87 CRX cooling problems

Can anyone help me figutre this one out? My 87 CRX is overheating.
have to leave it in the H position just so it doesnt overheat. And
live in So. Cal. Ive replaced the radiator, cap, thermostat an
checked fans. Everything seems ok. Any suggestions

 

Have you checked the water level? You should check it every morning for
the next two weeks before you start your car. If it's full for those two
weeks--you don't have to check it again unless you have more problems.
It's also possible that you have the wrong type of thermostat installed.
Did you buy it from the Honda dealership? If not, buy one from the Honda
dealership and install it. You also need check the water pump. The easiest
way to check it is to start the car and open the hood. Determine if you
see any water coming out of the water pump. If you don't have any
mechanical experience, take the car to a radiator shop and have them check
these items and also run a pressure test.

 

Bad hoses? Are you getting coolant circulation thru them?
Maybe a bad water pump? That might be the problem,a worn or failed water
pump.

Do the fans switch on when the temp hits the proper setpoint?

 

I have some mechanical experience and have checked everything from hose
to water level. The fans do kick on when the temp gets to a certai
point. The only thing i havent checked is the heater core. I haven
tried back flushing it yet. and if i do, whats the best way

 

If you're getting good heat output from the heater, then it's probably not
plugged. Even it was, it shouldn't cause the car to overheat as a plugged
heater core would just simulate closing the heater control valve.

Eric

 

Heater core plugged or restricted is not going to cause engine overheating.

Is your water pump circulating coolant? I believe worn water pumps are a
common Honda motor problem;it's recommended that the WP be changed when
your timing belt is replaced (at ~60K miles.)

 

I had an '87 Accord that I bought in '94 with 160,000 km and wrote it
off in '02 with almost 380,000 km... drove it all over BC, through BC
winters, one summer to San Francisco, and once with the whole family
loaded up to Chicago during one of the hottest summers on record ('95)
with the A/C running most of the way, and not once did the temp. gauge
ever go above the 8 o'clock position. Except the one time the water
pump busted an impellor blade and ended up with a hole in the casing.
Amazing car.

Replaced that one with another '87 Accord that lasted a couple years
with a "noisy" water pump, and at one point the thermostat did go bad on
that one.

I replaced it with an aftermarket "fail-safe" thermostat - the idea with
that is that if it failed, it would fail in an open position to prevent
overheating... for over $12 (a "standard" stat was $3.50). After two
whole days, it did fail... closed. And I was overheating again.

Another "cheapie" 'stat, and all was good until the water pump finally
gave out.

Point of it all: even a brand-new thermostat can go bad for no good
reason. Check that first. Easy way to test is just to remove the thing
completely - it SHOULD take the car a lot longer to warm up, but that'll
tell you pretty quick if the 'stat is your problem.