Treyson

Hi everyone, I am new here so if this is not the correct place for this thread please let me know.
Anyways I have recently purchased a 2004 Honda Civic Lx Coupe (NO V TECH) with around 240,000 miles. I got a decent deal and knew it needed some work done to it. I was told it had an overheating issue revolving around the radiator so I replaced the radiator, thermostat, upper and lower hoses. I used the proper coolant for the car and I am currently having the same issue that it had when I had originally purchased the car. I was then told by many people that it could be the water pump. Not knowing anything about the history of this car I figured either way it was a good idea to go ahead and do a timing belt and water pump kit. After all said and done I am still having the same issue. I do not believe it is the head gasket leaking because the oil is fine and not milky looking nor is any smoke coming out to the tailpipe.
I start my car and let it warm up, then while driving the temperature gauge is where it should be, a little below half. When I come to a stop everything is still good with the temperature. But then when I start to accelerate after being stopped the gauge begins to rise, but not all the way only up to 75% - 85%. Once I return to a constant speed the temperature gauge then returns to where it should normally set.
If anyone could give me advice it would be very appreciated. Thanks!!!

Slumpertcivic

Your thoughts about D series Honda head gasket failure is wrong.

What’s going on with your coolant level?

At the moment for all we know you might just have a bad temperature sender so there is a lot to consider.

Treyson

I could be wrong as I do not know much about older Honda's, I have owned Subaru's for the past 7 Years.

I have not driven that much nor can I monitor the level that well because of the coolant reservoir being really dirty after trying to clean it before reinstalling it.

Slumpertcivic

So your not taking off the radiator cap and inspecting the fluid level before driving the car?

Treyson

I filled the radiator and burped the system both times before driving.

Slumpertcivic

That reads exactly like a failed head gasket and a possible warped head.

Sucks, but at least you will find tons info on this forum to help you.

Ykc3590

i exactly have the same issue on my civic 02 with 267000 km coupe SI coolant coming out from tail pipe with no smoke no oil muginess loosing coolant from radiator radiator change hoses change taped cover gasket change. temperature goes little bit gigher then normal. both. fans are direct starting with the key turn on

sdaidoji

iTrader: (1)

how is the coolant level on your overflow reservoir?

have you read the sticky?

https://www.civicforums.com/forums/3...reference.html

Ykc3590

not bad loose some but not too much

Wankenstein

Civic engines with head gasket breaching will rarely have the type of breach that allows coolant into the crankcase oil (milk shake). The typical sign is coolant loss in radiator combined with coolant gain in the reservoir. The best test for an HG breach is a cylinder leak down test with rad cap off to look for bubbles. Another easier, cheaper test is a block test using a free rental blockbtrster from an auto parts store and a $10 bottle of test fluid. If the block test is positive: blue fluid turns yellow or green then it shows emission gases getting in coolant. However, if the block test is negative it doesn't fully rule out a breach. It's a cheap test and easy to do.

If the radiator did not come with a new cap and you reused the old one...replace it with a new Honda Genuine rad cap. A failed cap can cause coolant loss in radiator by not holding pressure and leaking.

Ykc3590

yes after shut down the engine u can see coolant going back in the reservoir

Colin42

Blown head gasket

Ykc3590

yea but no smoke from the exhaust very nice and clean engine sound so which part of head gasket its leaking but not burning

BrotatoChip

Compression/exhaust gases leak past the head gasket and into the water jacket. Air in the cooling system displaces the coolant, forcing it into the reservoir tank. Eventually the tank will overflow, meanwhile the radiator and the rest of the cooling system is low on coolant. Engine still runs fine until it overheats, no smoke from the exhaust, and no visible leaks (at least until the reservoir overflows). These will often still have full compression and can pass leak down tests even though the head gasket has been breached.

This is all covered in the link that was provided earlier.

DYNAMICAL

I think I posted on this 3 times today....My old 02 had a HG leak for a long time before I realized it. Car never overheated but it would push coolant out the overflow (only on hot summer days) and because the radiator wasnt totally filled there would be no heat at idle (in the cold winter). I remember I had heat driving or giving throttle while in park, it would push coolant to the heater core. It wasnt really a huge issue, I topped it off with coolant regularly. Think I drove it like that for 50k or so until I looked into it and realized the HG had a leak. So I manned up and did the job. Head was warped so i took that to the machine shop. Installed it all and had the car for another 50k or so before trading it in with 199k on it for my current 2012.

Row Rouge

What kind of coolant are you using? Maybe try using the Honda coolant. Normally I change the transmission and coolant with Honda brand only. Especially because we don’t need to change it often. I suggest flushing and refilling if you have not done this or used a off brand coolant.