ok, i got the 1.5 dx civic in october with 230k. at that time i put water pump, belt, and a full width rad in it.
now it has about 250k on it, and 2 weeks ago it got hot and was bubbling fluid out of the over flow tank. i let it cool down and put about a gal total of 50/50 in. it was fine until yesterday when it did it again. i havent messed with it, and ill prob put a thermostat in it bc what else could it be?
the coolant is clean and so is the oil
i dont think its leaking any coolant, as it did not leak anywhere when i filled it up last time and the garage floor has been dry…
first things first…check out your lower radiator hose and make sure the clamp is there and not rusted off or not securing the hose to the radiator. Very common to rust out and allow leaks once the car has warmed and cooling system has pressurized.
next thing I’d try is…let the car run for 10-15 mins, and see if your bottom rad hose is even getting hot and he fan then kicks on. If this isn’t happening, you may have a faulty fan switch, or your thermostat is stuck closed and you need a new one. I personally run the fail-safe thermostat. when it fails, it pops in the open position and you can still get where you need to be without fixing the problem right then and there.
third…I know you said you have no coolant mixing with your oil or vice versa…but take off your oil cap and look under it to see if there is a white-like film/sludge. If you do there is a chance you have a slight leak in your head gasket causing the random overheating…VERY VERY common in the 01+ civics and for some reason the local honda dealers seem to have no clue about it and tell you all sorts of bs to get you to spend money.
sounds like your shit is shot especially if u had to add a whole gallon of coolant. that normally means u were lackin on your system. you have prolly been driving around with a big ass air pocket in your cooling system and just now checked it… hit up jdmsir he prolly has a spare engine kicking around
well, the head gasket has DEFINITELY replaced before i got it, they dont come with MLS head gaskets from the factory. i bet it leaks coolant into the cyls, and burns it off. does your exhaust smell sweet?
yea your right a HG for someone that has done a few it can be done sub 2 hours but for someone that has never done it you looking at 6 hours or so and at least a 30 pack… you fig the HG should only cost about 30 bucks or so …
Someone needs to get punched in the head…My ego can’t be bruised ;). All my work backs itself up and I can chaulk up 10x more successful jobs than danny on a variety of cars. (but he was really good with hondas, and he always was eager to do the jobs I didn’t want to do) we already miss him, he was good peoples. Thanks, now I’m crying.
if your doing the headgasket on a civic like that, the head is also most likely warped enough to pop it again in short order. Id have the head at least checked over and maybe milled down, or get a known good one. I would also change the stat anyway, but it does sound like a headgasket
there were little white crystals in 3 of the cylinders in the head, the domed part/compression chamber, mainly surrounding the valves. what is this from? the burning of the coolant?
the new hg is the composite type, the old one is multi layered steel. is it ok to interchange. it appears to be the same shape. but im not opening the package to find out, bc its not returnable once opened. is it ok to use the new one?
and the intake runners are dirty as hell. is it worth cleaning this? maybe with brake/carb cleaner as far as i can reach then sea foam when i get it back together?
dftsilvia is on the money…but I highly suggest using a stock honda headgasket (they are awesome, and I believe like 30-40 bucks for d-series motors) You may also want to replace the head bolts if yours have stretched. Oem honda will be fine if you’re not boosting it. If you plan on boosting it, get the ARP head studs so you aren’t redoing the job when boost stretches your stock ones.
no boosting for this civic, he likes reliability and 30mpgs. where can i find the length the rods are supposed to be? i really dont want to buy bolts, but i can still prob get honda parts at cost, i just gotta go get them in greece. i wonder how much they are.
and i have a felpro gasket, is that good enough, or should i get an oem one?
oem part numbers for the gasket and rods? (if i need those parts, bc id be having an old co-worker get them and part #s will be less of a hassle for him)
thanks everyone for everything
and i think im at 2 hours to get the head off. that included dicking around with getting the intake and exhaust mani to stay out of the way.
anyone have a spark plug wire for #3 cyl? it was stuck on the spark plug and i ruined it taking it out, i just got new ones in october and dont feel like buying a whole new set, but will prob have to
if you can get the honda shit at cost, I’d go with all honda stuff especially over the felpro. I’m not saying felpro is bad, but the oem honda shit is really good. As for the bolts, the part that gets strecthed is the threads, it’s odd to explain till you see one that’s stretched. the bolts are prolly 4-8 bucks a piece.
Thanks, now I’m crying.