Hi guys. I would appreciate any help you can give me with this problem. I have a 1996 Honda Accord EX 6 Cylinder. Recently after driving a distance of about 20 miles, the coolant in the overflow tank would boil over and spill onto the ground. The temperature gauge would read in between cool and the center line.

I went to have a pressure check and the mechanic said that I had a cracked radiator. I wanted to try and save some money so I bought some radiator sealant and put it in. That seemed to have made it worse with the temperature gauge rising more quickly after starting the car and going almost to the red line. Plus the coolant boiled out more quickly.

Well the next morning things seemed to have returned to normal but after taking a 15 minute drive to check things out, coolant was boiling again. Well I did some research and saw that changing the radiator cap might help so I did that and lo and behold the boiling stopped. The overflow tank feels cool to the touch after driving I can't spot any leaks anywhere but the temp gauge is still going up though way above center line.

It decreases when I speed up but when I slow down it steadily moves upwards. I already bought a new radiator but before I install it I would like to know if this could possibly just be the thermostat. Thanks for any help you guys can give me.

 

A thermostat that does not open all the way could cause this....however it the rad was leaking...putting that "stuff" in there is only buying some time....or causing more issues in the future.....

Bottom line, if the rad is bad, replace it along with the other stuff - new cap (already did) and t-stat/gasket......

Do the cooling fans work? One test, assume a working ac system. With the ac on and car on BOTH fans should run....do they?

 

Thank you for the quick reply. Yes both fans do work. I will go ahead and replace the radiator and thermostat tomorrow and will update. Thank you again.

 

Update, replaced radiator and overheating persisted. Replaced thermostat added coolant and everything seems to be fine. The temp gauge is a little closer to the middle line than usual but it stays steady there after a few across town trips. Thanks

 

Cool.....glad you are back on the road