (and hopefully won't ever).

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

wow, 01-03 civics do not have expensive sensors. not until 04-05 anyway when they changed to wideband. you shouldnt have paid more than $50 for the part. i looked up the honda oem part number and even that one is only $60 max. labor is less than 15 mins, literally like changing a spark plug.

shouldve been at most a $100 job for everything.

palsana

D o you know if you used Denso O2 sensors on your 2003 honda civic ex.
I have used Bosch for the downstream and NTK for the Upstream on my 2003 Honda Civic Ex sedan and the problem of bogging/stalling/rough is still not solved yet? I have a similar problem like yours on my car with an Oxygen Sensor code (I believe it was P0141) if not mistaken on my car.

Does the brand matter becoz Denso is the OEM on the O2 sensors and so is NTK O2 sensors?

palsana

It should be the upper fuel filter along side of a Strainer if replaced very nearly resolves the issue at best. its a DIY n its on here on these forums.
Especially true for 2003 Honda Civic Ex sedan.

satinsilverem2

Old thread but I'm having similar issues with my 03 ex coupe. When I do a cold start everything is fine but when I park and go to drive it (about an hour from parking it before) the engine wants to stall and the more gas I give it the worse it gets. if however you go WOT the engine wakes right up and takes off. Once it warms up a little the car runs fine. This has been going on since last November. So far I've replaced; spark plugs, Coils, Cranks sensor, Cam sensor. Ive also changed the o2 sensors today and haven't tried them out yet to see if the problem is solved. if its not the o2 sensors then I'm out of ideas as to the cause. its got 103k and the head gasket and belt/pump were replaced last January at 95k. Im also not throwing a CEL other than a random one for a upstream o2 back in January. I don't know if it could be a fuel pump/filter/ or injector as the issue is gone when the engine is warm. The idle is also a little lower than I would like. its not to the point of stalling but still low. Are there any suggestions??? Im about at my wits end with it and don't know what to do.

L.A.

I have a 2003 honda civic and i have almost the same problem has u but mine when it cold start it takes a bit of time i gotta give gaz and once it ran ok it stayed ok for the day but when i would shut it off while hot i would afto wait 1hour before restarting now my car when it starts it revs the rpm alone then stalls out after 15min i really dont know what the problem is it might b the fuel pump like it can b lotta things i really need advice or help if somebody on here knows its a 2 door 2003 honda civic would be awsome if somebody can help just msg or reply thank u

satinsilverem2

I believe my problem was being caused by a bad fuel pump. I've replaced it since my last post and he I haven't had the issue since. Now the idle is still low and it seems to be getting worse so I'm going to replace the idle air control valve since I've already cleaned it and it didn't help. I'm also going to change all four injectors and the throttle body just for good measure and peace of mind. After months of frustration I ended up taking the car to a mechanic in September of last year and all they could find was a faulty alternator which I already knew about. They couldn't find anything wrong with stumbling or stalling which frustrated me even more. I was loosing hope and was concidering selling the car at that point when I figured I'll try the fuel pump as it's the last large part that I haven't tried yet. Dropped the new pump in and it didn't stumble at all for weeks. It did stumble one for a brief second about a month after the pump replacement but now I think it's being caused by the idle air valve. My idle speeds are getting very low randomly. Some days I'll drive the car and it's fine idles normally then others it will idle around 350-500 which is really low. Also since it's been getting warmer every time the AC compressor comes on it idles rough for a second before it increases the idle speed.

dsm482

see , you can rule some of this out.. if you measured fuel pressure , you would have known its not the fuel pump.. there is tests to diagnose this properly so you dont throw parts at it.. problem lies with mechanics, just like throwing parts to make money, and some are not educated or dont care to take the time to diagnose it... example you have lets say 5 codes, they will replace all 5 sensors, even the culprit might be something else..

Skilled labor is not Cheap.. I good well rounded tech, honest, is hard to find these days... As cars become complex, most intelegent people will become engineers.. where is the incentive to be a mechanic, flat rate and buy all my own tools?

Shade Tree

If u know for sure u don't have a slight leak across head gasket, start with the upstream o2 sensor. It doesn't have to throw a code to be sluggish. It could be it takes a few minutes to get hot enough to make more accurate reading. Use data stream on scanner to verify.

Hodger3334

I just started having the same exact issues with my 2003 Civic EX Automatic. Got a code for catalyst system below threshold P0420 and P0138 which is bank 1 sensor 2 o2 sensor high voltage. The catalytic converter is newer (1 year old and was replaced as there was a hole in the other one) but did not replace the o2 sensor. A year later my car starts fine on cold, drives fine, then sits for an hour and then i restart it. Either i let it sit for a little bit it roughly idles for 5-10 seconds after starting 30 seconds ago going from 1200 rpm down to 200rpm. Or I can drive off and it starts bogging down 30-60 seconds on the road where I press the gas and it bogs down to 200rpm and rides very rough. Refurbished engine only has 28,000 miles on it.

Replaced: Spark plugs, Coil Packs, Throttle body assembly, Fuel pump and filter delivery unit, replaced gas, replaced bank 1 sensor 2, map sensor. Reasons/Rant: (changing the bank 1 #2 o2 sensor seems to have fixed the initial CEL problem $60. A co-worker said it may be the Throttle position sensor so I replaced the throttle body with an OEM one from honda $388.78, Coil Packs and Spark plugs needed changing since it was close to 30,000 and the coil packs were form the old engine $125, a honda mechanic suggested it sounded like a fuel pump or map sensor $210. Probably would be at $3000 in parts and labor if i gave it to a honda mechanic lol but am at around 800 which is pretty bad for an intermittent failure.) Have not had any check engine lights yet other than the initial.

There is no trouble code I can power through and slam on the gas and then engine wakes back up or I restart it and it drives as if it never had an issue. I am thinking of changing the upstream o2 sensor and see what that does. Has been a good car up till the past few weeks. Very odd that we all can run it fine then stop for an hour, restart, and has this specific problem. It has to be something simple like an upstream o2 sensor... Thank you.