omgwtfbbq

94 Honda Civic EX, stock motor.

When my car is sitting at idle for more than 5 minutes, it will heat up beyond where it normally sits. While it is overheating, the fan is not on.

Here's what confuses me, after i rev the engine a little, the gauge will start to drop to where it needs to be, and THEN the fan will kick on. If I let it idle again, the fan will turn off eventually and then it will start to rise again.

I drive twenty miles a day and it never rises while driving, or sitting at a stoplight for a minute or two....just prolonged idle.

The car has a brand new fan, radiator, hoses, water pump. Only thing that I know wasn't replaced was the thermostat and fan switch. Although i'll probably get them both replaced, im kinda curious as to which is the actual problem and why.

jyacoba2009

you have a bad thermostat

what i would do is just get a switch for the damn thing.. thats what im gonna do, b/c that used to be my problem.. drive and it wont overheat.. but getting caught in traffic.. and the temp rises a lot until i start driving again

EL Vap133

Have you noticed that fan not turn on when it needs to though?

Former User

Check the coolant level in the radiator and then bleed the cooling system of trapped air.

Bleeding the cooling system:

1) Park the car on an inclined driveway with the front end higher than the rear.

2) Push the dash heater lever/**** to MAX heat.

3) Follow the directions in the diagram below (hint: the bleed bolt is located where the upper radiator hose connects to the engine):

jyacoba2009

in my haynes manual.. it says there is no bleed bolt for my civic ek.. but it shows that the integra has it, how bout the eg?

Former User

The Civic EG but not EK has a bleed bolt. Your stock 94 Civic has one.

jyacoba2009

ahh no wonder.. but lucky you OP, i wish my car had a bleed bolt, would be wicked easier for me

Former User

This is how you bleed the EK:

This procedure may take 20-30 minutes:

1) Park the car on an inclined driveway with the front end higher than the rear.

2) Push the dash heater lever/**** to MAX heat.

3) Follow the directions in the diagram below

omgwtfbbq

I do plan on bleeding the system but I don't see how that can cause the fan to act the way it is.

Former User

Air trapped in the cooling system can prevent proper coolant flow through radiator (cooling) and proper sensing of coolant temperature by the fan switch.

jyacoba2009

thanks Ron, but i know how to do it. lol. i just wish i had a bleed bolt, so i didnt have to wait like 15 minutes for my damn thermostat to open up

Former User

It takes about the same amount of time with or without a bleed bolt because in both case you still need to idle the engine until the fan comes on twice.

omgwtfbbq

RonJ, thanks for the suggestion! I added about half a liter of coolant, bled my system and can no longer duplicate the problem....my fan kicks on when it should and everything runs cherry!