Recently had a new water pump and radiator put in my car. Not so sure if they are "new" but anyway.
The car does not seem to use coolant it has only slowly flowed back into the reserve tank over time spilling over a little.
I just received this car as a freebie but it has come with an issue or two. The most pressing is a cooling issue. They gave it to me with the words, "The radiator leaks". Upon some testing this doesn't seem to be the whole picture.
1) If I fill the radiator up, leave the car parked over night, the next morning the radiator is still full. so I assume it is leaking from steam venting or from something else.
2) The car overheats very fast when the AC is on and the vehicle is stopped. Within about 10 minutes it went through every drop in the radiator.
3) When driving with the AC fan on medium speed, it can go a solid 30-45 minutes with no issue.
4) If I turn the AC fan on to high it takes a matter of minutes for it to begin to over heat.
A friend mentioned something about a weeper valve? I know very little about cars. So if there was any insight as to what it may be that would be excellent.
I have a 1997 Honda Civic that I was given by an elderly neighbor's daughter after the elderly lady went to the grocery and ended up 100 miles away when she could not figure out how to get home. The car was smogged at the beginning of the year but when I got it ran very rough and the temp went nearly to overheating on the drive home when I was stuck in stop and go traffic.I found the radiator fluid level low and an oily residue inside the radiator water bottle. I took it to a mechanic to check it out and was told it had a blown head gasket and maybe worse.
I am thinking of buying a rebuilt cylinder head and replacing it myself but I am not sure how to diagnose if any other damage could have been caused to the engine. It's hard to know but I am guessing that the engine was damaged during the 100 mile road trip due to low coolant level. It turns out short term memory loss was the diagnosis for my elderly neighbor. I filled the coolant level and ran the engine for a bit and the temp stayed normal but the rough running remains. The oil dip stick shows no signs of coolant in the oil and the coolant looks bright green when I looked in the radiator after topping it up with some water.
Any way to detect if I could be facing bigger issues like failed bearings? I am OK to do the head replacement but an engine replacement starts to get into the realm of what it would cost to get another car of the same age.
I was recently given a 1999 Honda Civic Lx for free from a family member and its been my day to day vehicle for months. I wont lie, aside from keeping oil, gas, and all of the standard stuff like it I haven't put very much work into it since I got it. Recently I noticed the car would start to run hot at low speeds and while sitting at traffic lights, stop signs, etc. When this would happen I would just throw some water in the radiator cap and the problem would be solved. For a few days at least. Today I was driving and did not notice that the temperature was getting pretty high. Not into the red, but getting close.
When I saw this I immediately started looking for some where to pull over to put some water in. Before I could get stopped I heard a loud popping noise and the sound of water pouring out from somewhere underneath the car. The second this happened the temperature gauge went down for a few mins but then rapidly shot back up. I got stopped and started putting water in, though I assumed the damage had been done. Sure enough the water eventually started coming out of the bottom of the car. Seems like its coming out of the little crevices in the engine and not the hose or the radiator. Im assuming (or hoping, maybe) this is a blown head gasket and not something more serious. The car is now parked and not going anywhere until repairs are made.
My 2005 Civic is overheating at random times. My mechanic couldn't find the problem so I took it to the dealer and they replaced the thermostat and a fan switch. That didn't work so now they tell me I have a blown head gasket ($1,458)... but there's no water in the oil and no gray smoke. They say the coolant leaks into the block until there's not enough circulating and it overheats. Then, when it cools, the coolant goes back into the reservoir and that's why it never seems to be low on coolant. I've seen other Civic overheating letters (including a 2005 that sounded like my exact problem) but I never saw an update about what fixed the problem.
View 12 RepliesHow much should it cost to have it replaced? car seems to be running just fine but leaking oil.
View 6 RepliesIve had both the piston rings and head gasket replaced on my 96 civic. This isn't for high end upgrades or anything just because i need to pass smog and both needed replaced. I am being told that once i get my car i should drive slow for 100 miles before i take it to smog. Ive read many different opinions on seating the rings but all are for people upgrading their car. I am sure I just got normal replacements.
View 19 RepliesI have a 2003 Honda Civic with 140k miles. It has a leaking head gasket which is causing the engine to overheat when driving slower without airflow to cool the engine.
I would love to drive the car to 200k+ miles but if this is the first of many pricey fixes I want to cut my losses.
2007 Pilot leaks coolant but, mechanic can not find the leak anywhere including the head gasket. He was a certified Honda mechanic.
View 16 RepliesRadiator replaced 2 yrs. ago - required major rust cleanout; reservoir replaced shortly thereafter. Recently engine always hot, antifreeze disappearing, reservoir always looks rusty, nothing much coming out underneath, mechanic pressure tested and couldn't find a leak, told to watch for antifreeze in oil, none apparent. Now suddenly car ran hot, antifreeze came out of reservoir, cap replaced, still couldn't find leak. Today said head gasket blown. Repair head gasket, but can't guarantee wouldn't still have radiator problems. Suggested could try Blue Devil head gasket repair but may not work.
Is it worth :
(a) trying the Blue Devil;
(b) repairing the head gasket?
Or will I still have major repair needs with radiator etc.? I really can't afford even a cheap replacement car.
New truck to me. Truck was advertised with a slow coolant leak. Figured I would trace the leak down and get it repaired no issues. Anyway, working on it this evening I take a close look around the oil filler area and notice the dreaded milkshake color.
I drained the oil out of the truck and the oil actually came out nice and black. Is the headgasket the only area that would cause the oil/coolant mixture? Supposedly the truck has never been overheated.
At any rate, on to find articles on how to pull apart a 4.6L Triton head. I'll see if I'm up to this challenge.
Recently bought a 2001. In the process of reading about this engine I discovered there is a some what regular breakdown of head gaskets causing water to leak into cylinders and oil pan, all of which is serious.
Given the vehicle is 12 years old and has 89K miles it appears it is in the age and range of where this leakage can occur. Any knowledgeable engine rebuilders that are familiar with this issue on the 4.2 have any comments???
1. Can this issue be avoided by replacing head gaskets now rather than waiting for future failure???
2. Are there new and improved head gaskets for this motor???
3. Does the problem occur on both heads gaskets?
4. Is that all that needs to be done or are there other seals that need replacement???
I have a '98 Civic Dx with 217,000+ miles on it. Last year I had the water pump and timing belt replaced and beginning in February I noticed my antifreeze was disappearing but couldn't find any leaks. One mechanic said it was the water pump, so I had it redone under warranty. The antifreeze is still disappearing and now my mechanic tells me it's the radiator. (Don't you think he would have said that the first time?) It seems that the transmission is starting to go (see below) so I'm wondering if it's worth replacing the radiator or trying to patch any leaks I can find. I've heard such mixed reviews on patching radiator leaks and this mechanic won't do it. The part is cheap and I can probably replace or repair it myself. So, repair or replace?
I've had a few incidents of my car shuddering after I start driving and losing power around the first turn. Sometimes the shudder is worse if I've turned the car on, idled for a few moments and then started driving. The shudder was similar to one time when I had a bad spark plug wire, so thinking it was that I gave my car a tune up-- new plugs, wires, cap, rotor. But two mornings ago it nearly stalled as I was taking the first turn off my street.
Then yesterday morning it nearly stalled after I backed out of my parking space and began driving (I'd sat for a few moments with the car idling before backing out). For a while I've felt like it wasn't really getting full power around the first turn. I don't know how to describe it except that pushing on the accelerator didn't really do anything until the car had completed the turn and straightened out. I haven't had any problems throughout the rest of the day-- it drives just fine. It's only when it's been sitting at least overnight.
I'm in denial about it being my transmission. It has never liked to start when I've down to or below a quarter tank of gas, and someone else who called the show about that was told that the fuel system was probably losing pressure as it sat overnight, which sounds like what happens to mine. Could this be another symptom of that? Or could something in the fuel system be clogged, like the filter? (My Dad had a clogged fuel filter once and his car would lose power on an incline.) Or is this perhaps the beginning of the end for my little friend? I'm at 217k...
Is this normal or do I have a leak? Noticed this white stuff just like what you would find on the coolant cap, as well as this red stuff too.
View 7 RepliesMy Subaru dealer just told me that my 2004 outback with 88k miles has developed a head gasket leak. I haven't noticed any symptoms, and the leak started sometime between now and my last major service 10k miles ago. How serious is this? They want to charge me for it? If so, when? Is disaster imminent?
View 7 RepliesI have a 06' JGC with the 5.7L Hemi w/80k and about a month ago I noticed a little smoke under the hood after driving, I found an oil leak and it's running down the passenger side of the rear main seal but the leak is above the seal. I had the shop put die in it and they dont know for sure but they belive it is the head gasket. There is no water in the oil but they said that doesnt matter. Apparently the heads cant be resurfaced on hemi's but they have to be checked to make sure they are in spec.
View 2 RepliesHave a 2000 Alero. Mechanic says oil on ground is from leaking head gasket. $3000 to repair, or buy rebuilt engine for about the same. I thought head gasket leaks were into the coolant, not outside. Is this legit, including the cost? Valve cover gaskets were replaced earlier this year. Should I get another opinion? Other possible sources of leak?
View 2 RepliesI've been told that the 2002 Santa Fe that I drive has a small leak in the head gasket and that this will be a major problem for the A/C compressor in the not-too-distant future. Supposedly the compressor is located below where the leak is and that over time (5-6 months) this can/will cause the compressor to need to be replaced. Does this seem like a credible scenario?
View 2 RepliesI have 2012 R with 33,000.00 miles on it. During regular service they detected that I have a coolant leak. They replaced a flange and determined that there was actually a head gasket leak. This is very unusual for such a low mileage. The car is still under extended warranty and they are in the process of replacing the head gasket. They told me today that they have to machine the head since there was some residue due to the coolant leak. This is all done at a VW dealer service.
View 1 RepliesI found during an oil change that there is coolant in my oil, I had suspicions of this because of having to add coolant more than I should of had to. There is probably either a crack in my block, head gasket or intake manifold, my question is how can I tell which. I figure that if I preform a compression check it will tell me that I have a cracked block and or a cracked head gasket, what will tell me if I breeched my intake manifold.
View 19 RepliesI recently had an issue with my head gasket. It was repaired but then learned the real issue was that I had diesel gas in my engine. (Long story, fuel hauler put wrong gas in tank and service station sold the gas to us unsuspecting drivers.) After head gasket was fixed, tried to leave service shop but car still had issues - turned around and went back. O2 sensor and other fuel trim numbers were off. But couldn't diagnose problem completely so told me to drive home (30 miles) and come back next day.
That's when I found out about the diesel gas issue. My car got drained of bad gas and cleaned. Got car back but now is leaking oil. My husband thinks it is either from the valve covers or from head gasket. Can diesel gas in your engine damage the head gasket? Could I have done more damage by driving the 30 miles home with the bad gas? Or did the shop just do a bad head gasket repair? I only bought this car 6 months ago - used. It now has 88K miles.