2000 Honda Civic put into park while moving

Hi ingeschatta1,

WOW, I am shocked that he was able to shift into park at 40 mph. There must have been hell of a rachetting noise and jerk.

There are so many reasons why an engine can crank but won't fire up and it might not be related to what had happened.

Was there any visible damage to the transmission? Oil leaks, etc.

Did this happened immediately after the incident?

Did you check under bonnet to see if anything had been damaged?

There are no apparent oil or transmission leaks and all looks fine under the hood. The car drove OK for the evening following the incident and for the next day. It was during the next night that I had the problem. I was low on gas and put some in. The car began to run poorly shortly after; missing etc. After parking and eating dinner, I got back in car and it would not start. The engine turns over, but it wont start. As said, it's been towed and I'm hoping to fix but not sure how to begin.

Hi ingeschatta1,

Ok, so it should not be related to the incident.

You need to check and confirm if this is a fuel or sparking problem.

Was the check engine light showing when the vehicle started running funny?

Check the spark plugs first and then the sparks. It uses coil packs so you have to remove them to test.

Thanks so much for your advice. I changed the plugs but still will not start. I don't recall if the check engine light came on or not when it began to run rough. Thanks again for trying to help. How do I check for fuel problem?

Hi ingeschatta1,

Changing the spark plugs would not be of help it there is no sparks when cranking. Did you test the sparking?

To check for fuel pressure, you need to unloosen the fuel hose connector at the fuel rail. If no pressure is present, turn ignition switch on and see if fuel is pushing out for a few seconds.

If none, you need to check the main relay and fuel pump.

With the mileage on your car, has the timing belt been replaced before? I hope it is not the timing belt. Is cranking speed very fast or normal as if it is a little heavy?

Turns out the car not starting was not related to it being put in park while moving. It wouldn't start because there was water in the gas. Don't know if someone put it in or if it was bad at the pump. I had a backyard mechanic remove the gas/water and it runs good now. I put a bottle of fuel system cleaner in with some gas. The only problem now is the ABS indicator light stays on. It was not on before the car quit running. Oh well, can't have everything I guess. Thanks again for your help and best wishes to you all.

Hi ingeschatta1,

If the ABS light is on, something is wrong with the system or if you had raised the wheels and started the engine.

Get it checked at Autozone and see if it just needs to be resetted or if anything is wrong.