car wont start and/or run

[hondaguy]

I have an 89 civic dx.Sometimes it runs and sometimes it wont.It will run and it will run fine then it will just stop.Sometimes it will restart sometimes it wont.It seems to have a mind of its own.I am thinking it is electrical because I can hear the fuel pump and smell gas so I am obviously losing or not getting spark.I am not good with electrical so does anybody have any suggestions?
Thanks in advance.

[pigeon]

If its intermittent, check your main relay. Its rather common with the older Hondas.

[hondaguy]

I changed the main realy becuase the fuel pump wouldnt run.So it shouldnt be that.

[bitterman]

When you turn the key on, do you hear a whirling noise coming from the back of the car? If not, it is likely, as Chris said, a main relay.

It could be a bad distributor cap if it was happening last week with all the rain and humidity. Change the rotor, cap, plug and wires if they haven't bee done in a while.

[hondaguy]

Thers is a whining noise coming from the back which is the fuel pump and I changed the cap,rotor,plugs and wires.I went on another website and they suggested the icm and coil.Which is fairly inexpensive.Are there any type of sensor that may cause this. What do you think?

[pigeon]

When you say that it won't start, is the engine cranking... but it just won't fire up?

[hondaguy]

Sometimes it starts and sometimes it wont.At the moment it wont but when it would start it would die.It always cranks over fine.

[s4m_da]

This sounds exactly like what I use to be having. I fixed the ground from the valve cover to the frame and it was fine after. I'm on to a new problem where it cranks but just doesn't start.