Hey all, I am new to this forum but I am more around in the s2ki forum. I recently purchased a 1991 honda accord and it needs a little fix. I plan on making this car back into a reliable dd to stack the miles onto this car rather than on my s2k. i have minor mechanical experience so i plan on doing most of the work myself if i can just figure out what the issues are. i am in san diego (near la jolla) and if anyone is willing to reach out to help examine the car and i'd be more than willing to treat you out for dinner or pay a bit of a fee


hahah but aside from that i'll list what i am planning on doing and if anyone could refer me to places where i could get these parts for cheap.

so first things first, this car had an overheating problem... i tried checking the fuses and the relay (i think that is what i was checking in the fuse box ) seemed to be good for the cooling fan. i replaced the radiator cap because it was not holding up the full psi when i tested it at autozone. i'm afraid that the hose might be leaking for the coolant fluid as well... that i have yet to examine in detail. the cap didn't really fix the problem. car overheats in traffic, but not while driving (drove it about 25 miles to home ) so i'm assuming it's the fan... the fan by the passenger side seem to be fully functional, turns on/off and is on after i turn the car off. on the other hand i dont see the driver's side fan go on... when i checked after driving for couple minutes it wasn't spinning so i was assuming that was malfunctioning. i was wondering how i could check if it's the fuse problem or if it's just a bad fan. hopefully it isn't the engine considering the car has about 200xxx miles but i plan on reaching 300xxx one day with this vehicle
*****PS i believe all the fuses were goood.... i tried checking the fuse right by the fan on the driver's side and the multimeter didn't respond. i do not have the audible responsive multimeter but just a ghetto 5 dollar one from hf :3. if anyone can inform me which connection to check. let me know...


so onto issue #2. while i was checking the radiator cap pressure at autozone, the worker who was more than willing to check out the car for a few sec noticed the leak by the distributor and told me to go pick up a new o-ring for it. i checked up on some diy on some hondas and seem to be an easy 20~30 minute job. if anyone could tell me what torque i should be putting those 3 bolts by the distributor that'd be awesome. if it doesn't matter just let me know . that was one leak, sooooooo

problem #3 is i noticed another leak that seemed to have been going on which is by the drivers side... i'll have some pictures to show... but in couple days due to thanksgiving, i will be going home. so the leak seemed to be right by the side of the engine and close to the alternator... i was looking up some situations and it seemed to be the camshaft seal??? .... this car has been in a front collision so it has some flaws but nothing too major. hoping it is not the camshaft seal for it seems like a time-consuming job.

let me know what you guys think!

 

i plan on picking up the o-ring from the dealership and any other seals to be oem... i picked up prestone coolant to fill up in case it runs low. coolant seem to be leaking or be in heavy use due to the overheat at times. and if it is the fan or radiator issue, i plan on dropping by junkyards to pick them out


after i fix the overheating problems slash the leaks, i plan on doing the major maintenance, oil change, valve adjustments, spark plugs, all the fluids all around except the brakes cuz they seem to be good enough 8)

 

i'd say if your car has 2 fans it must have or have had a/c? i have a 91 accord, been driving it for 11 years and it has 525000 on it still goin strong so 300 + shouldn't be an issue with proper maintenance. as for the over heating, my car only came with 1 fan and it never heats up past half way, guessing that your coolant is full i'd have to say that either your thermostat is sticking or your water pump has gone bad. make sure you have no kinked or collapsed hoses.

 

hmm... will post pictures soon... it has 2 fans and yes it does have ac... and i guess that 2nd fan must be responsible for ac??? hoping it's not the head gasket. haven't had a case where it's like fuming out white smoke from the exhaust so i'm hoping it's hoses or the water pump... any idea how much they cost :3???

and thanks for responding ryan!

 

Water pump, gasket, timing belt, cam seal and tensioner should be right around 150-175, and if your doing the pump, do the timing belt to, and since you have it that tore down do the cam shaft seal while your at it, last time I did all that it only took me 2 1/2 hours, but I've done many before, so expect it to take close to 4 hours, and the dizzy torque is snug it up, not to tight, but tight enough you can't move the dizzy, there is also a hose on the back side of the motor near the thermostat, it's a u shaped hose, they are know to rub the rear mount and cause a hole, when your car is lower on coolant do you get the idle going up and down? If so there is still air traped in the system

 

Both fans should come on when the fans turn on. The only time only the passenger side fan comes on is when the key is off and the engine is almost the point of overheating or when it's really hot outside. eg >100 degrees.

You should test the drivers side fan by buying a set of test leads and applying direct power power to the fan motor by disconnecting it from the connector after tracing from the fan motor. If the fan comes on then the fan is good and the problem is elsewhere.

 

As Holmes said, I'd jump power and ground to the fan and see if it is good. If is spins you will need to do more testing

https://honda-tech.com/forums/showth...ht=cooling+fan

In this, around post 5 there is a wire diagram. Then in post 8 there is a "how these things work" write up.

The Dist mounting bolts are only like 13 ft lbs....be sure to mark the dist and flange so when you install you can get it lined back up so the timing isn't off....I'd check it after but that is me, just be sure the service connector is jumped when you check the timing with the light.

 

update....


seems to be burning coolant and today i saw some smoke coming from the exhaust (((((((((((((

bummer... dunno what to do from here... know any links to diy on head gasket replacements?? and price on parts if anyone knows ?

i doubt it is any other issue than this haha... what a bust on my part.

 

* Great! 13 FT Lbs torque for the Distributor Bolt, Mark the flange, jumper service connector for checking the timing.
* Can you show me how to unplug the bottom electrical connector of the Distributor, I can unplug the top one, the bottom one is so stiff?

 

A light spray of lube might help - just be sure to wipe/clean as much of it as you can before install.

Sometimes I have to remove the connector from the "bracket" - there is a locking tab holding it on. This will allow for more "room" to pull/tug the connectors apart, of couse be sure to press/lift (can't remember right now) on the lock tab.

 

* Thanks! Got it removed as your tips, the distributor O-Ring was replaced, want to replace the internal seal, after removed the Distributor cover and Rotor, saw a couple of strip Phillip screw heads at the bottom half of the Distributor, tried a few screw drivers could not get it out, internal view revealed no oil strain so did not replaced the internal seal yet, replaced the Distributor rubber seal and Rotor and re-installed the distributor. Well, may be next time get better tool, I'll get out the strip screws and replace the internal seal.