hsk5260

So I just noticed this when I started paying more attention to the oil level. Have had this car for 4 months now, Its a 2000 Civic LX manual transmission with 123k miles.

Did an oil change in the first month itself and now two weeks ago I asked my mechanic to check for a coolant leak because I was getting that characteristic sweet burning smell sometimes when driving. I also asked him to check for oil leaks because there was no oil dripping down on my parking spot but the oil level had gone below the low mark. He did a pressure test and found no coolant leaks but said that it is burning oil and showed me the black sticky residue in the exhaust. There is no smoke at idle but it starts smoking when you rev it in neutral and it could be called a grayish color (I did not notice any blue color which people say is caused by oil burning. It could be due to the lighting conditions though).

He had to put in 2.5 quarts of oil which I think is a lot and was wondering how was the car even running with so less oil. The distance covered since the oil change would be approx 2500. I paid attention to the oil level for past two weeks and went in again, this time he said he put in a little over a quart of oil which is for a distance of around 300-350 miles. He also mentioned there was a slight leak from the oil sending unit and valve cover but not enough to cause this much oil loss. I am not entirely convinced with the oil amount he has mentioned and so I am going to start topping off the oil myself.

To check whether it is smoking in gear I asked a friend to watch and revved it high in first gear. There was that grayish smoke again. I just thought to check under the hood to see if there are any leaks and noticed some fluid dripping near the places marked in the pictures. The fluid felt more like water trickling rather than oil just under the distributor cap and onto the transmission. The other spot was near the exhaust manifold. This area has always been wet since I started checking under the hood, but the high rev somehow seemed to have exacerbated the situation. I think it could be coolant, checked the radiator cap and it looks full and the color is a translucent green. The reservoir though has gone quite below the MIN level.

Another thing is that idle drops really low when warm. I took a pic of the dash after a 10 mile drive. The temperature seems to be holding up fine for now, but the idle is quite low. It idles upto 1500 rpm when cold which I think should be normal. I don't know whether this has anything to do with the leaks and oil burn.

Sorry for the really long post but this car has been causing lots of expenses since I bought it making me want to sell it off. The feeling could also be because its the first car I have ever owned and a used one on top of that. Maybe I should just get used to it :P

GolNat

iTrader: (7)

It is perfectly normal for a 13 year old car to burn some oil. Actually up to a quart a 1000 miles is considered normal for some manufactures. It does sound like your mechanic is being a little dramatic with the amount of oil he is adding. If the oil level was still on the dip stick then it was not 2.5 quarts low. I believe the dipstick is set to measure the last 1/2-3/4 of a quart needed to reach full (1 at the most). It may tell you in your manual. Also in your manual it should tell you what the normal idle range should be. If the idle is a little low then cleaning your IAC valve can help with this. May be a good idea to clean it anyway due to age and carbon deposits that come from cheap gas.

Its a 13 year old car so there is going to be some money spent on maintenance and up keep. Part will wear out, seals will go bad. 125K is not a lot of miles but you do not know how well it was maintained before you got a hold of it. It may of had a life with little routine maintenance and JiffyLube oil change specials spaced 20K miles apart.

hsk5260

Hey thanks for replying GolNat, I'll see how to get the IACV cleaned. Currently I don't have any tools as such with me so I'll have to go get some

Yesterday after a highway run to work I noticed coolant dripping in my regular parking spot. It had a green color to it with maybe some oil because it did not evaporate completely even after the car was standing there for more than 4 hours. Does coolant evaporate quickly or does the antifreeze in it cause it to stay for a long time?

Also should I just get some coolant and add it to the reservoir tank till I can manage to locate the leak? The coolant has dropped an inch below the MIN mark. I don't want to cause more damage because of running on low coolant. Btw do you have an idea where that coolant could be leaking from? I know the pictures aren't that great but maybe they could help.

GolNat

iTrader: (7)

The antifreeze will prevent the coolant from evaporating as quickly. Yes I would add coolant, you don't want to overheat. Use Honda coolant!

I would start by looking around the radiator and all of its hoses. Chances are that if you could see the drip spot then you should be able to jack the car up and see where the coolant is coming from. Maybe someone with a 6th gen will know of a spot that is more likely to leak then others.

hsk5260

Just came to know that Honda sells a blue colored coolant now and the one in my car currently is green. Should I still go ahead and top it off?

Another thought came to my mind when I was scouring the internet for more info and I really hope its not it, but could all of this be happening because of a leaking head gasket? AFAIK that seems to be the place where it is situated.

GolNat

iTrader: (7)

I believe the new Honda coolant is blue, they used to use green. The dealer will know what you need based on the year.

Yes it is possible for the head gasket to be the culprit. Could also be another gasket that is leaking. Best to check it out.

hsk5260

Hey, its been a long time. Wanted to get back earlier but some or the work popped up. I took it to another mechanic and the heater hose popped while pressure testing the cooling system. He cut it slightly and connected it back with what good part of it was remaining. He said the rubber has gone soft and though it will not pop anytime soon that I should replace it within a month or so. There is still some coolant leaking but it is much less than before.

Also lately I have been noticing that the car cranks real slow sometimes. Tends to be more hesitant after running for a while and then trying to start within 10 minutes again. Last day it wouldn't crank at all so we stopped for some time and then my friends pushed the car and I popped the clutch in second gear and it started up fine. I thought it could be due to low battery charge but I am not sure whether that could be the only problem.

Also I have been paying attention to the oil level regularly, checking it first thing in the morning once every week when the engine is stone cold. It has gone slightly below the midpoint between the two dots on the dipstick. I think the last time the oil was topped up was around 700 miles ago. So it seems it is not as bad as the guy was making out to be.

Also this might be a silly question but you are supposed to push the dipstick in all the way while checking the oil level, right? Or just push it in till it starts to resist a little for the last few millimetres. I had a honda motorcycle for which the manual said not to screw in the dipstick completely while checking the level. The civic manual mentions nothing about how much to push in the dipstick.

Poopies

iTrader: (4)

Yup! Engine off, wipe the dipstick, and push it ALL the way in for an accurate reading!

goldhonda

My Honda Civic 90 has been burning oil for awhile. I am thinking about replacing or rebuilding the engine. Any recommendations on remanufactured engines - I have my second engine in now and it is an ATK Replaced it in 2000. Is it better to rebuild or replace?

Poopies

iTrader: (4)

I guess it depends on how much you like your engine! :-) Unless you can rebuild the engine correctly yourself, it might be more cost-effective to do a swap. Maybe get a bigger engine this time, if that's your thing. There are a lot of forums on swaps here.