I'd appreciate any input and instructions on what the problem might be and how to fix it. I noticed a couple of weeks ago while driving in the sick, humid Jersey summer weather that while my AC was on, the temp needle was VERY close to HOT! I was shook that I was gonna start seeing smoke coming from my hood, so I turned the AC off and the needle started to drop, I thought it might be my thermostat that needed to be replaced so I bought a new one and fixed it, or so I thought, today the needle was climbing again while parked, although it seems to go down some when I start to drive again. What else could be causing the needle to go up? I got my 15 month old daughter and I definitely can't drive without the AC so I gotta figure this out ASAP! thanks for your help

 

First things that I would suggest are these (other than the obvious)
1) Make sure that BOTH radiator cooling fans operate with the A/C on.
2) Make sure there is nothing blocking airflow thru the radiator and condensor.

P

 

well, part of the problem could be the radiator may be a lil clogged up and its not cooling right. though, in city traffic,sometimes it doesnt really matter what you do,when you sit an idle your cars gonna heat up :S

when your driving around, air is cooling your engine and the water thats in the radiator..thus the little fins in it, so air can go through.
when your just sitting ideling, no airflow except what the fan in pulling.
which could be a porblem there..your fan is wearing out,not spinning as fast as it should and not moving the cfm's needed to cool.
you also may need to drain the water in the radiator and put new coolant in (antifreeze). just follow the directions on the back of the jug.

but running the AC puts more strain on the engine which makes it run warmer, but its usually not noticable when your just driving around.

a tip though,whenever your car is starting to warm up: turn off the ac and turn the HEAT on. in my camaro (aka pile of garbage ) it liked to run hot and I had to do that all the damn time..even at a friggen drive through. but just long enough to get it cool again..then the ac went back on

and then the problem could be as simple as its so freakin hott that no matter what you do, the cars gonna heat up ideling w/the ac on. you may just have to keep your eye on it.

 

are both fans next to each other? I know of the big fan sitting right behind the radiator, I never noticed a second one. and what do you mean by nothin blocking the condenser, where and what does it look like? BTW, I have a '98 Accord 4 DR LX
I don't know too much about cars, just some basic knowledge so bear with me, and as far as airflow thru the radiator, you just mean to make sure there isn't any large object blocking it up, like a plastic bag or somethin right? thanks for the tips

 

thanks for the info, I'll be sure to keep these things in mind, I actually been meaning to flush my old coolant, but I 've never done it before, I have a chilton book I just bought for my car, I just have to find the time to boost up my car and find the draincock plug illustrated in the book, does the coolant in a car start to lose its potency after time that it HAS to be replaced? so as far as the fans go, as soon as the AC is turned on, the fans start spinning? I just want to know exactly how they work so I can check it out visually, thanks guys

 

With the A/C off, the radiator fan will engage only when required. With the A/C on, I believe both fans will operate

Refer to the following links for component locations

Condersor Detail:

http://www.hondaautomotivepart...81%29

Radiator Detail:

http://www.hondaautomotivepart...IATOR

P

 

both fans should come on as soon as u turn a/c on............both fans should come on after t-stat opens and temp reaches about 195