Sprx26

Hi, I have a hose that has a tiny leak in it. However the hose is located under the air filter. I am not sure if it is associated with the heater or the radiator. But I need to replace it. Can anyone give me some insight. Also, I know I may need to change out the thermostat since I am not sure what has been changed or when anything has been changed on this car. So I went to remove the connection wire for the radiator fan switch and seen that it had what looked like a bobby pin inside of the pin holes, and it was held on to the actual radiator fan switch by electrical tape. Bizarre I know. So now I am trying to figure out if maybe I need to change out the wire. Does anyone know how to?? Or have any knowledge about this?? And lastly, I have a blue cable that is coming out of the rear part of the valve cover, however it is not connected to anything, and I see nothing that it should connect to. HELP! I would really appreciate it!

Thanks in advance to anyone willing to offer some knowledge.

RIPSAW

Think it's a little radiator hose to heat the carb. If it's molded to shape, probably ought to get it from a Honda dealer. The thermostat switch that it plugs into is probably bad. Normal, when hot, it with do the same thing the jumper is doing. Probably need to replace the part wire plug plugs on. Is there a picture of the valve cover part you are refering to or is it your third picture?

Sprx26

The wire that is on the rear side of the valve cover is indicated on in photo #1. It is pointed out with the yellow arrow. The wire isn't very long and when I check the surrounding area, there is no where for it to connect to? I found that quite odd. Not sure what to do or think at this point, regarding this.
As for the radiator fan switch I am going to purchase a new switch, install that onto the thermostat housing and remove the bobby pin from the female connection to see what that does.
But my main concern was the hose. I just wasn't sure what it is or what is does. So far this is the only hose with a leak. I hope I can get this all fixed. Thank you for your insight.

ezone

Pic1, yellow arrow points to the VTEC solenoid. Is it supposed to be there, or not?
What kind of car so you have there? Year? Trim?
If you don't have an EX trim car, that engine (or head) isn't exactly correct for the car....but at least it's workable.

Red arrows point to a coolant hose that connects to the IAC valve on the throttle body.
The hose clamps I see are not factory.....


First thought given all the above is..... someone has replaced the engine and it may not be identical to original.


The connector with the paper clip in it is probably there to make the radiator fans run all the time-------
probably because someone couldn't fix it the right way, the engine overheats, pushes coolant out, and needs a head gasket job.

Sprx26

Wow...okay, thank you so much for the information given. To answer your question, the engine does have VTEC written on it but I'm not sure if that is correct. Your guess is as good as mine. I purchased this car for $1000, from a fellow friend who buys cars from auction. But this particular car is an '02 Honda Civic LX. There are some problems with it, and I am wanting to try and work on it. I am fixing minor things along with some things that have recently given some issues. And thank you mentioning that this motor might not be the right motor for this model.

ezone

LX did not come with VTEC.....so the engine (or less likely, the cylinder head) has been replaced and solenoid was left disconnected because the LX computer can't use it, there is no place on the LX engine harness to connect it.
Not a huge deal, people do this swap often and it runs ok like this.

If your oil pan is aluminum, the entire engine got replaced.

Sprx26

Man, I really do appreciate your knowledge Well that clears up any uncertainty that I may have had. I am thankful for all responses, and for being so active on this site.

ezone

Friday night, and I have no life.... LOL

Sprx26

So are you telling me I need a head gasket change? I just reread this post and snapped because I am afraid of performing a head gasket repair. Or is it a possible reason for why they had the clip in the connector? I think I'll have to do some research on diagnosing a bad head gasket and how to change one out.
Guess it's time to up my tool game. haha

RIPSAW

Ezone is the expert and has a life. Helping others.. .. I thought it had a carb and you lived in Mexico....$1000 car..fix the small radiator hose. Run the car like it is with fans going. Stay off the interstate and go easy around town sticking close to home to see if it overheats or blows water. Check oil ever day before you head out to make sure water is not getting into oil.

ezone

Reading comprehension fail.
I wrote "probably", not 'definitely'. That's speculation IMO.

I wrote what I did because so many of those engines eventually have a head gasket failure, it's a well known issue in certain circles, and it's an elusive failure and sometimes quite difficult for owners to figure it out when it's bad.

I also speculated on why someone would hack the fan wiring. Right now, only the person who did the hack knows why they did it.
I've seen enough to guess why they did it.
You get to prove it.



Someone installed a used engine in it. Any idea why the original engine was pulled out? What failed? I know you can't answer that either.
A used replacement engine can be just as good, or just as bad, or worse than the engine that came out of the car. It's always a gamble.


In the shop, I can prove a bad head gasket on one of these engines in under 10 minutes.
If you wish to learn how I prove that, and learn more about the possible head gasket situation and try to prove it yourself, read up on everything in the first post in this thread: https://www.civicforums.com/forums/36-mechanical-problems-vehicle-issues-fix-forum/340759-overheating-mysterious-coolant-loss-common-causes-reference.html


You just bought the car. It came from an auction. It went to auction for a reason.
I assume you had a prepurchase inspection done before you bought it? What did the mechanic say about the condition of the car, what all did it have wrong, and what work did it need?
I know, you did not have it inspected before buying.

You now own the car and all the issues that came with it.
Now you get to discover why someone else got rid of it.


Does it have to pass any emissions testing in your area?

No need to panic.
The seller probably didn't know anything about the car other than all 4 tires held air and it drove around the block.


I'm just an idiot who solves problems for a living.....and I'm an internet junkie.
You must work for the USPS?

Sprx26

EZONE
Thank you once again on the clarification. I was sure I understood what you meant, I just needed to absolutely clear. And thank you for the link. I am going to take a look at that in a minute.

All knowledge is appreciated.