Rep Power: 0

I recently got a 05 civic Ex passed down from my dad. Currently at 116k miles. Car was in great condition. The other day it started overheating. It did it a couple times. I took it to a local shop to have them diagnose it. They told me someone had put stop leak in the system causing it to clog up. Me not knowing much about cars I believed them. They then tried charging me 1300 to put in new radiator, coolant temp gauge, thermostat, and new coolant hoses. I then ordered the parts myself and had a different shop install them. After all the new parts were installed I was continuing to have overheating issues. They claimed my radiator fan wasn’t working, they replaced a fuse and said it’s working and should be good to go. I took the car home. After 2 days it continued to overheat. I took it back and now they are telling me my block is most likely warped and I may need a new engine. They said I could try a new timing kit with new head gasket and water pump and that could fix the issues but not for sure. They want 1300 to install it all. I am already in 800 bucks at this point. I guess my questions is wether or not it’s worth it. I have the means to buy a new car off the lot and I’m conflicted. I drive 80 miles a day for work and I need something reliable. Any help/input is appreciated! FYI this is my first forum post so sorry if it’s too long lol.

regards
zack

 
Rep Power: 125

Head gasket is your most likely culprit. 7th gens are notorious for them (though I’ve never had a problem, knock on wood).

I’d get a new car if you plan on keeping it long-term.

 
Rep Power: 223

Remove the cylinder head and have a machine shop deck it (ensure it's flat), block should be okay. New OEM head gasket and timing belt/water pump if it's due. Should be good for another ~100k miles. I would estimate $800-1k for a shop to do it.

 
Rep Power: 366

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

 
Rep Power: 210

You have the last year of the 7th gen model which is good because the automatic transmission issues of the '01-'02 years were solved. Other issues in the preceding years of that generation ('01-'05) should have been addressed by '05.

They are very reliable cars and easy to work on.
Both the head and the block are aluminum but the block is much thicker and it's doubtful (but not impossible) that the block is warped. It's highly possible the cylinder head is warped, though.
The only way to tell is to pull the head off, use a precision straight edge and feeler gauges and measure clearances (shown in youtube videos) on both the the bottom of the head and top of the block.

 
Rep Power: 0

Simple head gasket leak test.

After a normal drive with normal temps park it in a quiet location and immediatly pop the hood.

Pop the cap off the overflow bottle and listen for bubbling/boiling sounds. If you hear them, your head gasket is leaking.

When a head gasket starts leaking just the tiniest bit, it causes pressure from the cylinder to leak into the cooling system, overpressurizing it. The radiator cap releases this excess pressure just as it's designed to do. However, because of the extra pressure coming from the cylinder, it keeps releasing hot coolant into the overflow bottle where it now boils away because it is no longer under pressure. (Pressure raises the boiling point of fluids) This is what causes the sound you hear from the overflow bottle right after you shut off the engine.

Normally, the coolant will start to cool and contract very quickly after you shut off the engine. This creates a vacuum in the system which makes it suck the fluid back in from the overflow bottle. This process fails when the coolant system is overpressurized from the leaking gasket.

Our 05 Civic VP has just under 500k miles on it. After letting a shop work on it, I've unfortunately gained alot of experience with blown head gaskets.

#1 Only use OEM head gaskets.

#2 If it's leaking, the head is warped.

Screw the specs, if it's not perfectly flat, gaskets will keep failing. I was tossing a gasket at ours every 18 to 24 months until we saved the $600 for a reman head. (We returned the first one because it had a tiny little scratch on it. Make sure the mating surface is perfect)