I have a 1995 Honda Civic LX (1.5L, Automatic). I recently changed my radiator and thermostat and everything seemed fine but now that the weather has been getting warmer, my car is overheating. Here are the symptoms:



1) Car starts fine and warms as usual (about ¼ on the temp indicator)

2) I turn on the heat inside the car and it blows cold air.

3) I get out on the highway (also city driving) and then the temp gauge gets just a little over ½ and then the heat kicks in and the temperature drops to about ¼ again.

4) While I’m driving on the highway it starts to creep up to about ¾ on the gauge (still warm air blowing inside)

5) The gauge seems to hover at ½ to ¾ (or just over 3/4) even though I have the heater blowing on full.

6) I never seem to hear/feel the radiator fan kick in but not sure.



I am worried that this will damage my engine. Any suggestions of what to look for? Could this be the fan? I checked my fuses inside the car and in the fuse box under the hood. They all seem fine. Any suggestions/recommendations would be welcome.

 

Leave your car on in the driveway for like 10-15 min. This should create enough heat for your radiator fan to start. But when your car in on the highway, you don't need the radiator fan. The rad fan is only really needed when you are driving in the city b/c there isn't enough air passing over the radiator to cool it enough. Are you sure that the thermostat was installed correctly? How does it drive in the city? Does the car overheat even faster? I would start with the fan b/c its the easiest to check.

 

i'm wondering if that thermostat is faulty. also, you said it blows cold air then warm? maybe some kind of blockage? just a guess.

 

Seems to be the same whether it's city or highway. Blow cold air and then the stat gauge reaches almost 3/4 and then hot air starts blowing and the temp gauge goes down to about 1/4. After a few minutes it starts to go up to 1/2 or higher (just over 3/4). Then it kind of hovers at or around 3/4 and 1/2. Can't seem to figure out the pattern. Usually hot air comes out of the blower. Sometime it does turn to cold air. Really weird. I had the rad and stat changed by a mechanic. I want to go back but want to make sure I know what I'm talking about. I get the feeling he's gonna try and start replacing everything to figure it out and put a big dent in my pocket. I wanna go prepared with some advice.

Also, does the temp gauge give me the temp of the engine or the rad?. Should I just replace the stat and fan for starters? Any suggestion would help immensely. Thanks in advance...I love this forum.

Cheers

 

If it's a blockage, where should I start looking? I assumming the hoses that come from the rad to the engine....any other area I should be checking?

Also, when i have my heat blowing on full it doesn't bring the temp down that significantly....it only has a minor effect on the temp going down. I leave it on full cause I'm worried that if I don't it will completely overheat.

 

hummm it might be the fan..but it might also be the begining of a blow head gaskit, are you loosing coolent or tail pipe smoking more then usuall?..if so they that might be it

 

You are way to parts happy. It seems like you are just looking to replace parts. When the mechanic told you that _____ needed to be replaced, ask him if this part will 100% fix the problem. If he says no, tell him to find the part that will 100% fix the problem. If he does say that a part will 100% fix the problem, get it in writing. You can change every part in your cooling system and eventually you will fix the problem. But as you pointed out, it will/is leave a dent in your wallet. An example is that if your temp sensor is bad and you change your fan, you will still have the problem. I'm not saying that that is your problem, it is an example of a problem and the wrong solution. They have similar symptoms. The fan isn't turning on, so change the fan? No. You have to ask, why is the fan not turning on. Is the fan not turning on b/c it isn't recieving a signal to turn on or it is broken. The mechanic is suppose to be asking himself that question and getting to the bottom of the situation. Some mechanics aren't smart enough to figure it out and they just go and replace parts till the problem is fixed, and you pay the bill. What do you think the chances of your thermostat, radiator and rad fan went bad at the same time?

 

I would try to find a temp gun and aim it at the heater hoses when it blowing cold air with your heater on. The temp should the be same as rad hoses. If not, you have some kind of water flow problem. It may be your water pump not moving the water around the block. Also, try or test out your thermostat.