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Car: 2004 honda civic Lx coupe , 1.7L engine
i had a cracked radiator about a year ago and had it replaced it worked good for about a week then started to act strange again ie over heating slightly. Fast forward to today the car was un-drivable because it was over heating at low speeds and while stopped very quickly. That’s when I met Mr. EricTheCarGuy on YouTube and watched all relating video’s to my problem even some not related to my problem. So what have i done so far, OEM 170F thermostat has been installed and radiator coolant filled up then following Eric’s video on how to bleed air from the cooling system I proceeded to do that and just for good measures replaced the radiator cap with OEM 1.1 cap…. Car ran good for about 2 weeks heat worked , air got colder and engine temp was normal then over heated again I could not afford a pressure tester or even the “loaner parts ” from Advanced Auto and i can also not find the thing you use to see if there is exhaust gasses in your radiator anywhere only online ( at least in my local area ). Water pump appears to be good from when i was bleed the cooling system i saw good flow in the radiator but the timing belt is far over due ( wanted to eliminate small cheap problems first ), so if you can help me in any way with the information i provided it will be greatly appreciated. FYI this is my primary vehicle so it is important i get it fixed and yes all things above besides replacing the radiator were done by me.
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yes it was empty and I had to put more coolant in it, and yes it WAS full when i did the bleeding the first time and the reservoir/overflow went up when i was bleeding it the first time , it was actually completely full and now it’s half full but the radiator seem completely empty by how much i had to put in it. So yes also losing coolant ,but no visible leaks can be seen that and there is still sprayed coolant on the front of the engine from when the old radiator broke. ( Added ) – radiator was OEM replacement.
ok so you’re losing coolant. What does the engine oil look like? Does it look like normal oil or is it milky?
[quote=”AaronE” post=101864]ok so you’re losing coolant. What does the engine oil look like? Does it look like normal oil or is it milky?[/quote]
i can check but would it show if I only had my oil changed 3 weeks ago?[quote=”Relentless” post=101854]yes it was empty and I had to put more coolant in it, and yes it WAS full when i did the bleeding the first time and the reservoir/overflow went up when i was bleeding it the first time , it was actually completely full and now it’s half full but the radiator seem completely empty by how much i had to put in it. So yes also losing coolant ,but no visible leaks can be seen that and there is still sprayed coolant on the front of the engine from when the old radiator broke. ( Added ) – radiator was OEM replacement.[/quote]
Time to pressure test the cooling system.
http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/what-to-do-when-your-engine-overheats
[quote=”college man” post=101907][quote=”Relentless” post=101854]yes it was empty and I had to put more coolant in it, and yes it WAS full when i did the bleeding the first time and the reservoir/overflow went up when i was bleeding it the first time , it was actually completely full and now it’s half full but the radiator seem completely empty by how much i had to put in it. So yes also losing coolant ,but no visible leaks can be seen that and there is still sprayed coolant on the front of the engine from when the old radiator broke. ( Added ) – radiator was OEM replacement.[/quote]
Time to pressure test the cooling system.
http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/what-to-do-when-your-engine-overheats%5B/quote%5D
as said above I do not have the money to afford a pressure tester as said in the original post.
I on a couple of occasions filled the system put the radiator cap on and whild the car is cold squeezed the upper hose to put some pressure in system and found once the radiator tank was cracked and the other was where the rad. meets the tanks. it costs nothing to try. do remember the system needs to be full. good luck.
I find a lot of leaks by starting a cold engine and running it for a few minutes until it’s built some pressure. (Squeeze the rad hose) Don’t run it long enough for it to get hot however. Have a good look around to see if anything is leaking.
Many times when components expand from heat they stop leaking.
The problem is Relentless that when the engine overheats, such as when the original radiator was faulty and losing coolant, you risk damage from the overheating condition such as cracking the cylinder head or blowing a head gasket. (It is also possible to crack an engine block internally).
It seems to me that if you are now losing as much coolant as you have described (which is a lot) with the new OE radiator fitted, but there are no external leaks, then you have an internal leak. This can mean either a failed head gasket or cracked cylinder head or both. Check your coolant for any presence of oil in the cooling system. The oily muck will often attach itself to the bottom of radiator caps and around filler necks. Also check the oil dipstick for any signs of coolant in the oil. If the oil looks slightly milky (or a bit yellow) coolant has mixed with the oil. If unsure of what it looks like there are plenty of pictures online. If you have either condition ( I sure hope you do not) then the cylinder head has to come off the engine.
If you are getting a continuous flow of whitish/grey smoke from the exhaust at all times then this is an indication of coolant leaking into the combustion chamber and being “burnt”. This can happen if the head gasket has failed or if if there is a crack in the cylinder head around a coolant jacket that allows coolant to enter the combustion chamber.
Others may disagree but this is my take on it based on what you have described here. People sometimes tend to underestimate the expensive damage they can do to their engines when running them overheated.
Having said all that you might find the following of interest in relation to cracked Civic engine blocks in cars later than yours.
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2014/03/free-engine-replacement-for-2006-2009-honda-civics/index.htmIf you don’t have any of the issues described above (I hope not) then you will need to do a more careful check for external leaks such as checking for cracks in the coolant overflow reservoir unit.
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