EK_logkomlki

This is what happened....

I have a 1998 Acura EL (....Yes Im Canadian) and on the way home from work while on the highway. I notice steam coming out from the left hand side of the hood.

I quickly pulled over on the side of the highway (Freeway for you Americans) and popped the hood. Steam was coming out from the coolant reservoir tank and it seems that the it was empty. Like any other Canadian.. I was carrying bottled water in my car and as a last resort filled my reservoir with water.. coz AAA takes 45 min. to arrive ... I made it home and checked the reservoir and again it was empty.

That night I added 50/50 premixed coolant to my rad and reservoir.. I added about two liters ( maybe half a gallon???). I drove the car and after a while steam was coming out the same spot again. I popped the hood and noticed that the hose from the rad to the reservoir is spurting out some steam... into the coolant in the reservoir causing the tank to overflow........


No coolant is leaking anywhere and I suspect that the rad is getting hot..

I tried to get rid of the air bubbles by idling the motor... with the rad cap open till there is no more air bubbles..still same results

Can anyone tell me whats up with this and any suggestion on how to fix this..

BTW the fan works and the temperature (gauge) is not going up

CompanyFlow

You have a clog somewhere. Get a radiator flush kit.

dtapia

if you refill the radiator and topp off the resivor and let the engine get to operating temps will the cooling fan come on also what's the temp ? is the lower radiator hose hot or cold ? if so install a new thermostat and retest.

Dino

EK_logkomlki

changed the thermostat ...looks like its okay now... but now its seems that the engine is a li'l bit shaky... ill keep on driving it and see what happens

YeuEmMaiMai

better hope you didn't pop the head gasket

EK_logkomlki

Okay .. so the car runs okay now but.... when i park and leave the car idling.. i opened the reservoir and I see lots of bubbling .. it seems like the rad has lots of air and its spurting it out on the reservoir... I tried idling withe the rad cap open to get rid of the air bubbles but that didnt work..Is this a sign of a head gasket problem???

Note that temperature gauge still doesn't go up and no signs of overheating after replacing the coolant.. just the bubbling part when idling...

CompanyFlow

You have to have the temperature setting in the cabin at its hottest setting. Slide the switch all the way to the hottest setting, then let it idle.

dtapia

yes i think their is possiable head gasket damage already the bubbles you may be refering to are possiable combustion in the cooling system does the coolant over flow from the resivor ? if so sounds like a blown head gasket to be 100% sure a shop can use a 4 gas to see if their is hc in the cooling system.

YeuEmMaiMai

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by EK_logkomlki &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Okay .. so the car runs okay now but.... when i park and leave the car idling.. i opened the reservoir and I see lots of bubbling .. it seems like the rad has lots of air and its spurting it out on the reservoir... I tried idling withe the rad cap open to get rid of the air bubbles but that didnt work..Is this a sign of a head gasket problem???

Note that temperature gauge still doesn't go up and no signs of overheating after replacing the coolant.. just the bubbling part when idling...</TD></TR></TABLE>

yes it is a sign of a blown gasket if the following are true

1. your fans are running when you turn on the a/c or the single fan runs when engine is at operating temp

EK_logkomlki

YES the reservoir overflowed before I changed the thermostat.. It doesn't anymore... but after driving it for a while.. there is bubbling on the reservoir but no overflow..besides that everything is normal.. the fan turns on normally...I have to check the AC fan

YeuEmMaiMai

turn your a/c on and the fan should come on immediately

EK_logkomlki

turned on the AC button. AC fan on..Turned it off ... AC fan is off..

Normal temp.. rad fan off .. When driving.. rad fan turns on once in a while..

It seems like my car is operating normally..... except for the bubbling part like Ive mentioned before..

j-spec_cc2

, i'm surprised no one mentioned possible air still in the coolant system.

shouldn't there be a bleeder screw near the thermostat housing that will allow you to bleed the air out of the system?

CompanyFlow

I mentioned that in my post about the inside cabin temperature setting in order to clear anything out from the heater core.

dtapia

that year does not have the bleeder screw on the housing.

Desired_Speeds

then don't you just keep the radiator cap open and let it idle^

YeuEmMaiMai

if the cooling system is working properly and there are no signs of a blown head gasket, replace the rad cap. I would guess that the pressure valve failed on the cap and it is time for a new one.

to bleed a car that does not have a air bleed screw on top of tstat housing

1. fill rad up wait a few mins and fill up again
2. start car
3. turn heat to max setting
4. add coolant to max line in overflow tank
5. as the coolant level drops, add more coolant
6. when the coolant starts to flow out of rad, put cap on
7 let car idle 10 mins and turn off
8 4 hours later check coolant level and add as needed to overflow tank

dtapia

the coolant level will flucuate in the resivor im still trying to fugure out a piece of the missing puzzle here.has the car had any work done on it before this happend (ie) timing belt /water pump ? something just does not make sence on this problem from what i read,its kind of hard to do a correct diag over the web like this with out really seen the car.i work at acura and have seen lots of weird stuff.

Super Chicken

did I miss something or have you already replaced the radiator cap?

I have seen overflowing then overheating conditions from a faulty radiator cap.

dcsports

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Super Chicken &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">did I miss something or have you already replaced the radiator cap?

I have seen overflowing then overheating conditions from a faulty radiator cap.</TD></TR></TABLE>


hmm my y8 is over heating right now and my overflow gets filled with coolant all the way and my cap did not look to great the rubber on it was torn alil

EK_logkomlki

YES.. the rad cap has been changed.... I tried getting rid of the air bubbles but maybe Im doing it incorrectly..

to bleed a car that does not have a air bleed screw on top of tstat housing

1. fill rad up wait a few mins and fill up again - DONE
2. start car - DONE
3. turn heat to max setting - DONE
4. add coolant to max line in overflow tank -DONE
5. as the coolant level drops, add more coolant-DONE
6. when the coolant starts to flow out of rad, put cap on- it overflows but air bubbles are still evident
7. let car idle 10 mins and turn off
8. 4 hours later check coolant level and add as needed to overflow tank

EK_logkomlki

After driving.. hot steam from the reservoir hose (from rad neck) is evident causing the coolant in the resevoir to slightly boil..

kotetu

Is it so bad to take it to a dealership and ask them to bleed the air out of your cooling system? It's clear that you've got it in there. It's been 10 days and you still have air in there. Go get it out before you kill your engine.

dtapia

their is no special tool or way to bleed the system other then what he has done. their is a problem with it period.
the dealer will only tell him he has a problem like a head gasket or other related problem.
EK let us know what the end result is.

EK_logkomlki

It seems that the air bubbles just wont go away and the rad coolant is being displaced to the overflow tank... I feel like that this is a head gasket problem (based on tips and a friend mechanic whom I trust). I will try to change the head gasket.. anyways how will I know if it is not a water pump failure????? if I open the head .. might as well check everything.. what else could I check for maintenance purpose...