1999 Civic blown head gasket

Two items that were not covered in this discussion...

1. Is this the original radiator, if not - How many miles since the
replacement?

2. You checked the coolant level in the overflow tank but did you check
the radiator itself?

JT

 

Original radiator. And still in good condition according to the
dealer. All hoses are fine too. Their hypothesis is that the
thermostat went bad.

I did not check the coolant level in the radiator. But because of the
sweet smell the day before, I am pretty sure the gasket was gone
before I noticed the overheating.

Does that change anything?
Thanks
BT

 

Original radiator. And still in good condition according to the
dealer. All hoses are fine too. Their hypothesis is that the
thermostat went bad.

I did not check the coolant level in the radiator. But because of the
sweet smell the day before, I am pretty sure the gasket was gone
before I noticed the overheating.

Does that change anything?
Thanks
BT

 

if the thermostat goes bad, the gauge will show. if the coolant level
drops, the gauge frequently won't. as grumpy says, with the engine
cold, you need to regularly check coolant level in the radiator, /not/
the expansion reservoir - any leaking means the bottle stays the same,
but the coolant in the radiator disappears.

 

if the thermostat goes bad, the gauge will show. if the coolant level
drops, the gauge frequently won't. as grumpy says, with the engine
cold, you need to regularly check coolant level in the radiator, /not/
the expansion reservoir - any leaking means the bottle stays the same,
but the coolant in the radiator disappears.

 

Good call. The last time I checked the radiator itself was about 4
weeks ago when I did an oil change. It was fine at that time. And the
dealer said the coolant level was fine when they checked it. They also
couldn't find anything wrong with the thermostat, but suspect it was
stuck at some time, which may have caused the damage. This would be
the original thermostat. How long are they expected to last?

I dunno. It seems like the head gasket just gave up the ghost because
of age or something. Do they have an expected life-span?

BT

 

Good call. The last time I checked the radiator itself was about 4
weeks ago when I did an oil change. It was fine at that time. And the
dealer said the coolant level was fine when they checked it. They also
couldn't find anything wrong with the thermostat, but suspect it was
stuck at some time, which may have caused the damage. This would be
the original thermostat. How long are they expected to last?

I dunno. It seems like the head gasket just gave up the ghost because
of age or something. Do they have an expected life-span?

BT

 

not usually. occasionally one is just defective, occasionally there is
a head/block machining defect, but most of the time, it's thermostat
which in turn is much less common than coolant loss.

 

not usually. occasionally one is just defective, occasionally there is
a head/block machining defect, but most of the time, it's thermostat
which in turn is much less common than coolant loss.

 

Sort of. At /minimum/ you're expecting over 200,000 miles from a head
gasket.

It's normally the "fire rings" that fail on an all-aluminum engine. Those
are the parts of the head gasket which keeps combustion gases inside the
cylinders. The fire rings can only take so much pounding over the years
before they eventually develop weak spots that turn into gas-leakage
points.
Overheating (or near-overheating) accelerates failure of the fire rings
through warpage of the head, as does corrosion due to neglected coolant
changes.

There are three things you can do to prolong the life of your head gasket:
1) NEVER allow the temperature gauge needle to rise much above "normal";
2) change your coolant every two years, even if it's the "long life" kind;
3) make sure your ignition timing is always kept spot-on (on cars with
distributors).

 

Sort of. At /minimum/ you're expecting over 200,000 miles from a head
gasket.

It's normally the "fire rings" that fail on an all-aluminum engine. Those
are the parts of the head gasket which keeps combustion gases inside the
cylinders. The fire rings can only take so much pounding over the years
before they eventually develop weak spots that turn into gas-leakage
points.
Overheating (or near-overheating) accelerates failure of the fire rings
through warpage of the head, as does corrosion due to neglected coolant
changes.

There are three things you can do to prolong the life of your head gasket:
1) NEVER allow the temperature gauge needle to rise much above "normal";
2) change your coolant every two years, even if it's the "long life" kind;
3) make sure your ignition timing is always kept spot-on (on cars with
distributors).

 

In my experience, any radiator after 150K is usually plugged or well on
its way.

JT

 

In my experience, any radiator after 150K is usually plugged or well on
its way.

JT

 

And have the radiator serviced/cleaned (rodding) every ten years or 150K
miles. A partially plugged radiator will raise havoc with any cooling
system. As JB stated, thermostats should be replaced maybe every five
years and lastly, a faulty water pump should be considered. Sometimes
impellers can start to slip.

JT

 

And have the radiator serviced/cleaned (rodding) every ten years or 150K
miles. A partially plugged radiator will raise havoc with any cooling
system. As JB stated, thermostats should be replaced maybe every five
years and lastly, a faulty water pump should be considered. Sometimes
impellers can start to slip.

JT

 

with a plastic tank, it is prudent to simply replace it being as they
tend to crack round about then anyway. no cleaning, no bugs in the
matrix, guaranteed functionality.

 

with a plastic tank, it is prudent to simply replace it being as they
tend to crack round about then anyway. no cleaning, no bugs in the
matrix, guaranteed functionality.

 

Thats pretty reaonable for my area. Most mechanics won't touch a 10 year
old vehicle and 3K is more like dealer price in NY area

 

the proverbial urban legend that putting a rebuilt head on an old
engine will make the bottom end go, because the increase of pressure
back to spec is too much for it. my theory, based on seeing a couple
of rebuilt heads, is that they come with so much scrap metal and
shrapnel in the cooling and oiling passages that it clogs the oil
passages in the crank. (one of these did indeed end up with a thrown
rod shortly afterwards)

when i needed a rebuilt head, i eventually went with one rebuilt from
PAECO in birmingham alabama, btw, which was clean enough to eat off
of. they're not at all cheap, though; their main market is SCCA
racers. looking at their website now, i don't see head rebuilding, but
for anyone who wants to go that route, i'd advise at least asking them.

 

the proverbial urban legend that putting a rebuilt head on an old
engine will make the bottom end go, because the increase of pressure
back to spec is too much for it. my theory, based on seeing a couple
of rebuilt heads, is that they come with so much scrap metal and
shrapnel in the cooling and oiling passages that it clogs the oil
passages in the crank. (one of these did indeed end up with a thrown
rod shortly afterwards)

when i needed a rebuilt head, i eventually went with one rebuilt from
PAECO in birmingham alabama, btw, which was clean enough to eat off
of. they're not at all cheap, though; their main market is SCCA
racers. looking at their website now, i don't see head rebuilding, but
for anyone who wants to go that route, i'd advise at least asking them.