Honda Car Forum

Hey wats going on HONDA EXperts. IM a girl looking for answers!

Well i have a Honda civic 1997 DX. I recently replaced the radiator because
my old on cracked due to overheating issues and it was old. So:
-i went ahead and replaced the thermostat because it continued overheating.
it kept overheadig until the waterhoses busted.
-i replaced the waterhoses. it seemed like the car was building up excessive
pressure. i noticed everytime i would take off the cap of the radiator.
- the problem continued. so i replaced the water pump thinking maybe it was
the problem
- it continued with the excessive amount of preassure, i will notice because
the hoses will get real swollen
-at this point i left it alone i had ran out of ideas!!!

Quick facts... the radiator fan is rig because i wouldnt turn ON on its own
so it always turns on as soon as i turn on the key ! i tought maybe the
sensor is out. AND my biggest problem for now and i REALLY want to fix if
possible, the temperature GAUGE on the dash doesnt work at all it has been on
cool the whole time its like it doesnt read it.

PLEASE HELP!! wat do i replace? MY motor is fine AUTOZONE test it with that
computer they have. they say it is the coolant system ... so wat else do i do?
???

Cessi wrote:
> Hey wats going on HONDA EXperts. IM a girl looking for answers!
>
> Well i have a Honda civic 1997 DX. I recently replaced the radiator because
> my old on cracked due to overheating issues and it was old. So:
> -i went ahead and replaced the thermostat because it continued overheating.
> it kept overheadig until the waterhoses busted.
> -i replaced the waterhoses. it seemed like the car was building up excessive
> pressure. i noticed everytime i would take off the cap of the radiator.
> - the problem continued. so i replaced the water pump thinking maybe it was
> the problem
> - it continued with the excessive amount of preassure, i will notice because
> the hoses will get real swollen
> -at this point i left it alone i had ran out of ideas!!!
>
> Quick facts... the radiator fan is rig because i wouldnt turn ON on its own
> so it always turns on as soon as i turn on the key ! i tought maybe the
> sensor is out. AND my biggest problem for now and i REALLY want to fix if
> possible, the temperature GAUGE on the dash doesnt work at all it has been on
> cool the whole time its like it doesnt read it.
>
> PLEASE HELP!! wat do i replace? MY motor is fine AUTOZONE test it with that
> computer they have. they say it is the coolant system ... so wat else do i do?
> ???
>

head gasket's gone.

Is the thermostat a genuine Honda one? Is the radiator cap a
genuine Honda one? If not, then these parts will set you
back maybe $35 total.

Genuine Honda parts (also known as "OEM" for "original
equipment manufacturer") are strongly recommended for these.

"Cessi" <u40381@uwe> wrote

> Hey wats going on HONDA EXperts. IM a girl looking for
> answers!
>
> Well i have a Honda civic 1997 DX. I recently replaced the
> radiator because
> my old on cracked due to overheating issues and it was
> old. So:
> -i went ahead and replaced the thermostat because it
> continued overheating.
> it kept overheadig until the waterhoses busted.
> -i replaced the waterhoses. it seemed like the car was
> building up excessive
> pressure. i noticed everytime i would take off the cap of
> the radiator.
> - the problem continued. so i replaced the water pump
> thinking maybe it was
> the problem
> - it continued with the excessive amount of preassure, i
> will notice because
> the hoses will get real swollen
> -at this point i left it alone i had ran out of ideas!!!
>
> Quick facts... the radiator fan is rig because i wouldnt
> turn ON on its own
> so it always turns on as soon as i turn on the key ! i
> tought maybe the
> sensor is out. AND my biggest problem for now and i REALLY
> want to fix if
> possible, the temperature GAUGE on the dash doesnt work at
> all it has been on
> cool the whole time its like it doesnt read it.
>
> PLEASE HELP!! wat do i replace? MY motor is fine AUTOZONE
> test it with that
> computer they have. they say it is the coolant system ...
> so wat else do i do?
> ???
>

jim beam wrote:
>> Hey wats going on HONDA EXperts. IM a girl looking for answers!
>>
>[quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
>> computer they have. they say it is the coolant system ... so wat else do i do?
>> ???
>
>head gasket's gone.
Okay, so you think that is the reason why it keeps making that excessive
air/preassure? and you know what else i noticedm, only the top water hose
from the radiator to the head gets hot and the bottom one close to the
thermostat stays cooled? what does that mean?

Elle wrote:
>Is the thermostat a genuine Honda one? Is the radiator cap a
>genuine Honda one? If not, then these parts will set you
>back maybe $35 total.
>
>Genuine Honda parts (also known as "OEM" for "original
>equipment manufacturer") are strongly recommended for these.
>
>> Hey wats going on HONDA EXperts. IM a girl looking for
>> answers!
>[quoted text clipped - 33 lines]
>> so wat else do i do?
>> ???
Well, no, the Radiator i purchased was online. Its for a HONDA but its those
alluminum ones. I thought maybe these where better, maybe they wouldnt crack
and last longer, and it actually already came with a cap, and the thermostat
i just bought it at CHECKERS or AutoZONE i dont even remember.

"Cessi" <u40381@uwe> wrote in news:7daf85f2952e3@uwe:

> jim beam wrote:
>>> Hey wats going on HONDA EXperts. IM a girl looking for answers!
>>>
>>[quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
>>> computer they have. they say it is the coolant system ... so wat
>>> else do i do? ???
>>
>>head gasket's gone.
> Okay, so you think that is the reason why it keeps making that
> excessive air/preassure? and you know what else i noticedm, only the
> top water hose from the radiator to the head gets hot and the bottom
> one close to the thermostat stays cooled? what does that mean?
>
>


It means the thermostat hasn't opened yet. If the engine has been driven
sufficient to warm it up all the way and the lower hose is still cold, the
thermostat is not open, which is very bad and will cause overheating.

Are you using an aftermarket thermostat? If so, that's bad too. Aftermarket
thermostats are notoriously horrible, often defective right out of the box.

--
Tegger

The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ
www.tegger.com/hondafaq/

"Cessi" <u40381@uwe> wrote in news:7daf8ca2e5a77@uwe:

> Elle wrote:
>>Is the thermostat a genuine Honda one? Is the radiator cap a
>>genuine Honda one? If not, then these parts will set you
>>back maybe $35 total.
>>
>>Genuine Honda parts (also known as "OEM" for "original
>>equipment manufacturer") are strongly recommended for these.
>>
>>> Hey wats going on HONDA EXperts. IM a girl looking for
>>> answers!
>>[quoted text clipped - 33 lines]
>>> so wat else do i do?
>>> ???
> Well, no, the Radiator i purchased was online. Its for a HONDA but its
> those alluminum ones. I thought maybe these where better, maybe they
> wouldnt crack and last longer,



Aftermarket rads are often pretty good quality and cost way less than OEM
ones.



> and it actually already came with a
> cap, and the thermostat i just bought it at CHECKERS or AutoZONE i
> dont even remember.
>
>



Get rid of that aftermarket thermostat and rad cap. Those have probably
been your problem all along.


--
Tegger

The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ
www.tegger.com/hondafaq/

Tegger wrote:
>>>Is the thermostat a genuine Honda one? Is the radiator cap a
>>>genuine Honda one? If not, then these parts will set you
>[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
>> those alluminum ones. I thought maybe these where better, maybe they
>> wouldnt crack and last longer,
>
>Aftermarket rads are often pretty good quality and cost way less than OEM
>ones.
>
>> and it actually already came with a
>> cap, and the thermostat i just bought it at CHECKERS or AutoZONE i
>> dont even remember.
>
>Get rid of that aftermarket thermostat and rad cap. Those have probably
>been your problem all along.
>where do i get a the correct rad cap and thermostat? and anyways... what about my gauge? i cant even tell by looking at it while i am driving if its overheating? how do i fix that problem?

Tegger wrote:
>>>Is the thermostat a genuine Honda one? Is the radiator cap a
>>>genuine Honda one? If not, then these parts will set you
>[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
>> those alluminum ones. I thought maybe these where better, maybe they
>> wouldnt crack and last longer,
>
>Aftermarket rads are often pretty good quality and cost way less than OEM
>ones.
>
>> and it actually already came with a
>> cap, and the thermostat i just bought it at CHECKERS or AutoZONE i
>> dont even remember.
>
>Get rid of that aftermarket thermostat and rad cap. Those have probably
>been your problem all along.


where do i get a the correct rad cap and thermostat? and anyways... what
about my gauge? i cant even tell by looking at it while i am driving if its
overheating? how do i fix that problem?

Cessi wrote:
> jim beam wrote:
>>> Hey wats going on HONDA EXperts. IM a girl looking for answers!
>>>
>> [quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
>>> computer they have. they say it is the coolant system ... so wat else do i do?
>>> ???
>> head gasket's gone.
> Okay, so you think that is the reason why it keeps making that excessive
> air/preassure?

yes.


> and you know what else i noticedm, only the top water hose
> from the radiator to the head gets hot and the bottom one close to the
> thermostat stays cooled? what does that mean?
>

it means the thermostat's not opening. that may be normal - it's hard
to get the motor hot enough, especially this time of year, for that to
happen if it's just sitting in your driveway. that said, tegger's
right, aftermarket thermostats and radiator caps tend to be awful and
very unreliable - genuine honda are your best bet. tegger.com is the
place to go for a list of online retailers we've all used and have good
experience with.

getting back to your car, the definitive way to say for sure about the
head gasket is to do a chemical test of the coolant to see if there are
exhaust hydrocarbons present. but that's usually best in the early
stages. by the sound of things, your head gasket problem is getting
quite advanced - if so, you'll usually get symptoms of excess pressure,
and bubbling in the expansion bottle, assuming the radiator cap is
opening correctly, and no chemical test will be necessary.

head gasket is unfortunately quite expensive if done by a shop. if you
have the skills, and the workshop manual, you can do this job yourself,
but it will take the better part of a day and you need to know what
you're doing. [don't use any abrasives!!!] if having the job done by
someone else, do your math homework first. most shops charge a lot in
labor, and routinely do work not always necessary or recommended,
namely, skimming the head. otoh, a jdm import for your non-performance
replacement is available for $400-$500, so price out the labor of buying
and fitting that vs. the many hours necessary to clean and prep a head,
maybe skim, ready for re-fitting.

and for the future, the probable cause is the cracked radiator allowing
the motor to overheat. once that happens, it breaks the seal on the
head, and it will slowly start to leak. it may take a year or more, but
from that point, the gasket will inevitably get to the replacement
point. for the sake of a hundred or so bucks, replacing the radiator
every 10 years is great preventive maintenance.