97 ex

i know most people will dissaprove of this and would just tell me to have the head gasket replaced but i do not have the money for that and its my daily driver.


my question: is there any solution/sealant that i can put into my radiator that will seal the leaks in the gasket? anyone have any experience with any of them?

thanks

 

bump: im spending more on coolant than on gas

 

Hate to say it but I'd replace it. I haven't heard good storys about stuff like Stop Leak and those things.

 

not exactly a diy for a beginner mechanic is it?

 

Its not that hard. Buy a haynes repair manual for you car, head hagsket set and get your head milled. And you should have no problem.

-Eric

 

Block Seal by K&W works well. I dont advocate the use of this kind of stuff but many times customers come in and they dont have the money to do the repair. I have used this sealant before I can tell you that it lasts for at least a year. But you have to follow the directions to the "T"(heres an example that many people ignore ,"It takes 24 hrs for the sealant to fully cure")

 

I don't know how comfortable you are with working on your car. If you are willing to take stuff apart and have the proper tools to do it you probably could do it with intructions. If you are weary of yourself and don't have proper tools I'd probably have someone else do it.

 

i dont have experience with any of that stuff. I've always come to the conclusion that if i have a major problem with my car i have to get it fixed right the first time.

my 95 Talon TSI has bad rings due to crankwalk and yes it still drives but you wont find me on the road. it sits in my garage till i get it done the right way.

 

theres not really a way around it theres no cheep fix , just band-aids that might work or cause more damage and ruin the engine. money is tight here too but prolonging a problem can cost more in the long run, as for the stop leaks we had a car that someone put some in (not sure brand) but it caused the waterpump (we installed 2 months before) to leak !

 

it's cheaper to do a head than it is to do an engine. keep running it with a blown head and eventually you are gonna get coolant in places where you don't want it like your OIL

 

http://www.barsproducts.com/barsleaks_products.htm

 

it will just get worse man if you are scared of DIY then go to a trusted mechanic or one that you have heard good things about cus no mechanic can be trusted and get estimate and if you do get it done at a shop let them know that you wanna watch them do it so you can see them torque the stuff and all.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TypeRobert &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">it will just get worse man if you are scared of DIY then go to a trusted mechanic or one that you have heard good things about cus no mechanic can be trusted and get estimate and if you do get it done at a shop let them know that you wanna watch them do it so you can see them torque the stuff and all.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I'm sorry that you have had bitter expeirences that have led you to this conclusion about mechanics. But that statement that none can be trusted is BS. I take pride in my work and will make every reasonable attempt to explain to the customer what is going on. But the last thing I want is someone looking over my shoulder while I work. Not because I'm gonna do something shady but simply because who the hell wants to work under the gun, so to speak...

 

I agree it is a pita to have customers stand over you. I don't work at a shop now but when I did I hated it. It made me so nervous and I was more likely to forget to do something when they were watching me like a hawk.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by cb7-R &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> But the last thing I want is someone looking over my shoulder while I work. </TD></TR></TABLE>

hell yeah dude.....i even hate it when customers look through the window at the dealership i work at. It makes me want to hand the wrench over to them and have them do the flippin work.

 

Just get the head decked by a macine shop and if you dont feel confident that you can do it, just look for someone on this forum that lives by you and have them help you.

Im shure there are plenty of people here who would help you out. Id be more than willing to help a fellow H-T homie out, but theres about 1000 miles keeping me from donig so. lol.

Worst comes to worst youd have to bring it to a mechanic, i know SOME mechanics try to ripp people off, but having a shop do a headgasket is always going to cost a pretty penny.

The shop next to ours just did a HG on a Neon, and it cost them (owners) 230 bucks with out the cost of getting the head decked and the HG. But neons are bitches, i know i had a blown HG on my pos neon..

But anyways, good luck!

-Eric

 

I've used additives before on my smoking integra....it blew up after a few weeks. I noticed gradual loss of power from the time I begin using them. Tried sealants and what not and I'm never using them again.

 

I would replace the headgasket, it is very easy to do... well at least I think it is. I would get a helm manual and just take it step by step. It saves you a ton of money and you get some experience with working on your own car... plus the manual is good for basically anything you will need to do in the future.

http://www.helminc.com to buy one OR pm me and I will make you a copy of the pages you need to do the headgasket.

There is a brand new, in the sealed package, OEM honda head gasket for sale in the thread at the top of this forum BTW... it is for the f22b1 motor you have...

 

http://www.steelseal.com/eng/home.html

try this...looks/sounds legit
check out their video

 

that steel seal stuff looks pretty good. i think i might go that direction. the only thing im worried about is that there is no smoke coming from my exhaust.

i know its not leaking anywhere else but there is a definite obvious coolant loss which mkaes me think its a head gasket....or could it be something else?

 

if its not leaking anywhere, it can only be that its getting burned or displaced into your oil supply.

If its getting burned youll smell a distinct kinda sweet smell from your exhaust.

Have you changed your oil lately? If you find coolant in you oil, or the other way around too, than you got your self a blown HG.

I honestly have never, and will probally never use any kind of additive what so ever. All they seem to me, are quick cheap fixes that probally wont last long. If it even works.. Id get it done the right way the first time. And save your self ton of problems.


It will be worth it in the long run.

-Eric

 

Check for coolant leaks. If the head gasket was bad you're car would smoke, burn oil/coolant, leak oil or whatever. Cracked radiator?? Hoses??

From my persoal experience...fix it the right way...tried tons of additives back in high school...learned from experience

 

Change the gasket!