Civic - Honda :: 1998 - Coolant Level Drops In Reservoir With No Visible Sign Of Leak
Nov 1, 2012
I have a '98 Honda Civic with 230K miles on it. Last month, I suddenly saw few drops of coolant on my garage floor. I opened the hood and saw coolant splashed over the engine. I opened the coolant reservoir and it was empty. Surprisingly, the car never overheated and neither did the temp needle go up. I took the car to the mechanic (Honda shop) and they said that the radiator is leaking. I replaced the radiator and after driving for couple of weeks, the same issue re-occurred.
The coolant ran low in the reservoir and there was coolant splash over the engine. I took the car back to the shop and they said that the hose was not properly installed. They fixed it and said there is no sign of leak. I have been driving for a week now and check the coolant routinely. I have noticed that the coolant level has again dropped significantly. But, after the last fix, I do not see any visible sign of leak. There is no evidence of coolant anywhere under the hood. I am not sure if there is something else going on now. Is there something else I should check?
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My 2001 Civic sedan coolant reservoir was full after a long drive - with coolant blown out from the top. I am trying to isolate the problem.
1) I Did not notice if temperature gauge rose above the mid-point on the gauge.
2) I Discovered issue after 120+ drive on a hot day (90 degrees plus).
3) The car has almost 230,000 miles.
4) About 1,500 miles prior to this incident I removed my drive belt and replaced it with the shorter drive belt to circumvent the A/C compressor as it or the compressor clutch crapped out on me.
5) The morning after this occurred the coolant reservoir was still ful.
6) I removed the radiator cap and ran the engine for about 15-20 minutes. During this time I noticed the coolant in the radiator begin to rise into the fill neck area of the radiator - no bubbles or movement other than up into the neck area. The top hose was warm and then got hot but it seemed the bottom hose remained cold. I then throttled the gas briefly and nothing happened to include the radiator remaining off. The temperature gauge read just below the mi-point. I then throttled up to about 3,000 RPMs and coolant blew out of the radiator – about 1/2 to 1 liter of coolant came out. At that point, I shut everything down, installed the radiator cap, and cleaned up the coolant. I noticed the bottom hose appeared to now be much warmer than before the coolant blew out. The next morning the coolant reservoir was empty.
7) Today, about one week later, I applied power at both fans and both worked. I checked the relays and both registered no continuity across terminals 1 and 2 - as they should. I checked the radiator fan switch for continuity when cold and there was NO continuity across the contacts - as it should. I ran the engine for about 20 minutes with the radiator cap installed. The temperature reading rose to just below midpoint (normal) and stayed there. Radiator fan had not come on yet. I throttled up and nothing. Idled for several minutes and the temperature gauge rose to about ¾ of the way to “H.” I throttled the engine to look for smoke from the tailpipe – there was none (there is no history of any kind of smoke coming from the exhaust of my civic). I throttled up again, the temperature gauge dropped quickly below the mid-point, and the radiator fan came on for the first time. After the fan kicked off the temperature gauge again rose to ¾. I hit the gas, the temperature gauge dropped quickly to below mid-point, and then the fan came on again.
I was thinking this could be a blown head gasket but now I am questioning my initial thoughts. As of right now there is no coolant in the reservoir. One would think if the head gasket was blown that I would continue to get fluid in the reservoir even with the lost ~1 liter from my earlier test. I checked my engine oil dipstick and it looks clean - just oil. Nothing unusual visible when oil fill cap removed. Wy my coolant reservoir would have filled, blown over, not empty when cooled, only to empty out by the next morning after blowing 1/2 to 1 liter. This has been a loyal car (other than the recent loss of A/C) and I would like to see if I can get 250,000+ miles out of her with no serious maintenance.
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I've had to replace my radiator twice due to it overheating. I am noticing coolant level going down but I'm not seeing any signs of an external leak. My garage is saying it is probably internal and going into the engine. Says I probably have to replace the head gasket but that will be very expensive.
Could I get some further feedback on what it could be and what else I could do? I am also getting a check engine light on a "lean mixture" issue. Not sure if they are related.
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Just noticed my level is about an inch below the full mark, it was fine at the last oil change, no leaks that I can see....nothing on the ground.
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When it rains or snows, the floor only of my 86 Civic Si hatchback ends up soaked, sometimes standing water. There is no visible leak anywhere, no water leaking in anywhere obvious. It's just the floor, the water seems to come up from beneath the carpet. Replaced windshield, didn't work. The car is otherwise in great shape, I bought in new in 1986.
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My 1998 Honda Civic has oil in the radiator. And even stranger, the oil winds up in the overflow coolant reservoir. What is the most likely cause of this?
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My friend bartered for a '99 F250, 2wd/auto, 4 door, 7.3, 258k miles.
It had reportedly sat for one year, though the expired registration sticker and other things point to it sitting for two.
It ran low on oil, sputtered and died. Oil in the degas tank. Filled to oil to mid way on the hatch marks on the dip stick.
I drove it 25 miles to my house, and the oil level is not reading on the dip stick.
The sludgy fluid level in the degas tank is unchanged. Where is the fluid going?
I will refill the oil to see just how much it lost in the 25 miles if it important to someone, but I prefer to not waste the oil.
My first plan is to remove, inspect and replace the oil cooler o-rings. Even though the dealership charged him for this, I don't trust that they did it right. I think it is the easiest and mostly likely place for oil getting into the coolant.
It does have a really long crank before there is enough low pressure oil for it to start. At the moment I think this is a separate issue.
The dealership also charged him for a replacement injector. No idea if they replaced the cup or not.
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I've been checking my oil every morning for a few weeks now because of a worry about it burning off. I check it at the same time each morning, in pretty much the same parking spot, before driving it. Every time I take out the dipstick, wipe it off and put it back in to check. What's weird is that the level seems to fluctuate. Some days it's up over the higher dot. Some days it's down closer to the lower one (though it hasn't been under). Most days it's somewhere closer to the middle between the two. Is it common for it to fluctuate that much on a day to day basis? Is it something I should be worrying about?
In case it matters, it's a 1998 Honda Civic LX.
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I have a 99 Honda civic LX 4 cyl. There is an oily residue in the coolant reservoir an on the fill tube but when the radiator is opened the coolant is clean. The car is using oil but not running rough or hot. There is no tailpipe smoke or evidence of leakage. I am planning to do a compression check and look at the plugs.
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So my civic has been running hot this week. Had plenty of antifreeze. Oil.changes and tuneup are up to date. Started running hot monday so I went ahead and changed the radiator cap and replaced the thermostat. Still running hot at this point and im losing all my fluid from the coolant reservoir. I run my heat as a guide to when I lose all fluid. Once the heat turns cold I pullover and refill it up. Oil isnt milky and no white smoke. Could it still be a bad head gasket? Possible water pump? Plan to flush the radiator tomorrow.
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1998 Honda Civic EX. This has been a great car and have got a ton of good miles on it. The problem that I am having now is with the temperature gauge. The measurement is completely all over the place while driving. While moving around town, the gauge shows the temperature VERY hot. As soon as I reach a consistent speed, the temperature drops back to normal (moves very erratically!). The gauge seems to get even hotter while idling. Another issue (may or may not be related) is the heat coming out of the vents is only working while the car is in motion. While stopped, it pumps out cold air. The temperature immediately changes when I get going again. Both problems seem to be getting worse. The car has coolant, and all other levels of fluids are normal.
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1999 Honda CRV. Just took a 3-hour highway trip. Before trip I topped up coolant reservoir which was a little low, but radiator was full. I did notice some dried white spots on the front of valve cover and spark wires. Wasn't sure what it was, but now realize it was coolant residue. Probably only 1-2 cups were missing from the reservoir, so the leak had just started.
After 3 hour trip, checked engine compartment again. This time the reservoir was totally empty (radiator still full) and the engine was well sprayed with greenish coolant residue. The radiator was cool by the time I checked it, so the leak source wasn't obvious, but it looks to be coming from the seam where the plastic top meets the aluminum.
I will replace the radiator when I get home, but first have to drive the 3-hour return trip. Will it be OK as long as I start full of coolant and keep an eye on the temp gauge?
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A few weeks ago my car over heated and stopped. I had it towed and the mechanic changed the water pump, timing belt, gasket cover and more. About two weeks ago I noticed antifreeze on my drive way. Took it back in and the mechanic changed a clamp on the radiator. it continued to leak antifreeze. I took it to Pep Boys for a pressurized test, they couldn't find a leak, but did say my radiator hoses needed changing and they suspect the radiator cap is the problem. That was a week ago. I just got back from vacation and the reservoir keeps getting low every day, but not at the minimum line since the first mechanic filled it to the top. There is not apparent leak under neath the car. No smell when I start. Oil is not milky. Called first mechanic he said sounds like a blown head gasket....
Car is Honda Accord 1999, 138K miles.
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I have a 2005 Cadillac CTS with a 2.8 V-6. I have changed the Mobil One oil when ever the oil life has hit 50% since the car was new. I have 122,000 miles on the car now. In just the past few months I have noticed the coolant level going down at a rate of about 1/4 inch ever week with no visible signs of any leaks. I have pressured tested the radiator and the test comes back with no pressure loss. I also am losing about a 1/3 to a 1/2 quart of oil ever week with no signs of any leaks or smoke out of the exhaust pipe. I drive about 600 miles a week. My son is a tech at the local Chevrolet dealer. He has looked over the car and can find no visible cause for the fluid loss.
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I've been working with my son to get a 92 Honda civic LX running. When finished, it was running fine except for the temp gauge always showing Hot. My son replace the Thermo sensor for the gauge but over tightened an snapped it off. I had to drill out the remaining piece and clean the threads to install another sensor. When we started the car, white smoke was pouring out of the exhaust and when rev'd, coolant came out. I think I may have drilled in too far and created a leak. How can I repair this?
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We have a 2006 Civic and there appears to be a coolant leak coming from the engine block above the started motor, so it is hard to see clearly. The kids are about to leave for Atlanta (from Iowa) and I am concerned that this could be a crack in the block based on some on-line discussion. Is it risky to send the kids on a 1000 mile trip without fixing?
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I have a MK4 2.0L 8v 5 speed and recently I started making trips out to the country that last a bout 25 minutes one way and I usually drive pretty spirited the whole way.
I recently noticed that after each trip my coolant reservoir drops significantly, about 1/2" or 3/4". The oil level never changes and the engine never passes 90C on the gauge.
The outside temperature is about -10C most of the time and I always have it at operating temps before I really get into it.
I can't decide if this is normal because the engine isn't overheating (as far as the gauge says) or a problem because it's using a lot of coolant. I've never been to a track with this or any other car so I'm not sure about the effects from hard driving.
The engine revs to 6.2k RPM and I never go over 5k.
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I started loosing a bunch of coolant on my tdi which is still under 36k and there is no visible leaks anywhere
Took the car to the dealer last night to get it checked out and they were ready to send me back home telling me there is no issue since they don't see any leaks under the car
Either way after telling them that I have already gone through 2 gallons of coolant they decided to top off the coolant and ask me to drive 200 miles.
I drove 156 miles last night since I need to get this issue resolved and now the coolant tank is empty again... sitting at the dealer while I'm typing this.
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2006 with 58000 miles. Never noted overheat or leak on garage floor. Fluid level low in coolant reservoir. Dealer wants to replace water pump.
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I have a 2006 Jeep Liberty (2WD), 149k miles, that has been using a lot of antifreeze lately. I am using a full 50/50 gallon mix about once a week. I do not have any visible leaks. My heater no longer works and I was not sure if that may be a cause. The check engine light is on, but has been since I purchased the vehicle in 2012. I thought it may be a gasket, but do not see any white smoke from the exhaust. I am not hearing any strange sounds, so I am perplexed.
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My 1999 mercury mountaineer 4.0 smells like coolant there r no visible leaks overflow is at the normal the temp gauge didn't go high and the cap is cold IM kinda confused...........
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