Purchased a used 98, having loads of overheating problems. Engine bogging. Bad mpg. Has 108,000; was poorly maintained. Last oil filter change was at 32,000! ack! Needs timing belt, water pump...usual required maintence. Looks like it may have a bad head gasket. Long story short....I'm wondering if just replacing the engine would be a better bet in the long run. Have NO IDEA what engine to replace with. Should I replace with the same engine D16Y8....is this a good one? Or is there a better engine to replace with that I can just drop in? Any advice would be appreciated.

~Josh

 

If it just a commuter car, just replaced it with the same type motor. Less headaches especially if you have smog laws similar to California.

 

well it all dpend if a d16y8engine cost lets say about 800 dollars and a b16 engine cost 950 i would just spend the extra 150 and put a b16 in an call it a day but if u can drive manual than i suggest u just put the same engine back in there. but a b16 would be better tho but it might cost u a lot. it all depends, u have to do ur Homework when ur buying a engine since u want the best engine for the best price.

 

i disagree, it is difficult to find an si b16 for $950, and lets say he does find it, he has a d series tranny, axles, ecu etc... these parts will not go with the b16, he will then have to purchase the tranny, axles ecu etc parts for the full swap....

if ur looking for speed and are tight on cash go for a ls motor, same price if not cheaper than a b16.... if ur looking for a commuter car thenn jus buy the same motor and drop it in, its a reliablem otor jus make sure it is maintained like any other engine needs to be
good luck

 

They Y8 is an excelent motor. it gets great gas milage, is easy to maintain, and you can now get a ton of parts for it. DHracing makes some excelent products for it. i would just drop in the same motor. and you can find one for decently cheap.

 

Thanks for the advice guys. It looks like IF we decide it needs a motor, then we'll just drop in another Y8. Don't want to hassle with all the tranny ecu etc. issues. We are still investigating the overheating issues. We are hoping it just needs a new thermostat. The water is bubbling up out of the resevoir and basically emptying the radiator when driving for any length of time, which of course causes the gauge to jump up to hot real quick. What we thought might be a blown or leakyhead gasket is now looking like a possible simple fix (keeping fingers crossed)....we'll see. Going to take it into a Honda specialist on Wednesday and have them look it over as well. This is a shopmy parents have used for many years and they trust the owner. If he thinks the engine is good, then we'll go with the required maintnence stuff: changng timing belt, water pump, etc. If he thinksa new motor, then a new motor it will be, except my dad and I will put it in. Can't see paying an extra $1000 to have someone else do it. If anyone has advice on why the water is bubbling out, I am all ears!

~Josh

 

theirs to much air in ur coolant system..... ur car should have a bleeder that has a nozzle that u turn that allows the excess air to come out, this can be causing ur car to overheat but i doubt thats it, its worth a try, its located near ur radiator i think

 

Thanks ic8, we'll check that out. Meanwhile, I tested the thermostat today and it works just fine so so much for that gimmer of hope. After researching the archives here I am beginning to believe it probably is a blown head gasket...or at least a leaky one as we have none ofthe typical symptoms. My dad tried real hard to get the enhine to heat up yesterday, but wouldn't ya know it wouldn't? Couldn't even get the temp gauge at the 1/2 mark...but take her for a cruise down the freeway and thar goes the water and up goes the temp to hot. Can't figger it out. Radiator appears to be brand new. I guess we'll just see what the specialist says next week.

 

i have a similar problem, when i go on the freeway for 15 minutes and exceed 70 mph it starts to overheat.... and how would u think its the head gasket, is their white smoke comiong from ur exhaust, is ur coolant and oil mixing?? do u see oil residue in theh ead area?? head gasket is the worst possible thing, i thought thats wut i had 2 but that wasnt it, id bet my money on the waterpump or tensioner anyway good luck, any questions feel free to ask

 

Nope ic8, no white smoke, no mixing liquids. The main reason we think it might be a gasket is from reading other various posts on various forums with similar problems. They tried all the things we are trying, and it ended up being a gasket. The main reason wewere taking the car to the specialist is to get the belts and pump changed. That is going to run us $350. He also adjusts the valves and some other minor things. This was all BEFORE we knew about the overheating problem, which I think is why the guy sold the car. He put what appears to be a new radiator in it, and has the fan relay jumped to run the fan all the time, plus we could also tell that he'd been into the thermostat housing. We only had the car two days when we began noticing the overheating. I was on my way to work and it shot up to hot instantly. All water in rad and overflow had disappeared and I had just filled it the day before when replacing the oil. (which is when I found out that the oil filter had not been changed in a very looooooong time). I took car for a test drive the other day and even before car reached hot on gauge the water was all bubbling out of the overflow. Which pretty much explains where all my water went. Anyhow, when specialist gets back from vacation on Wednesday, we'll be taking her in and seeing what he has to say. It would be great if it were just the water pump and belts. How did you find out yours wasn't the head gasket? As for a bleeder to take out excess air...can't say I can see one anywhere?