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I have had a few problems with my 2003 Honda Civic EX 1.7L w/ abs, 153000 miles. I am looking for advice on if these problems will get worse, and how to fix the issues.
1) Starting 3 years ago, the engine would periodically overheat (about once a month during the winter and once over the entire summer). At first, I noticed the radiator was not warm to the touch, so I was adding coolant to the reservoir but this did nothing and the car would overheat again almost immediately. When I added the coolant directly to the radiator, this would resolve the overheating issue for about a month, then I would need to add more coolant to the radiator again. I tried replacing the coolant at a jiffy lube, but this did not seem to fix the issue at all. The overheating issue was more frequent in the winter (which I thought was very odd) and I periodically checked the gravity of the coolant to ensure the fluid was ok for -10°F in the winter. Blasting the heat in the car only slightly helped reduce the overheating.
2) Around the same time, 3 years ago the car started burning oil. It started requiring 1 quart every 1600 miles or so but that has gradually accelerated and now the car needs a new quart of oil every 300 - 400 miles. There is no white smoke coming out of the tailpipe, and there is no oil stain in my parking spot at work, or my parking spot at home, so I really don't know where the oil is going.
3) Recently the problems have been getting worse and more frequent. I noticed that at times when the car is overheating, I pull over, pop the hood, and liquid is spraying out of the coolant reservoir. After this calms down, I can see green fluid (likely the green coolant I have been adding) as well as black oil in the reservoir (this could be where the oil is coming from, see the image to visualize the black oil on the side of the reservoir). Even though I never have added fluid to the reservoir for the past 3 years, the reservoir seems to be full to the brim when this occurs. Also, when the reservoir is full and I remove the radiator cap, there is no fluid visible in the radiator. When I add fluid to the radiator, I fill it up to the brim which I have been told is overfilling but adding any less fluid increases the recurrence of the overheating.
4) One year ago, I thought to replace the head gasket to see if the problem would be resolved. This was during the summer so the car wasn't overheating but the oil continued to burn at the same rate after the head gasket was replaced. The job cost me $200 let me know if that sounds like the right price.
5) Another odd thing that happens is during the winter, both when the car is overheating and when the car is operating at a normal temperature, when the car is not moving the heat comes out cold. The temperature dial does not dip down while this occurs.
I want to know: (a) if/how I can fix these issues, (b) how much that would cost, (c) am I likely to become stranded on the side of the road soon, (d) can I just keep periodically adding coolant and oil and be OK. I just want to drive the vehicle for another couple years until I can afford a new car.
Thanks in advance for any insight, ideas or suggestions. I am willing to run a test if anyone needs some more information.
When's the last time you replaced your water pump? Also, when your head gasket was replaced, was the block or head machined to be level again? Sounds like it wasn't
I have had a few problems with my 2003 Honda Civic EX 1.7L w/ abs, 153000 miles. I am looking for advice on if these problems will get worse, and how to fix the issues.
1) Starting 3 years ago, the engine would periodically overheat (about once a month during the winter and once over the entire summer). At first, I noticed the radiator was not warm to the touch, so I was adding coolant to the reservoir but this did nothing and the car would overheat again almost immediately. When I added the coolant directly to the radiator, this would resolve the overheating issue for about a month, then I would need to add more coolant to the radiator again. I tried replacing the coolant at a jiffy lube, but this did not seem to fix the issue at all. The overheating issue was more frequent in the winter (which I thought was very odd) and I periodically checked the gravity of the coolant to ensure the fluid was ok for -10°F in the winter. Blasting the heat in the car only slightly helped reduce the overheating.
2) Around the same time, 3 years ago the car started burning oil. It started requiring 1 quart every 1600 miles or so but that has gradually accelerated and now the car needs a new quart of oil every 300 - 400 miles. There is no white smoke coming out of the tailpipe, and there is no oil stain in my parking spot at work, or my parking spot at home, so I really don't know where the oil is going.
3) Recently the problems have been getting worse and more frequent. I noticed that at times when the car is overheating, I pull over, pop the hood, and liquid is spraying out of the coolant reservoir. After this calms down, I can see green fluid (likely the green coolant I have been adding) as well as black oil in the reservoir (this could be where the oil is coming from, see the image to visualize the black oil on the side of the reservoir). Even though I never have added fluid to the reservoir for the past 3 years, the reservoir seems to be full to the brim when this occurs. Also, when the reservoir is full and I remove the radiator cap, there is no fluid visible in the radiator. When I add fluid to the radiator, I fill it up to the brim which I have been told is overfilling but adding any less fluid increases the recurrence of the overheating.
4) One year ago, I thought to replace the head gasket to see if the problem would be resolved. This was during the summer so the car wasn't overheating but the oil continued to burn at the same rate after the head gasket was replaced. The job cost me $200 let me know if that sounds like the right price.
5) Another odd thing that happens is during the winter, both when the car is overheating and when the car is operating at a normal temperature, when the car is not moving the heat comes out cold. The temperature dial does not dip down while this occurs.
I want to know: (a) if/how I can fix these issues, (b) how much that would cost, (c) am I likely to become stranded on the side of the road soon, (d) can I just keep periodically adding coolant and oil and be OK. I just want to drive the vehicle for another couple years until I can afford a new car.
Thanks in advance for any insight, ideas or suggestions. I am willing to run a test if anyone needs some more information.
These are all CLEAR SIGNS of a warped cylinder head. I recently baught an '02 Civic LX with 183,000 miles. After 2 weeks the car had similar symptoms. I made the same mistake (replacing the head gasket).
I had to remove the head again and have it shaved. The head was warped from previous overheating. The engine now runs like new with no more mysterious coolant loss or overfilled coolant reservoir.
These are all CLEAR SIGNS of a warped cylinder head. I recently baught an '02 Civic LX with 183,000 miles. After 2 weeks the car had similar symptoms. I made the same mistake (replacing the head gasket).
I had to remove the head again and have it shaved. The head was warped from previous overheating. The engine now runs like new with no more mysterious coolant loss or overfilled coolant reservoir.
^ That's why I was asking if you had the head machined when you got the new gasket, because it still sounds like a blown head gasket problem.
^ That's why I was asking if you had the head machined when you got the new gasket, because it still sounds like a blown head gasket problem.
From now on, I will be much more strict with aluminum cylinder head and block flatness. After shaving off 0.006" from the head, all the leaks are now SEALED. :-)
The water pump was replaced in 2014 which is right after the car started to loose oil at an accelerated rate. When the pump was replaced, I noticed that the gaskets on the old pump were melted down.
It seems there is a consensus that the head gasket is likely the source of the problem. I'm calling around to get quotes for the gasket and leveling of the block, but I don't know if this is worth it for me. I estimate that I spend ~$150 - $200 on oil every year and will have this car for another 3 - 4 years if i'm lucky. Therefor any repair that costs more than $800 isn't worth the cost.
So, do you guys think I can just keep adding oil and coolant regularly and ignore these issues, or will this start to degrade my engine and cause it to fail?
You're going down a slippery slope, dude. Do you want to keep this car? Do you really care for a heater?
If you cheap out and put water in the radiator instead, you're working on corroding or rusting your heater core and radiator. I believe the heater core is actually easy to replace on this model, however. The oil might clog it and the radiator, too.
Oil burning is going to eventually murder the catalytic converter. Not a real problem if you have no emissions testing or inspections where you live. But you're gonna slowly lose power and have to gut it when it finally clogs over.
That HG leak is going to get worse the longer you drive it. You may not think it's overheating, but if the coolant can't reach the temperature sensor (being pushed out into overflow), it can't tell you how hot it is. You're eventually going to break a bunch of other things on the engine from running it like that. It will continue to lose power from loss of compression. If it gets to the point where oil/coolant is mixing, which it looks like it is, the oil is going to make rubber hoses or o-rings swell up. Coolant in the oil isn't good for any rotating parts in the engine, either. I wonder how good that would be for the VTEC solenoid lol.
Have you tried to look into a replacement JDM engine? They're going for $450-500 bucks where I live. You said you wanted this car for another few years? I'd give you 6 months max on this engine if you don't fix the HG, and it'll be working on killing off or melting even more stuff in the meantime. It's even possible that it gets to the point of no return. My ex's 2006 Civic melted the coil packs and warped the head out of spec and she only overheated it twice. Honda replaced it all under warranty, luckily, for the cracked block thing. The ball is in your court.
I don't really care about the heat, so I'm not going to bother with the heater core. I only need to keep this car till I can afford a new one which should be in a few years, just trying to extend this car's life as long as possible. Appreciate the suggestion about replacing the engine as a whole, that's something to consider.
About the emissions, for the last year and a half I have been running with the check engine light on with the error "catalyst system efficiency below threshold." Two weeks I replaced all the spark plugs and one week ago the check engine light went off and has remained off. The spark plugs seemed to be very well corroded but I don't know the last time they were replaced (if at all). I am due for an inspection in one year.
About the overheating, I have been adding green coolant concentrate and deionized water alternately every time the car overheats. My gravity meter puts the freezing point of the coolant at -10°F so there should be enough ethylene glycol in the solution. One question I have about this, because sumdewd said the coolant may not be reaching the temperature sensor is: Are there multiple temperature sensors in the vehicle? The heat dial on the dash remains fixed at 45% from C to H under normal conditions, but my OBD reader shows the ECT increases from 185°F to 208°F when the car is going slowly. Check this map on my drive to school this morning, you can see the coolant temperature is the hottest when I am taking the exit from rt. 1 to rt. 18. Why would the dashboard dial be at a fixed location while the OBD ECT reported temperature fluctuates? And why would the temperature increase when the car is moving slowly?
Another question: would you suggest adding more ethylene glycol, or propylene glycol to the coolant system to prevent the rusting of the radiator? At this point, I top the radiator off every monday and there hasn't been any evidence of overheating for a few weeks.
Previous Civics would have a sensor for the computer (Engine coolant temperature sensor), another one for the gauge, and a third to trip the fan. I believe this model only has the ECT, which is by the upper radiator hose, and POSSIBLY(I need my service manual!??) a separate switch for the fan.
The ECT for this car will also feed to the gauge cluster. I don't have my service manual on me, but it shows a curve where from about 170f-220f or so the gauge will read exactly the same, just below half. I suppose this is done so it won't scare people with minor fluctuations.
Temperature increase while moving slowly could just be from the engine running faster while the fan is off. You're not getting as much airflow, but your engine is running higher than idle, and a blown HG would be adding to that temperature.
07-13-2018, 08:07 AM
Overheating / Burning Oil / Heat Not Working
