Thank you guys for helping me out, i'm new to cars in general but im trying, and im proud to be a part of the honda team.

I just got my first car a couple weeks ago, its a 94' Civic Hatch DX Auto. Car's got a new temperature sensor and about 148k and it ran fine when i got it. As i inspected it i noticed there was too much oil so i changed the oil to the normal level. Just about 1 week ago i noticed that the temp gauge was 2/3rds way to the redline when sitting at idle or in stop and go traffic. but on the highway or at constant speeds the temp gauge shows perfect. i put a new tstat in it, and flushed and replaced the coolent. after doing so i drove the car again and notcied that the car still had the overheating poblem... *sigh* but this time the temp gauge sits at 1/3 of it when i drive at steady speeds and jumps past half-way when the car sits idle or is in stop and go traffic.

- i've already checked my coolent level, and it is fine.
- i've already bleeded my coolent system a series of times and NOTICED BUBBLING and I'M NOT POSITIVE IF MY HOSES OR RADIATOR CAP ARE LEAKING.
- i've also checked to see if my engine fan operates and it does, but it starts working when temp gauge is at 2/3rds when idleing.

i've heard too many different possibilities for the cause of this problem and my biggest worry is that i probably have a blown headgasket. so thanks again for reading this lengthly post and plase help me.


Modified by mizzoeg at 9:45 PM 7/5/2007

 

replace the radiator cap..start from there

 

I doubt you have a blown head gasket.

From what you have described it sounds like your fan is not engaging at the right moment. Why? That I do no know, hopefully someone else does.

 

If it's not leaking, but your loosing coolant/oil it must be your head gasket, but seems like you have everything else covered. Unless your actual radiator is bad.

 

I had this problem 2 times. Once with the AC fan and 2 years later with the radiator fan.. The AC would not blow cold at all unless I was moving. I checked the fan and it APPEARED fine.. I further inspected it and noticed it was spinning but not at full speed. The poor lil guy was weak. Replaced it and STONG airflow came out and problem never came back. Radiator fan did the same. Would overheat when at idle. Checked to see if it was the same problem as the AC condensor fan and it was. Replaced that and PERFECT.

What happens if you rev the engine to about 3,000 rpms while not moving? Does the temp drop? If it does, it could be water pump related. Your radiator fan seems to turn on when it's already too hot.. Even though you replaced the temperature sensor, it could be faulty. Check the little things first.

Rich

 

thanks for the replies guys, im trying to figure any possible way i can fix this myself because im on a short budget.

my car doesn't have any leaks

i will try starting from small possibilites such as the radiator cap

and if my fan is engaging at the wrong time, how do i correct that?

and if it is my radiator, what can i do to make sure of this?

and can somebody explain to me how my headgasket can be bad and how the problem with it started, if thats really the problem, because im not very familiar with engine technology.
thanks

 

Explain what you mean when you say "there was too much oil"

 

before i purchased the car i checked the oil and it was noticably above the normal level on the dip stick, so we changed the oil and put the right amount.

 

hello? does anyone have any other suggestions?

someone told me to get a coolant compression test, does anyone have any links showing this step-by-step?

 

well if its a blown head gasket you will constantly be putting in coolant with no signs of a leak. The coolant will just be burning through your exhaust.

You should inspect the radiator and look for rust/corrision on the bottom. A cap is a good place to start its cheap. For the radiator generally if you touch the bottom of it and it is cold after running the car its not circulating and good chance it should be changed.

You should also check the spec for what temperature the fan kicks in 2/3's might be normal.

Chances are if spec is good and your not losing coolant the radiator would be my guess.

 

I had a similar problem w/ my d15b7 del sol earlier this year. It ran fine on the highway but overheated at stoplights and drive thru's. I ended up taking it to a shop to make sure it wasn't a headgasket; then the thermostat was replaced(twice, each time the temp gauge topped out). Finally, I got the thermoswitch replaced and it solved the problem.
Even if you just replaced the thermostat, you might want to replace it again if it overheated badly (needle went all the way to the top), they tend to become unreliable once the engine overheats

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by tlmadness &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">well if its a blown head gasket you will constantly be putting in coolant with no signs of a leak. The coolant will just be burning through your exhaust.

You should inspect the radiator and look for rust/corrision on the bottom. A cap is a good place to start its cheap. For the radiator generally if you touch the bottom of it and it is cold after running the car its not circulating and good chance it should be changed.

You should also check the spec for what temperature the fan kicks in 2/3's might be normal.

Chances are if spec is good and your not losing coolant the radiator would be my guess.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I agree with everything here.
I would not be suprised if the radiator is losing effeciencey. Especially at almost 150K miles.

 

My 92Si at 148,000 miles had to have the radiator replaced because the cooling fins became unbonded from the tubes.

My nieces 93Si had it's HG go at 148,000. I found that the first couple of head botls were lose.

You can check the head bolts. remove the valve cover set your torque wrench to the OEM spec. a D15B7 is 47ftlbs

Be careful putting the valve cover back on. The little bolts don't need much torque. the rubber gasket seals not the torque of the litttle bolts. They will snap off.

 

i checked my coolant resivor today and noticed it was near empty, as for a less then a week ago i filled it to the max point.

i guess from what all you guys have said, all signs point to a bad headgasket.


When i replace my headgasket, does anyone believe if there is anything else i sould replace or look into before i work on it? thanks in advance.

 

try a different radiator

 

back again.. my d15 overheating issue is still there and i've got a few new questions.

as i was searching for answers of how to repair my overheating problem i came across answers such as changing the tstat, flushing the coolent, checking if the fan engauges at the right time, replacing radiator cap, checking for any leaks (hose or dripping), and getting a new radiator.

<U>after finding out none of these were the issue</U> i resorted myself to the dreadful fact that i have to replace my headgasket, so i purchased a felpro cylinder hg for less then 30$ and planned on doing it myself since im trying to save my *** some money. <U>i have not yet performed surgury but just wanted to make sure one last time that the headgasket is the real problem to solve.</U>

<U>here's the symptoms:</U>

noticing coolent loss

engine overheats in idle or in stop and go traffic

highest overheat point is 2/3rds on temp gauge

car cannot hit high speeds

someone told me it could be the water-pump so i wanted to see if the experts could help me out.. thanks

 

I drive a 93 DX hatch with the stock D15b7 and my HG was blown when i bought it, it had around 153,000 miles around the time of purchise and nows its doing it again, but all the symptoms youve listed were symptoms i had when mine blew a few months back, its a bitch changing, especially the bolt under the intake mani....i wish you luck on your endovor

 

yeah i've heard ideas about the difficulty of this task, thanks recycled air 90, but what did u mean when u said that your egine is "doing it again"?

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by recycled air 90 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">it had around 153,000 miles around the time of purchise and nows its doing it again, </TD></TR></TABLE>

 

my temp has been going up every now and then, due to the fact that my coolant seems to "disapper" but like tlmadness said. "its just being burned through my exhaust". but also when i drive my car for a little bit and it gets up to its normal temperature and shut it off. it tends to run a little ruff at first sometimes. does yours also do this? idk if its cause becasue of my headgasket or if its another problem.

 

my engine tends to run rough after it overheats past the middle of the temp gauge, but not when i start it. i dont think my engine has suffered much damage from the overheating issue as from seeing how it performs smoothly everytime i start it.

 

mizzoEG, slow down on the changing the headgasket. it sounds like this will be your first time doing this, a job that can easily be complicated.

there are signs when a headgasket is bad or going bad. a couple of those signs are, the exhaust, do you have smoke coming out of you exhaust? also, you said you fluched out the system and added new coolant. how did the coolant look? also when you did the oil change, was there water in the oil?

if all these are no, chances are your gasket is still good.

 

thanks for the rescue philosofy1.

when i drained my coolent it was pretty full and seemed to be fairly clean.

we checked my oil and saw no bubbles or sign of water.

and my exhaust seems perfectly normal, no white or black smoke.

the thing is is that my car still overheats and loses coolant, do u think it could be the water pump?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mizzoEG &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">thanks for the rescue philosofy1.

when i drained my coolent it was pretty full and seemed to be fairly clean.

we checked my oil and saw no bubbles or sign of water.

and my exhaust seems perfectly normal, no white or black smoke.

the thing is is that my car still overheats and loses coolant, do u think it could be the water pump?</TD></TR></TABLE>

that i know of there are 2 signs of a faulty water pump,

1. if the bearings go bad, it will make a whining noise.
2. if the pump is in worse condition it will leak from the bleeder holes, which is the most common indication of a bad pump.

you mentioned earlier that you bleed the system and bubble came out, that means the coolant is circulating and the pump is working, so lets rule the pump out.

someone mention earlier about the fan not turning hard enough, this will make sense, since enough air has to be drawn in to cool the coolant.

also, another thing was mention about the radiator cap. have you replaced that?
the cap has a spring on it that opens due to pressure, kind of like a thermostat.

remember when trouble shooting, you always want to start with the easiest ans cheapest possibilites. a headgasket would be the last thing you look at, unless there was hard evidence showing otherwise.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by philosofy1 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">1. if the bearings go bad, it will make a whining noise</TD></TR></TABLE>

i believe that my bearings are especially bad since you mentioned that because i do hear somewhat of a loud whining noise toward the inner side of my engine behind the timing belt.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mizzoEG &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

i believe that my bearings are especially bad since you mentioned that because i do hear somewhat of a loud whining noise toward the inner side of my engine behind the timing belt. </TD></TR></TABLE>

are you sure it is that? have you adjusted your belts? when was the last time the timing belt was changed? was the tensioner replaced too?