When the starter motor fails your 1.7L Honda Civic's engine is not gonna' crank over.
The cool thing is that testing the starter motor on your 1.7L Honda Civic is not hard. There are 3 basic tests that the DIY'er can do to find out if the starter motor is fried (or not).
In this tutorial, I'll show you in a step-by-step way how to test the starter motor on your 1.7L Honda Civic, to see if it's behind the no-crank condition you're currently experiencing.
Contents of this tutorial:
You can find this tutorial in Spanish here: Cómo Probar El Motor De Arranque (1.7L Honda Civic) (at: autotecnico-online.com).
APPLIES TO: This tutorial applies to the following vehicles:
- 1.7L Honda Civic: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005.
Important Safety Precautions
SUGGESTION 1: All of the steps in all 3 tests in this tutorial are done with the starter motor on the transmission case. In other words, all these tests are on car tests even though the photos I'm using show the starter motor off of the car.
The only reason I'm using these images (that show the starter motor off of the vehicle) is just to make it easier to show where to make your test connections.
If you need to bench-test the starter motor, the following tutorial will help you: Bench Testing The Starter Motor (at: easyautodiagnostics.com).
SUGGESTION 2: It's very important that you start your starter motor troubleshooting with a fully charged battery. Also, the battery cable terminals and battery posts must be clean and corrosion free.
Testing your 1.7L Honda Civic's starter motor with a low battery or corrosion on the battery cables/terminals will lead to false test results that'll have you replacing good parts that don't need replacement.
SUGGESTION 3: If your vehicle has a standard transmission, make sure that it's out of gear and in neutral, and the parking brake is activated/on.
Symptoms Of A Bad Starter Motor
When the starter motor goes bad on your 1.7L Honda Civic, you'll see one of the following symptoms:
- When you turn the key to start your Honda Civic's engine, nothing happens.
- A jump start did not help the engine to start.
- The battery has been charged and/or replaced and still your Honda Civic does not crank.
- When you turn the key to crank the engine, all you hear is a small knock and nothing else.
Although the above list is a not a very complete list of symptoms, the theme that runs thru' them, and any other related symptom, is that the engine will not turn over when you try to start it.
NOTE: If the starter motor is turning the engine over and you need to diagnose an engine no-start problem, see this tutorial:
Tools Needed To Test The Starter Motor
You don't need expensive test equipment to test the starter motor on your 1.7L equipped Honda Civic. Here are my recommendations:
- Remote starter switch.
- If you'd like to see what a remote starter switch looks like, you can follow this link: Innova 3630 Remote Starter Switch (Amazon affiliate link)
- You can either buy this tool online or you can buy it at your local auto parts store (AutoZone or O'Reilly Auto Parts, etc.).
- Multimeter or a 12 Volt automotive test light.
- If you don't have a multimeter or need to upgrade yours, check out my recommendation here: Tekpower TP8268 AC/DC Auto/Manual Range Digital Multimeter (Amazon affiliate link).
- A wire piercing probe.
- This tool is not an 'absolute must-have tool' but I can tell you from experience that it makes it a whole lot easier to probe the S terminal wire for the start signal.
- If you'd like to see what this tool looks like, you find out more about it here: Wire Piercing Probe Tool Review (Power Probe PWPPPPP01).
- A helper.
As you can see, you don't need anything expensive. OK, let's turn the page and get started with the first starter motor test.
TEST 1: Applying 12 Volts To The Starter Motor S Terminal
The first thing that we need to do, to find out if your Honda Civic's starter motor is fried (or not) is to manually apply 12 Volts from your Civic's car battery to the starter motor solenoid's S terminal.
The purpose of this test is to bypass the ignition switch and everything in between it and the starter motor and directly test the starter motor to see if it cranks (or not) the engine.
You can use a home made jumper wire or a power probe to apply battery power to the starter motor (I use a power probe myself).
There's one more tool I use and it's a wire piercing probe to pierce the S terminal wire and then I connect my remote starter switch to it and proceed from there. (to see what this tool looks like, go here: Wire Piercing Probe Tool Review (Power Probe PWPPPPP01)).
IMPORTANT: Before you perform this test, remove the key from the ignition switch to prevent the engine from accidentally starting.
OK, this is what you'll need to do:
- 1
Disconnect the battery negative (-) terminal.
You'll reconnect it back in one of the following steps, for now, it's a safety precaution as you set up the test. - 2
Attach one end of the remote starter switch to the battery positive (+) post.
- 3
Attach the other end of the remote starter switch to the 'S' terminal of the starter motor solenoid.
You can do this one of two ways:
1.) Leave the 'S' wire connected to the 'S' terminal and use a wire piercing probe (on the 'S' wire). Then, connect one end of the remote start switch to the wire piercing probe. This is the method I use.
2.) Disconnect the 'S' wire from the 'S' terminal. Connect one end of the remote start switch to the male spade terminal of the 'S' terminal. - 4
Reconnect the battery negative (-) cable to the battery negative (-) post.
- 5
Apply 12 Volts to the 'S' terminal wire of the starter motor starter solenoid with your remote starter switch.
- 6
You'll get one of two results:
1.) The starter will activate and will turn over the engine.
2.) The starter motor won't do a thing.
Let's take a look at what your test results mean:
CASE 1: The starter motor cranked the engine. This test result lets you know that your Honda Civic's starter motor is OK and functioning. This also tells you that the starter motor is NOT receiving the activation signal from the ignition switch.
The next step is to go to TEST 2 and see if the starter motor is getting the 12 Volt signal signal on the S terminal wire (circuit). Go to: TEST 2: Verifying The Start Signal.
CASE 2: The starter motor DID NOT crank the engine. This usually means that your Honda Civic's starter motor is bad and needs to be rebuilt or replaced.
I suggest 2 more tests and these are make sure that the starter motor is getting its 12 Volt signal signal and to test the battery cable (that attaches to the starter motor solenoid) for corrosion. This can be accomplished very easily with a voltage drop test.
- Go to: TEST 2: Verifying The Start Signal.
- Go to: TEST 3: Voltage Drop Testing The Battery (+) Cable.
If the above two test confirm that the start signal IS present and there's no voltage drop on the battery cable feeding battery power to the starter motor, then you can confidently conclude your Honda Civic's starter motor is bad and needs to be replaced.
TEST 2: Verifying The Start Signal
If you've reached this point, you have confirmed two very important things:
One: That when you turn the key to crank your Honda Civic's engine, the starter motor does not activate.
Two: You've done TEST 1 and have confirmed that the starter motor DOES run when you manually applied battery power from your Honda Civic's battery.
To see why the starter motor doesn't activate when you turn the key to crank the engine, we need to see if the starter motor solenoid is getting the start (crank) signal.
So in this test step, you're gonna' use a multimeter to see if the start signal is present when you turn the key to crank your 1.7L Honda Civic's engine.
You can use a multimeter or a 12 Volt automotive test light.
OK, here's what you'll need to do:
- 1
Set your multimeter to Volts DC mode.
- 2
Ground the black multimeter test lead directly on the negative (-) battery terminal using a jump start cable.
You can also Ground it on the engine, if you can find a clean, unpainted and rust-free spot of metal. - 3
Disconnect the 'S' wire from the starter motor's 'S' terminal.
- 4
Connect the red multimeter test lead to the female terminal of the 'S' wire using an appropriate tool.
- 5
Have your helper turn the key to crank the engine when the test is setup.
- 6
Your multimeter should read 10 to 12 Volts DC.
OK, let's examine your test result:
CASE 1: The multimeter registered 10 to 12 Volts. This test result lets you know the starter solenoid is receiving the start signal.
This means that we can forget about the safety neutral switch and the ignition switch being bad. OK, now the next test is to do a very easy and simple voltage drop test. Go to: TEST 3: Voltage Drop Testing The Battery (+) Cable.
CASE 2: If your multimeter DID NOT register 10 to 12 Volts. This result exonerates the starter motor. Your starter motor is not bad.
Here's the reason why: Without this 10 to 12 Volt crank signal, your Honda Civic's starter motor will not crank the engine. Now, although it's beyond the scope of this article to test the neutral safety switch or the ignition switch, you have eliminated the starter motor and this means saving money by not buying a part your vehicle does not need.
TEST 3: Voltage Drop Testing The Battery (+) Cable
There's a good chance that you have cleaned the battery terminals or they look clean but there's a good chance that hidden corrosion is keeping full battery power/current from reaching the starter motor.
This problem in turn will keep the starter motor from working and possibly make you think the starter motor is bad (when it isn't).
So in this last test step, I'm gonna' ask you to do a very simple voltage drop test on the battery cable that feeds battery power to the starter motor.
This voltage drop test will let us know if there's any hidden corrosion (on the battery positive cable) that's blocking battery power from reaching the starter motor (this condition is known as a voltage drop).
To further explain what a voltage drop is: a voltage drop is simply a condition in which something (in our case: unseen corrosion) blocks a lot of the battery power (voltage and current) from reaching its destination (the starter motor). When this happens, the starter motor will not be able to crank the engine in your 1.7L Honda Civic even though the battery is in a fully charged state.
OK, to get started, this is what you need to do:
- 1
Place your multimeter in Volts DC mode.
- 2
Attach the red multimeter test lead to the positive (+) battery post. The positive (+) battery post must be clean and corrosion-free.
You may need two helpers for this test step, since someone will have to hold the red multimeter test lead onto the battery positive (+) terminal bolt and someone else inside the vehicle (to crank it when everything is set up). - 3
Place the black multimeter test lead on the starter motor solenoid stud that connects to the battery positive (+) cable (see illustration above).
The orange arrow with the plus (+) sign, in the illustration above, points to this stud.
Maintain the black multimeter test lead in this position throughout the next step. - 4
When everything is ready, have your helper turn the key to crank the engine.
Although the starter motor won't crank the engine, your helper has to turn the ignition switch to start the engine for the voltage drop test to work. - 5
The multimeter should register 0.5 Volts or less (0.5 V = 0 Volts).
If there's a problem in the wire, your multimeter will register some voltage, usually 5 Volts or more.
Let's take a look at what your results mean:
CASE 1: Your multimeter registered 0 Volts (no voltage drop). This result indicates that the starter motor is receiving all of the battery voltage and amperage it needs to crank the vehicle.
This also means that the starter motor is bad, and here's why:
- In TEST 1 you confirmed that the starter motor doesn't work when you apply power to the S terminal wire of the starter motor solenoid.
- TEST 2 you confirmed that the starter motor is receiving the crank signal.
- In this test step you have confirmed that no voltage drop exists on the battery positive Cable.
These 3 test results, taken together, indicate that the starter motor is bad. Replacing the starter motor should solve your no-crank condition.
I'm going to make two more recommendations to you:
- Before removing the starter motor, manually turn the engine using a 1/2 ratchet and the appropriate socket on the crankshaf pulley. This is just to make sure the engine or the A/C compressor have not locked up and causing the no-crank condition.
- -AND-
- Bench test the starter motor after removing it. This is a super easy test to do and you can find this article by clicking here: How To Bench Test A Starter Motor (Step by Step) (at: easyautodiagnostics.com).
CASE 2: Your multimeter registered 5 Volts or more. This result tells you that a voltage drop does exist and this is not a good result.
The good news is that this can easily be corrected, since a voltage drop is always caused by some sort of corrosion issue on the battery positive Cable or terminals or the battery positive (+) post.
The solution is to thoroughly clean the battery positive (+) post and the battery positive (+) terminal (both the end that attaches to the battery positive (+) post and the end the connects to the starter motor solenoid).
After cleaning, try cranking the engine. If it cranks and starts, no further testing is required.
More 1.7L Honda Civic Test Tutorials
You can find a complete list of 1.7L Honda Civic tutorials in this index:
Here's a small sample of the tutorials you'll find in the index:
- How To Test The Crank Sensor (2001-2005 1.7L Honda Civic).
- Maintenance Required Light Reset (2001-05 1.7L Honda Civic).
- How To Do A Cylinder Balance Test (2001-2005 1.7L Honda).
- How To Test Trouble Code P0141 (2001-2005 Honda 1.7L).
- How To Test The TP Sensor (2001-2005 1.7L Honda Civic).
- How To Test Trouble Code P0135 (2001-2003 Honda 1.7L).
If this info saved the day, buy me a beer!
