Rep Power: 0

Hi everybody, 2005 civic LX here with 90xxx miles.
Noticed a few days ago that my A/C works for a while then stops blowing cold air and also noticed that my temp gauge goes up to the red line then down spontaneously. Coolant level ok, no leaks that I can see. I had timing belt and water pump changed last fall and always took care of the car. Any suggestions?

 
Rep Power: 518

The PCM is probably locking out AC operation when the coolant temp gets too high.

Your radiator is probably low.
Your overflow bottle is overfull, maybe overflowing.

I'd do all my usual head gasket inspections.





Read up here:
https://www.civicforums.com/forums/3...reference.html

 
Rep Power: 186

It's just never ending for these head gaskets on this generation. It's just unbelievable. I've never heard of a vehicle with this many head gasket issues.

 
Rep Power: 518

Most only seem to do it once (that I have seen here, barring some other failure causing it)....but it sure seems like all of them do it sooner or later.

BTW there have been plenty of other manufacturers' engines with predictable and expected head gasket pattern failures.
Most were far more dramatic than these we read about here.

 
Rep Power: 0

Well the ones that do you've probably heard of, but would most likely never actually want to own regardless of HG issues... Toyota's infamous 1AZ-FE and 2AZ-FE are in just about anything with a 2.0L or 2.4L in the mid Y2Ks: RAV4s, Camrys, Solaras, Highlanders, Scion tC and xB. Not enough threads tapped into the block and an uncharacteristic (at least for pre-'96) sensitivity to low coolant level. Head warps, and as it warps, pulls the #2 and #3 head studs and threads right out of the block, mandatory Time-Sert on all stud holes to fix. Fine after that, until the owner forgets to check their coolant again. At least after the block fix, just the head warps...

Subarus are also famous for a lot of hilariously non-market-image-like failures in the late '90s and up to mid '00s. The flat-Six in the Legacy they had used to hydrolock with stuck injectors in cold weather if you started it and didn't warm it all the way up, bending rods. Their HG problems on various Impreza and WRX flat-Fours are legendary.

Don't even get me started on domestics/Euro, like the old 2.3L OHC Fords, Zetec 2.0L Focus motors, various BMW inline-Sixes, or 4.6L Northstar Caddies. Hoo-boy were the Northstars bad.

 
Rep Power: 0

Well, I went to the dealer and they confirmed my suspicions that one of the cooling fans was the problem. They quoted me 550+tax total for labor and parts! I came over there and asked how they justified such a ridiculous charge for a relatively simple job. They said that the fan assembly was 280$!!! I went to another place, Good Year automotive and told them about my experience with the Honda dealer and asked if they would repair it for a reasonable price. The guy called somewhere and came back saying 200 for labor and 140$ for a fan. I told him that the Advance Autoparts store next door had this fan for 65$ and that I knew they were getting lots of their parts from them. He got obviously pissed off and told me that he had a variety of sources and that he ordered from wherever he wanted to. I told him that he basically was forcing me to buy same part for double the price and wait for 3 days for it to come instead of going to the store next door, and buying it for half the price like they do most of the time and getting it repaired today. Then I left thinking "I have 2 hands and basic tools and I have always done basic maintenance myself so why not give it a try!? 30 min later I purchased a fan assembly for 65& and 2 year warranty, came home and after watching a few youtube videos I installed replaced the fan in 30-40 min. Cranked the car and BAM both fans spinning beautifully, the AC blowing cold air and the temp gauge stays right where it should. So I saved myself 500$ and feel good about doing it myself.

 
Rep Power: 186

Good luck with that being the actual problem. I ran around with just my condenser fan working for a long time and didn't have any over heat problems.

We'll see you when you come back for the real problem.

 
Rep Power: 149

Well played! Great job on using your head and solving the problem! I had a similar issue with a local chain. They performed the state inspection for me and failed me on front stabilizer bushings. They quoted me $180. No break down for parts/ labor. I called around local part stores and nobody had bushings in stock. Avg price was $15. I ordered them from online retailer for $4. So I peeled the rejection sticker, took the car to a different shop and watched as they did the inspection. He got out the big pry bar and checked the front suspension/wheels out. Passed inspection no sweat.
But when the new ones came in I replaced them anyway. Took about 15 minutes. There is always someone willing to take your money and plenty in the auto service business.
I've also been quoted $580 for a front window regulator/motor assembly on a Toyota Camry. I bought the assembly myself and replaced it for under $100 and about an hour of my time.

 
Rep Power: 518

Since when is that a safety issue?
It's not an integral part of the suspension.
The suspension will function without it.
Therefore, it's not a safety item.

The 2nd shop passed it, they were in the right.

JMO.