I was searching the internet for a issue my 2005 Honda civic ex couple is having the same issue as what this guy describe below which is a old thread. I did not see if the guy got a fixed. This is what i done so far and the problem still there. I replaced the Thermostat, timing belt and water pump but that did not help the car still overheats and while I'm driving around the town but if I'm on the highway doing 70 miles a hour it goes down to normal temp. I also had all the fuels filled but no luck.

any help is appreciated.

Thank you

below is the link for the original thread:

https://www.hondacivicforum.com/foru...ad.php?t=57927


2005 Civic EX Overheating & Heater Problem
Ok I have seen a lot of similar problems like mine posted but not exactly the same thing so I figured I would just ask. I have a 2005 Civic that had front end damage and was completely repaired. Shortly after this my temperature gauge started reading hot and the engine has shown no signs of overheating. This always seems to happen when stopping in traffic and such. Sometimes it won’t do it for a week and others it will do it everyday. I seem to be able to get the gauge back down by turning the car on and off while driving and the gauge usually just drops almost instantly to normal. Also my heat is only working while the car is moving. The last problem is that sometimes when driving in the city the car seems to shudder a bit when shifting into first and second gear. Any help would be great; I have ignored it long enough.
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"Heater only works sometimes" is almost always because the coolant level is low. When the engine is cold take off the radiator cap and check directly in there, it needs to be full to the top. Also of course put some in the white plastic tank.

Once the system is full, check if the fan works. "Overheats when sitting in traffic, but cools down when driving" is because the fan doesn't come on when it needs to.

 

I will try and keep you posted.

Thank you

 

I'm having the exact same issue. One thing i've noticed (my fan is good btw) is that if I rev the engine to about 1500-2000 rpm, it will start pumping water. The heater, when at idle, will sometimes not blow hot. I guess this car is like all cars and basically coolant flows past some coils to heat the air. It seems like coolant is not pumping unless the rpms are above a certain rpm range, and possibly a certain vacuum level.

I've changed the thermostat, pump, belts, etc, out of routine maintenance. I'd like to see how yours turns out. Try the rev thing to see if that helps. It takes about 5-10 seconds for the temp to start to move, but then it drops back to normal operating temp within seconds.

 

I have 93 dx d15b7 with the same problem lolz it started when i stupidly took my fitv off after just driving it across town to adjust my idle and a crap load of coolant shot everywhere and now on dif. days it picks different gears to get hot in like today it got hot in 3rd however when the temp starts going up i just floor it to like 4k and it shoots back down i figured if i filled the reservoir with coolant it would fill the radiator but i guess not cause when i looked in my radiator its not to the top but you can see some fluid and the reservoir says its at max. So ill fill up the radiator and see if it fixes my issue.

 

If you have a big bubble of air in the engine, the water pump can't move coolant around easily. That's why higher rpm seems to help but it is not the cure. The radiator and engine must stay completely full in order for the system to work properly.

If coolant consistently goes into the reservoir and doesn't return, leaving the radiator empty, it could be the seal in the top of the radiator cap or the hose between the two has an air leak. This situation also occurs with a bad head gasket because the gas from the cylinders forces coolant out of the radiator.

 

could it be a hose that goes to the fitv? i filled up the radiator and took it for a 20 min. drive it went a little higher than normal once but not as bad as it was before and on the way home it didnt overheat at all. Should the fan on the radiator spin all the time? cause when i stopped and popped the hood it wasnt spinning, same when i turned on the heater.

 

I just joined this forum today because I need help with the same issue as ecpunk. I replaced the thermostat and didn't help. I was going to change the water pump next but it appears people have already tried this w/o success.
Joelt624 or ecpunk, have you had any success yet??? Anyone??

 

You need to get all the air out after working on the system. Car must be on level ground or facing slightly uphill so the radiator is the highest point. With engine cold, take off the radiator cap and fill radiator to the top. Start engine and set heater dial on full hot (works better NOT to turn the interior fan on though). Watch the level in the radiator and add more as needed. When it starts to overflow, put cap on and let engine warm up fully (fan should come on, and it should not overheat).

If you've already done this and you keep losing coolant out of the radiator (before the engine overheats, and boils it out), one of 3 things is happening:

1. Leak to outside: This will empty the reservoir bottle first, then the radiator.
2. Faulty recovery system (radiator cap, reservoir, and the hose connecting them). Reservoir will stay full or overflow, radiator becomes empty.
3. Leak in the head gasket, allowing gas from the cylinders to displace coolant out of the system. Basically the same symptoms as #2, if you rev the engine with the cap off you may see a steady flow of bubbles in the radiator. Cylinder leakdown test can be performed for more conclusive diagnosis.

 

I filled radiator with anti freeze on a up hill like mk378 said and after that it has not done it for about a week or so now. Let's see what happens but the heater doesn't start working until i get on the highway.