I just bought a 97 Accord EX 5-speed 4-cyl w/ leather. It's in great condition with one exception- the ABS is acting up.

The car seems to be in one of two states

About 1/3 of the time the ABS is actually functional, there is no ABS light lit up on the dash, but there is a black cylinder looking thing on the driver's side of the engine bay that makes a loud mechanical sound so loud that you can hear it and even feel it sometimes inside the car... it even makes the RPMs drop to the point you think it might die if the car is in neutral. It does this usually only when the brake pedal is depressed and does it between every 10 and 45 seconds.

The other 2/3 of the time the ABS light on the dash is on, the noise I described above doesn't occur, and I'm going to guess that the ABS wouldn't work if I tried it out.

It seems to be more commonly (but not always) in the first state (with the noise and no light on the dash) when I first start the car up, and more commonly in the second state after it has been running for 5-10 minutes or so.

I'm going to guess that the black cylinder shaped module in the engine bay is the ABS control module.

So what do I need to do to fix this? Can I do it myself (I'm a decent shade-tree mechanic)? Where can I get the parts the cheapest?

I have a pic of the module thats making the noise/vibrating that I took with my phone if anybody needs to see it... I'll have to wait until I get home though so I can sync it w/ my laptop.

 

Hi Threxx Didn't know you were on this board too. I'm not really sure what that is, I have a problem with the ABS on my car too, it seems to engage(pedal pulsates) under light braking for the first 5-10 minutes of driving, then the ABS light comes on and it doesn't work at all. So I just pulled the relay out so it doesn't pulsate on me, it's annoying as hell. I'd rather have no ABS then faulty ABS. Good luck figuring it out, hopeful someone way more knowledgable then me on here can help!

 

Hey Camride, I know you!

Yeah I mainly stick to CZ28 and clublexus, but I come here every now and again for the latest news on Acuras (I really like the TL- especially the new 04!), and for info on my fiance's car (99 EX Accord)

I didn't get rid of my 'other' car, I just bought this Accord as a temporary beater intended for resale.

Anyhow.. question: if I pull the fuse on the ABS will the ABS light stay on or will that go away too?

 

the TSX's are pretty cool.

 

Unfortunatly the ABD light will stay on. I've just learned to ignore it. I figure one of these days I'll get it fixed, but it's not a high priority. Good luck with yours though.

 

I believe the black thing is the ABS accumulator that makes the buzzing noise.
There are rumors from tighting a few bolts to replacing an O ring to fix it.

*Infamous problem with Accords and the Honda Odyssey*

I have the same problem and its quite annoying with the whole buzzing every few minutes.
To replace this whole unit its over $1000 dollars.

Apparently there is a leak somewhere and the unit loses pressure.
What you hear is the unit trying to build back the pressure and it cant.
Which in turn burns the unit out eventually.

Im tempted to pull the fuse so it goes away.
Im not sure if I have ABS, as my light never comes on.
Only when I turn the key the first time it lights up so I know that works.
Anyway good luck fixing it if you choose to do so.