Rep Power: 0

Hi all,
I have an automatic 2005 civic which had a mysterious leak for a while. Figured out it was the engine coolant as the engine started to overheat, sometimes there’s was an issue with a radiator inside blowing cold air only etc. Topped up the coolant and it seemed fine since.
Yesterday as I was driving for about 5-7min I could smell something burning. I only just gave it another go and drove for about a minute, when parked and got out the car there was a very strong burning smell outside the car and there was still white smoke coming out the exhaust after I switched the engine off and walked off.
i presume it is very dangerous to drive it so will get it towed to mechanic tomorrow but I was wondering if anyone had similar issue and how much it costed to get fixed? I keep putting so much money in this car and it’s simply not economical anymore.

thank you

 
Rep Power: 225

Possible head gasket issue. Link below has more info. Basically you would see low coolant level in the radiator and high/overflowing level in the reservoir.

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

 
Rep Power: 368

headgasket

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

 
Rep Power: 223

3rd for head gasket

 
Rep Power: 0

Thank you all, you restored my hope and hopefully it won’t be as costly as I feared.

 
Rep Power: 225

As long as it didn't overheat to the point of causing rod knock it shouldn't be too bad. ~$1k for a shop to fix it, a couple hundred if you DIY it.

 
Rep Power: 368

if overheat, head need to be milled

 
Rep Power: 0

oh I didn’t realise it would be this much. I thought head gasket would be under $100 plus labour? For a 2005 $1k is very expensive job considering the car isn’t worth much over $1.5k

 
Rep Power: 126

I think you’re underestimating how much labour goes into a head gasket replacement.

 
Rep Power: 223

Is the rest of the car in good shape?

 
Rep Power: 0

yes overall in good shape. No issues when driving really, smooth gear shifting etc. Had the drive shaft recently replaced, new suspension arms and brake pads. Also cambelt changed about 25k miles ago. Current mileage 104k.

 
Rep Power: 223

So then it's worth doing the head gasket, head needs to be checked by a machine shop, only use a Honda gasket, do not use an aftermarket head gasket, head bolts can be reused if they're not damaged.
Call around to the dealer, and some independent shops, find the best price, if it seems too good to be true it probably is.

 
Rep Power: 225

When the head gasket in my car went I was just started college and didn't know much about cars yet, so I paid someone to fix it. That was $800 back in ~2012. I have since replaced the head gasket on probably five of these Civics.

A new head gasket is $60 on Amazon for a Honda genuine part, probably about the same price from a dealer. Add another $100 for a machine shop to check/mill the head, $30 for coolant, and $30 for an oil change. Your total parts cost comes to ~$220, the rest is labor. A good 3-4 hours to get the head off, then wait time for a machine shop, another 4+ hours to reinstall. 8+ hours of labor at $100/hour plus the parts cost and you're up to $1k.

 
Rep Power: 0

I bought a 2002 civic 10 years ago with about 115k on it. I didnt know it at the time but it had a small HG leak. I had to top off the coolant every once in a while. Heat didnt work at idle but it did work under throttle signifying low coolant. A couple years after I had been using the car I noticed when the weather was hot, the exhaust gases would blow past the gasket and push coolant out of the surge tank. At 155k I took it apart and did the job myself. Traded that car in with almost 200k on it. But I drove that car for 40k miles with a HG leak. Never overheated once. Good car. Traded it in because I was sick of it, it was getting old and the auto trans was acting up occasionally. I have some info and pics if youre interested and need help.