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Hello all!

I have a 2003 honda civic ex 5mt that I've almost returned to baseline. Last week, making my last 90 mile commute, temperature spiked the temp gauge all the way up. So i pulled over, white vapor coming from under the hood.

I let it cool down a bit, and i attempt to check the radiator. The rubber on the underside of the cap disintegrated in my hand. Eventually i get it filled up, once it cooled off enough it wasn't immediately boiling out. So i start it and sure enough it shoots coolant in the air while turning over. So i get it towed. Fails the carbon test, it's a bad head gasket.

So i took it apart this week. The head is straight, no warping. And no coolant/oil or oil /coolant mixtures. The gasket is blue, and missing the blue in some areas. And, cylinder 3 (2nd from passenger side) has vertical scratches. This is my first time diving this deep. What does the head gasket looking like this mean? And what does the cylinder scratches mean?

Currently trying to decide if its worth rebuilding. The local machine shops are busy for 6 months and i know nothing about modding pistons / boring etc. For context, the timing belt / water pump were done last year. And compression two weeks ago was 116-120 across all 4 cylinders.

Thank you in advance for your thoughts and help!

 
Rep Power: 223

The vertical lines on the cylinder wall look like normal wear to me. Can you feel them with your finger nail? If not, probably not an issue.

The head gasket just looks used, I have never had luck seeing where it failed. They usually fail by letting compression gasses into the water jacket, usually pass normal head gasket tests. I would recommend taking the head to a shop still to check it for flatness, but if you're sure it's good you should just be able to clean it up and slap a new head gasket in there (OEM of course). I would verify the block as well but usually they don't warp.

There's always the option of buying a used engine and dropping it in. Would be in your best interest to replace the head gasket as well.

 
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Thanks for the response back! So i checked the etches, and towards the top multiple vertical scratches catch my fingernail as it drug by. Further in, i didnt notice it to the same degree.

What would likely happen if i were to ignore the scrapes and put it back together? Or, is it likely enough to kill itself again that i might as well fork over for a used engine?

 
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Thank you for the response back!

I checked the scratches and several caught on my fingernail as i drug past, moreso towards the top of the cylinder than the bottom. But i dont know how to interpret that / what happened to cause it / what the implications are for the future.

Yeah that describes how it was acting / looks. I didnt realize that was a thing when i picked the car up. Oh well, live and learn.

What would likely happen if i ignore the scratches and just put it back together? Im wondering how that compares to throwing a used engine in it? They're not terribly expensive from what i can find.

If its going to strand me in a couple years ill put off the jdm engine. But if I'm going to waste my time rebuilding and get stranded in a few weeks / immediately thats different.

Thanks again!
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Thank you for the response back!

Checking the scratches, my fingernail caught. Especially towards the top. What might that mean as far as what happened?

What happens if i rebuild without fixing the scratches? Im ok with rising being stranded a year or two from now, but not today / in a few weeks.

Looking at engines, a grand seems to be the going rate. What do i risk from going with a jdm engine being dropped into it?
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Rep Power: 366

quick tip...
the reason your post was unapproved twice was because of a typo...
copied from your unapproved posts:
"caught on my fingernail as i drug past"

the word "drug" unapproved your posts...

 
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Oops. Thank you for letting me know!

 
Rep Power: 223

I'm no expert here but it could just be normal wear. I would think dirty oil or maybe debris sucked in through the intake could cause vertical scratches as well. You could expect oil consumption. If you rebuilt without doing something about it you'd likely expect oil consumption.

$1k really seems to be on the steep end. I would think $500 would be a better price, not including installation (hopefully doing yourself). Nothing wrong with a JDM engine as long as it's from a reputable source. You could also look into just replacing the block since the rest of your engine should be in good shape.

 
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I agree! I hunted, but between sales tax, shipping, delivery, and engine, i was just a couple dollars over a grand. I guess one of the downsides of living in the boondocks.

I did wind up going with a jdm engine, didnt have any luck finding local blocks, and the cost was pretty close to the jdm cost for further away blocks. I did do the install myself. Between this forum, YouTube, and a particular manual it went well!

Its running better than it used to, i guess its the difference between well maintained 55k milage and flogged 160k lol.