Hey guys, I have an 01 integra gsr and recently I have been having issues with my car running hot on real hot days(95+). It never happens in the morning but on the way home I go from 20 miles of open highway( with good clearance for air to pass through radiator, to 10 miles of heavy highway( around 20-40 mph, close proximity to other cars, and then about 15 miles of lights and heavy traffic. My temp gauge is fine on open highway and on long stretch of lights but heavy highway the temp will rise maybe 1 or 2 times during a 5 mile stretch. Once it gets up past halfway I turn on the heat full blast and it drops down to normal. So I flushed and back flushed my coolant system and took the thermostat out but it didnt help any. Im going to buy a new tstat tomorrow and install but it tells me the problem lies elsewhere. I also think that a clogged radiator, failing water pump or failing head gasket would cause it to run hot during stop and go when I hit a bunch of stop lights o now im pretty stumped. I only can think maybe ect and its not causing fan to kick on while moving but I didn't think that the fan was supposed to come on anyways @ 30 or 40 mph's. Also a side note, I dont have a/c( for other reasons) and it is miserable!!

 

Take a look at the condition of your radiator. Also...have you ever used tap water in your coolant?

 

Only time ive used tap water was to flush the system a couple days ago, but I drained it completely. It seemed the radiator flowed fine while doing so. Also, the fins look good and I replaced the cap last summer. I had an issue last summer too, but it turned out my fan wasnt working so I got one out of a junk yard.

 

use water wetter and run no tstat cheap fix if it's another issue.

 

Well as of right now the thermostat is out but it didnt help any

 

In a couple weeks im pulling my motor and rebuiling. So until then I am going to run without my tstat....do you still burp the coolant system using pretty much same method? Normailly I let it run with the radiator cap off until tstat opens and then shut down and top coolant off. Should I just let it run until it reaches around operating temps and do the same?

 

So the water wetter and topping off coolant seemed to help but its still running hot on really hot days when pushing it hard. If I just sit back and cruise it does fine but if I hit vtec and get on it it starts to creep up past half way. Now if I just fall back it slowly drops down and if I turn on the heat then it shoots down to normal quick. Idk im getting kind of frustrated. Ill be doing water pump in a couple weeks I just hope it holds out if that is the problem.

 

hmmm after you let the therm open do you let the engine run for awhile and actually let it burp ? I did it for my car and it took like 10-15 min til bubbles came out and then for them to stop while the engine is running. I got this awesome funnel that attaches to the radiator and helps with burping the car really well.

 

well sounds like a flow issue in the cooling system if you removed the Tstat and that didn't solve your hi temp there no reason in installing a new one. your radiator may not be flowing sufficiently.
i would replace the radiator and the should solve your problem.

 

Im having the same issue while letting the car idle the temp will start to rise as it does i bypass the fan switch turning it on and the temp drops so this tells me the fan switch i just recently bought from ebay sucks and failed so I'm going with a mishimoto thermo and also fan switch and radiator cause I'm also using a cheap ebay radiator.

 

Im going to try a fan switch too. Let me know if it fixes your issue

 

Ow that is the issue!, its not turning the fans on during idle, i bought a new fan switch from ebay but its cheap and already failed after like 2 weeks so I'm getting a mishimoto fan switch along with there thermostat and radiator cause the ebay radiator i got is crappy as well. I bought for a temp replacement but now I'm ready to get a quality radiator so mishimoto is the one ill get, iv had a mishimoto radiator before but i forgot it had a lifetime warranty so when i totaled my car i scraped the radiator lol.

you can test it like i did drive it around and then let it idle and watch to see if the fans turn on if they don't and it starts to over heat, by pass the fan switch by using a paper clip in the plug on the harness and the fans should turn on then watch as the temps drop, thats how you will know the fan switch aint working.

 

I have an 02 TL with 280k miles on it. Replaced tranny three times once on warranty.

Last tranny they put an atf radiator cooler in front of the original radiator.

Problem is now I live in tx and it's much hotter than Idaho. At stops or especially if I turn ac on at all the heat climbes very quickly and have to em either get air through it by driving fast or crank the heat.

This is what I have done. Replaced both fans, thermostat, radiator cap, burped radiator and still having problems.

Some Honda guys that I have looking at it want to take the atf aftermarket cooler out and make it stock again. That scares me though thinking once they do that tranny will heat up and go to pieces. I need some advice.

 

Relocate the tranny oil cooler. 94

 

Where do I relocate it at. Right now it sits right behind the bumper and in front of the radiator.

 

Anyplace that is not directly in front of the condenser 94

 

So I have taken it to a couple shops. They don't think it's a head gasket. A Napa care said it needs a new cable for the radiator fan(connection is a little busted but it still has a good connection) and the radiator fan comes on when it's supposed to.

Wondering if it could be a bad radiator.

 

Don't take the thermostat out. that defeats the purpose of a coolant system. replace the thermostat and pressure test the systems.

 

I'm having this same problem on my 98 ITR.

I have replaced the radiator(Skunk2), both slim fans(Mishimoto) and they ARE coming on. Thermostat(Honda), Every coolant hose on the engine(Honda). I'm down to it either being a Headgasket(mechanic says no, other track guy says yes because it will really get hot on track, but tends to not do it on the street), or a water pump(which I never replaced when I put the JDM ITR motor in to replace my OG C5 that bearings went out on).

Help! Has anyone actually had a honda water pump fail? What does it do?

 

If rad fan and thermostat are working then there may be a problem with the water pump. 94

 

I had this same exact issue a couple years ago and it ended up being my radiator was junk. It seemed to flow ok as well but once I replaced it, the problem went away. If your rebuilding your motor then you definitely want your coolant system to be at optimal performance.