702SI

So I am trying to get some ideas of what is going on with my car and what to check or replace..

Day 1: so I came out to the garage to find a big puddle of coolant on the floor from my car. I checked the radiator, hoses, and around the thermostat and fan switch for any leaks but I didn’t find any. I drove the car to work which is more than 30 miles and no indicator light came on and never overheated. The temp gauge is at the same spot as it has always been and the same spot as my other civic. Got to work and let it sit for 15 mins. And not a single drop of coolant on the floor. Drove it home and it was fine.

Day 2: no coolant found on the floor or on the car and drove just fine to work. When I got home from work coolant was leaking from the reservoir. There were no cracks on the reservoir but the coolant in the reservoir was gurgling and had s PPPPSSSSSSS sound. The car didn’t over heat and the temp gauge was still the same. So I let the car completely cool down, opened the radiator cap let the car run thinking maybe I might have a bad thermostat or fan switch. Few minutes later the radiator fans kicked on.

Day 3 and 4: very small drips of coolant fluid leaking from the reservoir.
And now no coolant drips or gurgling but coolant level changes from low to full.

Now if the radiator fans turned on doesn’t that mean that the thermostat has open and I don’t have a bad fan switch and thermostat? No leaks found on the radiator, radiator hoses, thermostat, fan switch or heater hoses. Any ideas of what caused the gurgling or PPPSSSSS noise?

24TEN

iTrader: (2)

I can't say that this is the solution but the only thing regulating how much fluid goes to the reservoir is the radiator cap. I can only hope that is the problem because if it's not then your coolant is expanding (heating up actually) to the point that it is overwhelming the reservoir. If that's the case then you have much more involved issues.

95Sedan

I would pressure test the cooling system, and if that turns out well, burp the system.

axis11

Your fan should have kicked on before coolant starts to come out. Check whether your thermostat and fan switch is operating within specs.

HondaPartsHero

check your radiator cap to see if the seal is still good.

702SI

I forgot to check the radiator cap. Will do in the morning. Thanks.

702SI

I know the fans turned on because I watched it turn on. How would I check the thermostat and fan switch to see if the operating within specs?

axis11

Dip them in water together with a thermometer. Heat it up slowly and record the temperature when the thermostat starts to open and when it fully opens. For the switch, attach a multimeter and record what temperature the switch closes. Can't remember oem specs. Do some searching and compare your results.