Hi all! This is my first post I came over from the domestic side and finally bought an import. I am having trouble already though and I couldn't find a forum specific to my car but I'm in need of help so I picked this. What I currently have is a 1995 acura integra ls but I've noticed while driving that for the first 60 miles or so my coolant heat level will stay below the half mark but sooner or later it will start creeping up slowly until it is almost all the way over to the OMG its on fire hott part of the guage. The first time it did this to me it popped the cap on the overflow tank cracking it and so I had to raid the junkyard couldn't find an integra with one so I found by luck a 92 accord which seemed to be the same cap and put that on. In the midst of emptying the overflow tank I noticed that someone seems to have dumped stop leak radiator crap into the radiator.
Now my concern is that eventually the car will heat up and I don't want to crack the b lock but it takes a good amount of driving over 60 milesat highway speeds to achieve this. My fans are blowing. Do you all suggest I just get a new radiator? If so is there a vehicle I can scour at the junkyard that I can take the radiator from and put it in snce we have a lack of good junkyards in south carolina?
Could it be just the temp sensor is going out of wack? or maybe the coolant thermostat is clogged up and not opening enough?
I flushed it but it still seems to do it once I slow down to driving around town :/
Please help or suggestions!

 

how confident are you in your thermostat? its a lot cheaper than a radiator and could be contributing to your overheating problem.

and your saying that it overheats ONLY during highway driving for extended periods?

 

Start by check-in coolant lvl and condition of the coolant. Thermostat as stated above is quick and easy. How do the radiator fins look are they corroded?

 

or flushing the coolant out completely to get all the crap out then put brand new coolant...

 

i completely flushed the radiator thru and thru including the block and filled it up with new coolant. It over heats after a while of driving around. For example I noticed it when I drove about 30 miles away from town on the way there it was fine. but as soon as I slowed down and got to my destination to park it quickly shot past the half mark and was at about the 2/3 mark. I turned off the vehicle went inside for 30 mins or so restarted the vehicle and went on my way back home noting that the temp guage was only a quarter below the half way mark on the guage stayed that way till i got home and as i was pulling into the park quickly shot up again past the half way mark to 2/3s of a way up on the gauge.

the little driving that i do around this town apparently doesnt last long enough to make it noticable over heat since i just drive it to work and back which constitutes about 10 miles from one point to the other

 

are you a normal driver or do you like to drive with spirit? i would say thermostat if your radiator grates dont look to bad like theasian said.

try the thermostat and re-check. its a really easy job. 20 minutes maybe. just make sure you get another thermostat gasket and maybe another bottle of coolant. have you changed a thermostat before?

 

im a granny driver with this car need it to save gas. ive never changed the thermostat before

 

Stop Leak = junk, hopefully you got it all out when you flushed the system.

Did you properly "bleed" the system after you refilled it, quick changes in temp. gauge readings indicate air in the system.

I would pull the thermostat and replace it, they are cheep enough, I would also replace the rad cap.

Have you checked to see if rad fan is turning on, start engine when temp. gauge gets close to 1/2 way point, [about 190 degrees F, normal engine temp.] the rad fan should turn on, make sure this is happening, the rad fan is not needed and will not turn on at highway speeds, only in stop and go city driving and if sitting and idling. 94

 

yea my fans have been running never had a problem with them that i could see. but they are on everytime ive checked.

 

could try pressurizing the system. see if it holds. a system that doesn't hold pressure will also overheat. are you losing any coolant at all?
i'd also try a new oem t-stat just to rule it out, if that isn't the problem
also, as mentioned, be sure that you've bled the system appropriately

 

x3
change t stat and gasket
really good bleed
change/check rad cap
check for fans

very inexpensive and all could potentially solve your problem. do you have a service manual, or at least the pdf version? its really easy...

 

no dont have a service manual but as long as its no harder then breaking down a engine all the way down to the short block i can do it

 

any update?