HELP! Any Mechanics or Car Experts in the House?

Okay, I have a Honda on its last legs. Its a 1999 Civic and it has been a GREAT dependable car. Well, the miles are up there and I have been having trouble with it a lot lately.A month or so ago the needle kept rising to Hot and the check engine light popped on(something t has only done one other time I could remember since owing the car) The mechanic looked at it and poured some anti freeze in it. It took A LOT!I had a tune up a few weeks prior and they usually check that sort of stuff, but I took it to a different garage and they said the anti freeze must be going somewhere because it was not leaking.

For the past month in the garage there has been a little puddle underneath the car each day when I pull out and the mechanic said it could be oil. When they get older its common for little drips like that to occur.

I NEED this car to last me til the fall. I have an auction coming up and plan on buying a new car by the end of the year and desperately need this car to keep going until then. I've put a lot of money in it recently and am hoping to not put much more into it.

So, today I was riving and noticed smoke coming out of the hood. The needle was on hot and I stopped by to get anti freeze and went home. In the driveway the hood was smoking big time. I waited a few hours for the car to cool and went out to pour some anti freeze in. As I did, I heard it trickling from the bottom. Obviously, theres a leak. My concern is this:

I need to get it to the garage tomorrow morning. How can I fill it so it does not over heat if it won;t hold anti freeze?

Does anyone know if I am facing a big (expensive) job here?

Any thoughts, advice or suggestion or tips are appreciated. Thanks!

I assume that it is antifreeze.

Sounds like the radiator might have a leak. Or it could be the water pump.

Both are a couple hundred for parts.

:hi:

I think he mentioned the gasket before but I dismissed it because it seemed like the anti freeze was the solution.

We filled it about a month ago and all has been fine so far. I'm calling the mechanic first thing in the morning and hope they can get me in. What concerns me is getting it down there. Luckily, I live only ten minutes away but if I am filling it with anti freeze and it goes straight through I don't want to damage or make it worse.

I HATE car problems!

Will look "creamy" or frothy. If not its just a hole in a hose or the radiator it's self.

bad hose or clamp, small hole in the radiator, etc.

How far is the garage? Try filling it with water and driving with...yes, the heat on full blast. It removes some of the heat from the coolant.

Warning: you may have blown a head gasket, and the coolant is going directly into the engine.

You could take a flashlight out and look for the green stains on the radiator shroud, manifold, etc to try to approximate where the external leak is, too.

When I had some pretty crappy cars. Always a blast.

Last time he mentioned turning the heat on. He said it acted as a fan and would help it some. Thanks for the advice. I APPRECIATE IT SO MUCH! I am a worry wart.

If there's water or coolant in it (you'll know because it will look like chocolate milk) it's a cracked head or head gasket and you're pretty much screwn.

If your oil just looks like oil, you should be able to get the coolant leak fixed and be okay. Watch your engine temp VERY closely on your way to the mechanic. Keep it out of the red at all costs, even if you have to stop and wait a while. If that's not practical, get a tow.

Also, your mechanic should have looked to figure out where all that coolant was going. You should seriously consider getting a new mechanic.

Never thought about the oil. I talked to my brother and he seems to think its a leak and that I am worrying over nothing. Hope he is right. OK, a dumb question. I only fill the radiator with antifreeze. Can I fill it with water? My brother thinks its dumb for me to fill it with expensive anti freeze if its leaking and says I should fill it with water instead. I belong to AAA so I might have them tow it if all else fails. Thanks again for the advice!

:shrug:

I had a coolant loss problem with my old 4Runner. My mechanic did a pressure test and was quite proud when he found a tiny little hole in one of the hoses, barely a pin-prick. Cost me all of ten bucks.

It could also be the gasket but the point is that the pressure test will help find the source of the leak.

Another time, I completely lost my clutch. It felt to me like it was something mechanical, in the linkage perhaps. Turned out it was a blown semi-rigid hydraulic hose leading off the master cylinder. Part was five bucks, labor was fifteen. I am very happy with my mechanic.

I'd nominate mine for sainthood if I could.

First off. Someone should have plugged in and done a diagnostic.
Yes, I know that obviously you have a coolant problem, but someone should have plugged in their little computer and done a diagnostic when your engine light came on. It could have been like mine - a MAP sensor (manifold air pressure); or some such...at least you would have known exactly what the problem was a lot earlier. I just had this done on my '95 Del Sol a few days ago.

ANYway, there is such a thing that you can pour into the radiator to temporarily stop the leak.I think it's called StopLeak or Radiator StopLeak It's in a bottle that's sliver in color, but I've forgotten what it's called. We used it last year on the old Grand Am I had. Worked like a charm. Just go ask at your local auto store. Doesn't cost much.

Parts for civics are not that hard to come by..have you checked your local scrapyard? A radiator swap is not that complicated, and would make the car worth selling at some small profit, at least.

Best of luck.

I replaced the head gasket three times in my
ex GFs Civic.

How much are head gaskets? Any idea? Thanks!

http://www.racepages.com/products/?Ntt=Honda+Head+Gasket&N=10606

The labor will take you over $200 (just a guess). It takes
about two hours to install. If you have a friend whose handy
with a wrench then it will be $32.47 + beer and pizza.

This has all been an incredible wealth of information for me. At least now when I talk to the mechanic tomorrow I will have some scenarios played out plus I will understand the mechanic more clearly. I can not say thank you enough to all of you have helped me out. I owe you all dinner! ( L O L )

to just replace the head gasket or you'll go
to someone who will do the work requested.

Basically all that's happening is that the
head gasket is cracked between on of the cylinders
and the engine water jacket so water is getting into
the cylinder and burning as steam. Ergo no noticeable
leaks and your radiator runs dry and your engine overheats.

My GF's head was warped but replacing the gasket
only will give you another two years driving before
it (gasket) fails again. You can tell a head gasket
is failing because your engine will emit grey steam
smoke exhaust and will smell like anti freeze. You
will also find a foamy white deposit on your oil dip
stick.

BTW mechanics are notorious liars and will replace
perfectly good parts if they think you're mechanically
impaired, This is especially true when they are dealing
with women. Good Luck

I don't plan on having this car a year from now, so that would work for me. I have said up til now my next car would be another Honda. This car has 212,000 miles on it and my mechanic says he has seen Honda Civics like mine with up 260,000 miles on them going strong. Obviously,the car has paid for itself several times over and is on borrowed time. Didn't start having trouble with the Honda til it hit 175,000 miles or more. Catalitic converter has been replaced several times,but the garage has paid for it (under warranty) so other than and basic wear and tear and age, its been a great car.

problem. They're great cars. The Toyota Corolla
and Tercel were also really reliable and cheap

My 1974 Corolla cost $CDN 2680.00 new and I traded
it in two years and twenty thousand miles and only
lost $600 in depreciation towards a 1976 model. That's
only three hundred per year to drive a new car under
warranty.

I couldn't get that value from an American or European
car at the time.

the 2000 Ford had a cracked overflow container. I could smell antifreeze and see steam as it leaked onto the hot engine.

My 1994 Accord with 178,000 on it had a water pump leaking and it was replaced when the timing belt was done.

I started with the easiest fix - a new radiator cap and went from there.

Hope you can hobble you car along...

to illustrate my opinion that threads such as this should fall under the same DU policy as those asking for medical or legal advice.

Romantico, you're being done a disservice here. No one should attempt to diagnose automotive problems without actually looking at the car. I've done so in the past, but always with the caveat, "This is just a guess," and always after asking several questions to narrow the possibilities. But here, you have people telling you it's a blown head gasket based only on overheating, an unidentified fluid leak and smoke. One even told you what it'll cost and how long it'll take to fix.

This, in my opinion, is reckless and possibly dangerous, and I've asked the admins to clamp down on threads like this.

-any requests on diet and exercise;

-pet advice, including food and issues regarding behavior;

-home improvement advice;

-advice on wardrobe and jewelry;

-advice on what good beer is. I mean, someone could wind up with PBR;

-and for gawd's sake, no more "what should I make for dinner" threads. Some folks actually advocate eating bacon, which is reckless and dangerous.

Sorry, dude, normally I agree with you, but asking for personal thoughts and experience in these instances is what the Lounge is all about.

I like to hope we'd string their lame hipster ass up by their skinny pants, and then play bad hair metal songs at them until they crack.

that was kinda my point in saying that he should have gone to get a diagnostic. Kinda like going to get checked out at the doctor.
Imports esp.; and I'm sure you'll agree, are very easy to diagnose if you just go get the hand-held computer diagnostic like I had done the other day (on my 95 del sol!) It took all of five min, and a few dollars (or a bit of flirtation!) and then I knew what I had to go get fix (e.g. switch out myself).
I do understand what you are saying, but I kinda err on the side of the fact that one should educate oneself about cars in general/one's car in specific; and that if you don't; you're just asking for trouble. If you don't have enough common sense to do that, well...
all's fair in mechanics and love... ;)

I'm pretty sure romantico would have sold me the car for 200 bucks, with just a couple more downer post.

if you can start it and get it to the mechanics before it gets hot. Otherwise you'll need to get it towed, or have it fixed at home. Don't drive it when it's overheated. Ever.

It does not sound like a head gasket.... or at least not originally; that may be blown now if you've let it get to hot... but don't assume that it is.


It could be your water pump, or it could just be a hose.

Even if you aren't mechanically inclined, if the leak is bad enough, you may be able to get under there and see exactly where it is coming from.