Hi all you knowledgeable Honda-philes
My old girl suffered a blown top radiator hose and the local mechanic
wanted so much to repair it (and do the cam belt at near 300k
kilometers) i decided to buy another car.

I didn't cook the motor or head gasket as theres no oil in the water or
vise versa.
Long story short a mate of mine said he'd help me replace the
thermostat which we did, and the car ran. Now my daughter is old
enought to get a licence, I want her to learn on an easy-to-drive unit
and the old girl sure fits the bill.
BUT the lower of the 2 hoses from radiator to block remains cold!!!
while the top hose and the rest of the mill heat up good. The gauge
which is usually spot on climbs up to just shy of the red zone.
Reading all the articles it seems we have thought of all the same
solutions that you fellas have, but wondered if there was a second
bleeder....the primary on the block we let piss out water until there
was no more air, but the lower hose remains cold and apparently empty.
The fan/s do not kick in at all. There is sludge/rusty water in the
radiator reservoir.
I should mention that even though the car stood for about 18 months,
once the new thermo was in and we had thrown some gas in the carby, she
idled like a dream and started with no fuss
Which direction does the water flow.....from the bottom of the radiator
to the motor to the top of the radiator, or the other way?
HELP!!!!!! please
Graham
New Zealand