I Have a 2003 Honda Civic EX that is running rough and the windows stopped working and the temp gauge doesn't rise. Would this be do to a bad/failing alternator or something else?
View 7 RepliesWhy, after so many repairs and $$$$ with a AAA Certified Repair shop, the temp gauge that sooner or later shows the needle HOT? Everything accounted for - thermostat 5x, radiator 3x, computer, maintenance, etc etc etc. " It's fixed !!" and then it's starts all over again. It's got 186,000 on it, couple of minor wrecks, all maintenance kept up, still driving it but the needle goes back up again and again. Funny thing, water levels remain the same, no smoke, no red engine light, slight smell of a hot engine but nothing else so far. Still, that needle!! This has been going on a couple of years. Want to figure it out before I get rid of the car. 2003 Civic Coupe DX ....
View 3 Repliesi have a 2002 Honda Civic EX, 155,000 miles. I've been having this problem for quite some time and the mechanic has not been able to figure out what the problem is. He has changed the thermostat, pressure tested the coolant (or something along those lines) but the problem persists. The mechanic also pressure tested the radiator system and said there was no leak. He also told me the tank was overfilled with water, apparently I didn't need to be waiting for the car to cool down so I could add more water, so I've stopped doing that. I have NOT had the scheduled 150,000 maintenance done yet. The mechanic said it wasn't 'urgent' and if I wanted to wait I could. I was hoping to spend the money repairing this problem before doing that, which he said sounded OK to him. The timing belt was replaced in 2007 right before I moved across the country.
I'll try to be succinct, but the explanation is long. Overall: when driving the car to run errands around town the temp gauge used to quickly go all the way to HOT & the A/C starts blowing hot/humid air. When this happened I was pulling over, turning off A/C & radio & putting the car in neutral until the gauge goes back down, used to take only a few minutes but if driving in town (stop lights/traffic) i have to keep doing this b/c the needle returns to the top quickly. I also started trying putting the car in neutral while stopped at lights or in traffic & if i pushed on the gas pedal & kept the engine at 3K RPM the needle would go back down & A/C would start blowing cold when I started driving again.
The other part of this is if i change the A/C vent diverter from all vents blowing at upper body to vents blowing at face & feet or all vents blowing at feet the green 'recycled air' light goes out & the air starts blowing hot & humid, this persists even if I push the 'recycle' air button again.
Until yesterday this temp gauge & A/C issue has not been nearly as much of a problem when driving on the highway at a consistent speed, in other words when the car doesn't have to idle the problem didn't occur very often, the temp gauge may have moved towards 'HOT' but never got all the way up there. Until yesterday. I had to drive thru town with quite a bit of construction & resulting traffic as well as a few stop lights which sent the gauge go to HOT quickly. When I got on the highway I was expecting the gauge to go back down & the A/C to start blowing cold air.... alas, it did not. the gauge stayed very near HOT the whole time & the A/C never blew cold air. It was 106*F yesterday?
And yet another part of this problem, which the mechanics have told me is NOT related to this problem: in the winter time the heater took an extraordinarily long time to heat up and then would only blow warm air while the car was moving at a pretty high speed, under around 30 MPH and there was no heat, and definitely no heat when idling. I do not remember the temp gauge hanging out at HOT all the time but I do think it would go higher than the middle range.
The car has yet to actually overheat. Apparently the mechanic can't diagnose/repair the problem until the engine DOES overheat, at least this is what he has told me. I'm not feeling very confident in this mechanic, as clearly the problem is getting worse over time. And I don't believe it is OK to continue driving a car when the temp gauge is at HOT all the time, that doesn't seem smart at all. Sadly, the mechanic that used to work on my car & was able to diagnose & repair problems quickly & competently has gone to work somewhere else & is no longer working on cars. So, I have decided I cannot continue to use the current mechanic and am now faced with having to take it to the dealership, something I REALLY hate to do. I just don't know of any other reputable Honda repair folks in the area & am tired of being w/o my car for days at a time and still have to deal with the problem.
This weekend I was one a trip in my '98 Civic, and I noticed some movement in my temperature gauge. It didn't really overheat; the needle never got near the red, but it did go a little higher than usual.
Normally, once the engine heats up, the needle on the temperature gauge doesn't move, not even a little. It sits right under the squiggly lines on the temperature gauge icon. However, on Friday, when I got off the highway, the needle rose into the upper part of the icon, to the part with the thermometer.
As soon as the car started moving, the needle on the temperature gauge went back to its normal spot, so I assumed it was a problem with the radiator fan and I kept on driving, prepared to turn on the heat if the needle on the temperature gauge started going up.
Saturday morning I took the car to a local shop in Jacksonville, and it turns out the engine needed a new fan and a new thermostat.
The first lesson that comes to mind is that keeping an eye on my temp gauge might have saved me an engine. It certainly saved me a head gasket. Since a head gasket or new engine would have been worth more than the car, catching this before it became a problem saved me from having to buy another car.
The next lesson is that my Civic had two things wrong with the cooling system, and yet it barely showed any symptoms. The air conditioner doesn't work I guess since a working A/C would probably have made it overheat. In any case, I've probably been driving without a working radiator fan for some time.
The final lesson is that if I had tried to diagnose this myself, I'd probably be driving around with a new radiator fan and a bad thermostat. I paid about $435 for a new fan, thermostat, and fresh coolant (I declined the cooling system flush) and it was worth every penny.
Well, I'm still driving the same old 1998 Honda Civic DX two-door coupe, and I've got a problem with overheating. The temperature gauge needle doesn't get quite to the red, but it's popping up higher than usual, and I'm concerned to see it getting anywhere near the red. It usually spikes when I get off the highway and stop at a light, but it also does it occasionally in a drive thru, and recently, I discovered that when I give it a little gas in neutral, it brings the temperature gauge needle down to normal.
Here is the history of recent repairs and troubleshooting:
-About 3-4 years ago, I had a leaky radiator replaced, so the one that is in there isn't very old.
-Last year I had a mechanic replace the thermostat, the radiator fan, and the radiator cap when I started having this problem.
-A few months ago, I had the timing belt serviced (the entire kit, not just the belt), but since the water pump looked fine and the car has so much mileage (275,000 miles), I opted not to replace the water pump. (I regret that now. I usually replace the water pump with every other timing belt, but I've learned my lesson.)-I've been to several shops to get a diagnosis, but they have a hard time getting it to overheat at all, so they can't diagnose it.
One guy suggested the water pump might be worn out (inside, without leaking outside). Another guy suggested that "if it was the water pump, you would know it's the water pump." Each mechanic has done a pressure test on the cooling system and a flow test on the radiator, and they all say they are fine. One mechanic theorized that I might have a very small head gasket leak, but nobody else thinks that is the case and there is no sign of coolant and oil mixing. Besides, the temperature gauge has never been in the red.
-One mechanic who tried to diagnose the problem recommended replacing the plugs, plug wires, rotor, and distributor cap. After doing that, it is running better than it was, but that didn't resolve the overheating problem. He also retarded the spark timing, but it is self-adjusting, so it re-advances itself after a couple days of driving. I can hear what sounds like minor knocking, but it's always made that noise since it was new.
-Everyone who has tried to diagnose the problem says the thermostat is opening and closing as it should, and the radiator fan comes on and shuts off when it should.
I'm done getting second and third opinions, and I'm ready to start throwing parts at it. Do you think I should start with the water pump? What are your thoughts? Don't tell me to replace the car. I just bought a new motorcycle.
I drive a 2002 Honda Civic EX with about 105,000 glorious miles on it. I decided to hit the road and made a weekend road trip to pick up a stranded family member. I live in Ohio and drove Lou Dobbs, my car, to Florida. It was about 950 miles one way. All was well until I got to Florida. I hit my first traffic jam and was sitting with the windows down enjoying the Florida air. Suddenly, the temperature gauge started to climb! It got pretty close to the red but traffic began to flow at that point. As soon as I reached 40-50MPH the temp began to fall again. I picked up my cargo and headed back. Each time I would hit traffic or a red light the temp would climb without hesitation. This is without the A/C running. After I got back to Ohio, i asked a friend who knows about cars. Over the phone, he had me remove the radiator cap and reservoir cap to take a look at the fluid levels. After this though, the car has never overheated! I don't understand. Can air get into the system and I let it out by removing the caps? I can sit in rush hour traffic for a half an hour with the AC running and the needle stays right in the middle. Should I still take it in to be looked at?
View 2 RepliesI have a 2008 Honda Civic with 65K miles. It's started idling rough and vibrating just on startup when it's been sitting overnight. This continues until I start driving up the road at which time it stops. I ran a fuel cleaner through it and changed the air filter, which was slightly dirty but not too bad. No effect. Then I took it to my Honda mechanic and he said there was nothing wrong with it.
View 3 RepliesI purchase my 05 GX470 last April,
Had the timing belt and water pump replaced as part of the deal. Lately in the cooler temperatures around the freezing point I've noticed that the temp gauge does not start to rise until I've driven about five minutes, longer if I go thru a drive thru and the truck is idling in the line up and the heater fan does not come on until I've driven about 10 minutes. The temp gauge takes about 15 -20 minutes of driving till it hits normal or half way on the scale. This seems longer than what I consider normal, at least for the heat to come on.
I loved my Honda Accord, leased for 3 years......we decided to downsize, reduce the payment, so this 3 years we got a Honda Civic. I've had some problems, but one that the dealership said was not a problem, as such, but more a feature of the Civic, is the remote opening of the trunk. When you hit the remote, the trunk opens, but it doesn't rise at all, the Accord surely did. When it opens that way, you have packages in your arms, and you can fit your elbow into the space and of course have the trunk go fully open.....the way I have it now, is that it's virtually closed, but it is unlocked. But we still have to put our packages down to get the trunk open, truly open. Cause then it's not standard.....if you're trunk unlocks and goes up 1/2 way, that is what I'm used to......so I think I'm being given the 'they're all that way' when in fact they may not...
View 12 RepliesAt idle, on hot days (90+) after about a minute, the A/C cuts out and the temp gauge begins to rise. Gets about 3/4 of the way to the red zone, but never reaches it. I changed radiator cap, but still does it. Fluid level is fine; no coolant leaks that I can see. Called a mechanic and asked about a radiator flush. He said he'd do one, but it probably wouldn't work and I should just bring it in for a diagnostic.
View 7 RepliesMy 1991 Nissan 240SX (only 85K miles!) has an intermittent overheating problem that began last November. Needle usually right in middle, but occasionally would quickly rise to danger zone. In Nov., I got new radiator and pump, as well as all new spark plugs. Was OK for about 3 months, then started overheating occasionally. In shop a day and a half while they tried to find the cause. Gave me a new thermostat. Then test showed there was a leak in head gasket. Instead of expensive repairs, I put 8-oz bottle of K-Seal in cooling system. Reviews all over the web gave me confidence it would seal all leaks. But within 5 minutes, it overheated. Tried again later, same result.
View 2 RepliesI have a 2007 6.0 that this has happened to twice now. It's fine around town but I never hear the can come on. Friday when on the interstate my my temp gauge started to rise past normal operating temperature before fan came on. Is this normal? After the fan came on it stayed at normal temp for the rest of trip....
View 5 RepliesI have a Civic that is overheating after even short drives (ca. 30 mins). Today the heat gauge went up to 3/4 after 20 minutes, and was still rising when I stopped. The radiator fluid is topped up, oil was just changed and is full and not cloudy. No white smoke has been seen out of the tailpipe. The following repairs have already been attempted. New thermostat (replaced 2X), new radiator, timing kit, coolant temp sensors (both), water pump, AC condenser, AC refrigerant. It is still overheating after all that. Why?
View 7 Replies02 6.8 4x4 excursion. When I start the truck cold, the trans temp gauge immediately moves to "running" temp. Not really sure how this happens, I'd figure that if the xducer was trash it would ride all the way high or all the way low. What's happening here? I'd sure like a functional gauge...
View 6 Replies2003 ford explorer 4.6L. This truck will start and run rough high temp low oil light come on and temp gauge is pegged hot. Oil gauge is fine though, checked oil its fine.
I checked coolant reservoir its ok.
If I shut truck off and restart it will run ok and rev like normal and then all of a sudden go into limp mode and will misfire etc...
What sensor seems to be the main culprit?cht sensor???
The truck I'm working on is a 2003 f550 with a 6.0, and 382000 kilometers. My service truck died on me couple days ago, while running. As I rolled to a stop, I noticed that my temp gauge on the dash dropped to cold. (Truck was hot). Tried starting, and I have a crank, no start situation.
After towing it to my shop at work, I hooked it up to my scanner, and found that the pcm will not communicate with the scanner (otc genisis). I have no injector buzz with key on, wait to start light comes on for an abnormally long time. I have 48.3 volts on the ficm,(4 screw), and haven't been able to find any chafed wires as of yet.
I have a 2004 3.0 V6. The dash temperature gauge doesn't move just sits at the bottom 50C. (Canadian metric)...
I would like to locate the sender for the gauge to do a little testing. I removed a whack of plastic but nothing was obvious.
Ok, so I'm getting the typical P2181 Cooling system performance. So i replaced my t-stat and ect sensor but no change. When i'm looking at my mvb's in 01 and 17 they're reading the same. I check my hose temp and both upper and lower are similar in heat. I can watch the temp rise in the mvb's till the fans kick on and the temp will drop.
Now, at start up it'll literally take about 9-12 min to warm up in this 20 degree weather. I was driving home tonight and got off I-5 and at the light with the heat on I watched the temp gauge drop from operating temp to almost the notch above cold, and I could feel the heat cool down coming out of the vents.
My friend was replacing the temp sensor on his 2000 Civic, and twisted too hard and it broke off leaving part of the screw still in the hole. I got him a screw extractor kit, and he tried it this morning, and it too broke off. How to get these things out? I'm including a photo.
View 14 Replies1998 Civic HX ... The air temp sensor is held on by threaded devices that seem to have smooth, rounded heads.
How do you get them out? And, they are at the back of the engine so that there is limited space between the engine and firewall.
I have a Honda civic 2005 LX, 170,000 miles. I love this car as I went through my tough time with it. I don't want to give it up until it dies if possible. Only issue of this care is AC does not work when temperature is hot. It works really good when it's cold/rain. When I turn on the car and AC in the morning, the compressor works fine for 5-10 minutes and it turns off when the engine is normal temp.(below mid line). I went to one local mechanic and I was told Freon level is good.
They spend about an hour to figure out what's going on and they told me that I need to change my entire compressor, I felt they just can't figure out what exactly causes it and want to just scare me with big $, to make me give it up. (because compressor works fine when it's cold. I think something with temperature) I recently changed my Thermostat, filled up coolant, and changed crutch-AC relay fuse but no change in the AC symptoms. I will need AC for sure when I move into Arizona next summer!