josh_p

iTrader: (1)

So I know there is a million threads online and on here that deal with this and I promise you I have dug through everyone of them and I am still stumped.

So here's my situation I have a 2000 civic with a b16 swap with P30 pistons and minor head work. This motor has given me problems here and there but they were always things that I was able to troubleshoot and fix. But I have been stumped on this.

A month ago I was driving and noticed the car was getting hot I immediately cut it off before it even got 3/4 on the gauge. Popped the hood and noticed both hoses were swollen and couldn't even squeeze them, yet the lower hose felt was cold but had a lot of pressure. My first thought by me and others was the thermostat. So I get that changed out after a while because I never have time. Got the lines bled and all drove it and never got over operating temperature. But I popped the hood and the lines felt the exact same lower was cold and had a lot of pressure so clearly the thermostat wasn't opening again. I thought maybe I got that rare bad OEM thermostat, I know it's rare but it happens. I exchanged it out and did the same process again. Again same thing happened with lower hose being cold. So this time I did a compression test and checked for signs of blown head gasket. There is no white smoke, no oil and coolant mix and the compression numbers were 209-207-210-209 from what I could read on my shitty gauge. That made me believe the head gasket is fine until I was bleeding the system today and noticed when I give it and gas at all the coolant neck begins to bubble almost like a boiling pot looks, no exhaust smell at all just a subtle bubbling of the coolant and the the coolant level goes down. I know a blown head gasket can cause exhaust in the coolant lines but why would I have no other effects what so ever and good compression numbers?

Also before this the car did feel some what sluggish but the distributor was fried and just replaced that bit haven't had a chance to drive it since but it was running better after the replacement of the dizzy.

Any ideas to try would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

CFiannotti

Cracked cylinder,lower down the barrel? Leakdown test,exhaust gas in radiator test.

B serious

iTrader: (1)

^the compression test was good. So...not likely a completely cracked sleeve.

OP...maybe the radiator is clogged. Did you use tap water or cheap coolant?

TomCat39

Once the hoses stretch, will they ever be the same?

If you've bled the cooling system properly and you still get bubbles with the rad cap off, that's an almost sure fire sign your Head Gasket (HG) is no longer doing it's job.

To be absolutely sure you have exhaust gas coming through your rad, spend 30 bucks on a block tester and fluid. If the blue fluid turns yellow, you have a leak, whether it's a cracked head or block or just the head gasket, you won't know until you pull the head and look around. Some cracks are not easily visible to the naked eye and so you'd know by just changing the HG and still fail the block test.

This is what a block tester kit looks like:
This one is a bit more but is a dual chamber to eliminate false positives. You can get the regular single chamber with fluid for about 30 bucks.

carlos8

Before I get my sleeved block, I have a similar problem that ended in a hair line on the top of 2-3 sleeve.

josh_p

iTrader: (1)

Never used tap water or cheap coolant. And the radiator has been flushed recently just incase that was the problem.

I actually saw that and was planning on trying it, so now I'll for sure try that out. My only worry is that the head gasket and motor only have just over 10k miles so why would it fail so quickly and still have good compression. I'm almost worried the head might be cracked somewhere is there really anyway to tell if the head being cracked is my problem prior removing it off the block?

cruizinmax

iTrader: (2)

Water pump may have failed and is no longer circulating water. If the engine is cold and you start the car then blip the gas do you get bubbles or only when the car is warm?

josh_p

iTrader: (1)

From what I've noticed it is only when it's warm never really tried to give it gas before it warmed up so I can't say for sure. Only thing with the water pump idea is the thermostat does open when I'm bleeding the system with cap off. It's only when I drive the car that I get all the pressure which is why I've leaned towards a cracked head or bad head gasket. Still waiting on a time to do the leak down test and/or the coolant test to start eliminating more things.

EsotericImage

iTrader: (8)

i wouldnt waste time/$$ doing a leakdown..If it raises when your giving it gas then its either a HG or something more.

Pulling the head will give you a better look. use that leakdown $$ for a new HG and headwork.

josh_p

iTrader: (1)

You have a very good point there!! I didn't think of it that way!

cruizinmax

iTrader: (2)

If you're not getting bubbles when the car is cold and you are blipping the throttle the headgasket is probably ok. The reason you're getting bubbles when it is warm is there is no pressure in the system and the temperature in the head is hot enough for the water to boil. That is normal. If you were losing coolant after driving it for a bit that would also be a sign of a headgasket. I didn't see you mention if you were losing coolant. If you have one hose hot and one cold you need to know why coolant isn't circulating.

tony_2018

Thermostat not opening up??

cruizinmax

iTrader: (2)

He has put 3 thermostats in it already. If one hose is cool, water is not circulating. I would check the water pump before pulling the head.

Matt_EH3

I had the bubbling + pressure issue before, and at the time, everyone seemed to tell me that I had a HG problem. Turns out I had an air bubble in my system due to me having forgotten to turn on the heater when filling the radiator. I only got the issue when the cold days started, because I had not turned on the heater before that.

When you last filled your coolant, did you jack the front of the car up as high as you can using a regular jack and make sure that your heater was turned on? Also, make sure you drain everything out (including the block) when you do that. It could be the HG or pump, but I would also check if the coolant was filled properly.

josh_p

iTrader: (1)

Last time I drove the car when it started to over heat that time I cut off, it was lower on coolant. Which is why I figured when I changed the thermostat that it might have had air in the lines who his when I proceeded to bleed the system. I know things go bad but literally when the motor was out together last year a brand new water pump and head gasket were installed which only have right at 10k miles or so. What has me stumped is if it ends up being either of those what made them go bad that fast.

Yes I did the coolant filling and have attempted to bleed the system multiple times with it jacked up in the air as high as I could get it with the heater on. I have been thinking I had air in the system too until I bled it for an hour and a half in the freezing cold. I was positive I had all the air out and my problem was solved, I let it sit for a while to cool down then started it up it ran perfect then drove it down the road and back (long enough the thermostat should have opened) and same thing with the hoses. That's when I attempted to bleed it one more time and noticed the bubbling when giving it any gas and then the coolant level goes down after that