Coolant loss problem: 92 Accord

Hi Honda Experts

I had a coolant leak a few weeks ago with some hose that was not
readily accessible. Took it to a Honda mechanic who replaced the
hose.

Ever since then, I cant seem to keep coolant in the engine.

I would fill the coolant bottle to the max line when cold. I notice
when the car gets hot, the level rises which I think is normal and the
coolant is bubbling in the bottle. However after about a day of use,
the coolant bottle is virtually empty when cold but the radiator is
full.

I have checked all over for any signs of coolant loss and the only
thing I can see is coolant overflow on the top of the coolant bottle.

My question is why is this overflowing when I only filled to the max
line?? Could it be my coolant bottle is the problem??

Thanks

jasguild

 

Test your radiator cap & see if it opens at the right pressure. It sounds
like it might not be working (opening at too low pressure).

There should not be any air in the radiator at all. If you are getting
bubbling in the overflow bottle, then you have air in the system. The level
should just rise in the bottle. It should not be bubbling. Make sure the
system was properly purged of air after the hose job.

Also check the hose from the radiator to the overflow tank. It it has any
cracks or holes, or if it does not seal to the top of the radiator and to
the tank, it will not be able suck the coolant back into the radiator as it
cools and you will end up with air in the system.

 

I had the small problem with my Civic 93. The reservoir bottle would
overfill and spil out. This, unfortunalty, is a head gasket problem. The
fluid overboils due to the bad head gasket, and when it overboils it spills
excessivly inot the reservoit bottle. HEAD GASKET for sure!

 

(jas kim) pontificated in

Sounds like either a weak rad cap or the head gasket. Change the rad cap
first. If the problem persists, get a garage to do a pressure test to
confirm the head gasket leak.

 

youve possibly driven it to the point it overheated, and blew the head
gasket.

 

Does anyone knows what cap I should have on this car?? Discount Auto
Parts suggested a 16lbs. The old one that I had on was a 13 lbs.

In either case the new cap did not solve the problem.

Strangely enough, the engine is not overheating. Also I dont get the
impression the coolant is boiling. It just seems to be venting air;
sort of like blowing air through a straw in a glass of soda.

In fact, I only saw my empty coolant bottle by accident

As I mentioned earlier, I just had a hose changed in my cooling
system. Could it not be air is trapped in my system?? Secondly what
is the level I should full the coolant bottle; minimum or max? Also
there is no smell of coolant or steam from tail pipe or coolant
bottle. FINALLY NO BUBBLING when the engine is cold only when engine
is hot.


jasguild

 

I suspect a bad head gasket. A small failure could cause this
phenomenon as the fissure or crack in the gasket will expand when the
engine is hot. Have it looked at. You could also pressure test the
cooling system. Either way, don;t play around.

 

(jas kim) pontificated in

Did the old one have 0.9 or 1.1 stamped into the metal?

IF the gasket IS blown, the longer you leave it the worse and more
expensive it will get. The cylinder surface will begin to rust where the
leak is, or you will get gas cutting from combustion gases blowing by. Both
may effectively scrap the engine for cost reasons.

A pressure test will confirm or discount any alleged leakage. If you have
coolant leakage, a dye test will reveal that.

 

Took the car to a honda mechanic. He measured the compression and did
not find anything wrong. He observed it and found that top radiator
hose leaked when really hot.

My concern is why the bubbling in the coolant bottle.

jasguild

 

If you had a leak in the top hose, it's possible that air was getting
sucked into the engine through the leak on cool-down... and back out
through the reservoir when hot. Keep an eye on it and make sure the
reservoir level goes up when hot and back down when cold.

Rgds, George Macdonald

"Just because they're paranoid doesn't mean you're not psychotic" - Who, me??

 

this happened to me with a 93 taurus( the principle for both cars is the
same)... i was not using coolant, but water...the boiling point was 212
for water and 260-70 for coolant so this is why it might have been
boiling over.... when water boils it evaporates so that is the cause of
loss of coolant volume.... the raditor is full because it sucks the
coolant from the recovery tank when needed(like when its low)... on my
car the radiator cap was tested..i went to auto zone and got one of
those free rentals for a coolant system tester.. $25 or so and you get
your money back when you return it... anyway my rad. cap is suppose to
hold 16 lbs. of pressure... i checked it and it was only holding 2 to 4
lbs. of pressure.. i then replaced the rad. cap and found that it would
stop loosing coolant.. it must have either came out the overflow and
boilded away or washed out the top???? i thought i have the problem
fixed, but it was also loosing coolant, but not as much.. i then found a
leak in the front engine cover gasket and fixed it by removing about
half the engine and replacing the gasket.... hope you dont have the
gasket problem(but maybe not as ford has a bad design on their coolant
system parts)....

 

My concern is that even after the hose change, it still bubbles in the
coolant bottle (not as much though). It also no longer loses the
coolant.

The mechanic said he checked out everything and it worked fine. I
just dont remember ever seeing bubbles in the coolant bottle.

jasguild