Engine cooling system

**rye_lara26** · January 23rd, 2011 12:48 PM

Hi guys! Ask naman sana ako ng advice sa inyo, i have a 96 vtec. I am experiencing high engine temperature readings. Usually, nasa gitna lang yung needle ng gauge, but now, umaabot sya ng 3/4. I checked the oil kung may whitish color sya, wala naman, does that mean ok pa yung cylinder gasket ko at walang leaks ng oil at water? i seldomly add any water, say about once a week using a 330ml bottled water container, sa reservoir pa ko nglalagay kasi un ang nbabawasan and not the radiator mismo.
I also noticed na tumataas sya ng temp everytime nag da-downshift ako to overtake, when climbing uphills, and when suddenly nagbreak ako coming from 80-90 or pataas pa,..

additional questions:
1.kapag barado ba ang simota air filter or marumi na, isa sya sa magiging cause?
2. Someone told me that Simota Big tubes will cause underpower rather than increase your cars' HP compared to that of short rams?
3. I dont see any oil mixing with water sa radiator ko. it means ok pa mga gaskets?

Thanks and more power Tsikot!

**ghosthunter** · January 23rd, 2011 12:54 PM

Any repairs or work done on your car before this happened?

Have you checked if your radiator fan is working properly (fan might be turning slower)? OR if the radiator needs some cleaning (inside and outside), or if the thermostat might need replacing...

Have you checked your radiator cap if it's old and cracked?

**rye_lara26** · January 23rd, 2011 01:10 PM

Originally Posted by ghosthunter

Any repairs or work done on your car before this happened?

Have you checked if your radiator fan is working properly (fan might be turning slower)? OR if the radiator needs some cleaning (inside and outside), or if the thermostat might need replacing...

Have you checked your radiator cap if it's old and cracked?

Hi Sir GH, we replaced the water pump since nagleak sya. I thought maayos na ung problem, di pa pala. i cant tell kung for cleaning na yung radiator ko pero yung tubig naman nya is clean, walang lumulutang na rust or kulay rust ung tubig. I just noticed na matagal bago mag ON yung fan nya.. yung fan ng AC halos sumasabay lang sya run kapag nagswitch on ako ng ac. most of the time, kapag nasa halfway ng ung needle, tska pa lang nagoon ung fan motor. Thermoswitch po ba un or thermo-watchamacclit ung probelm? TIA!

**D15B** · January 24th, 2011 12:20 AM

most likely you have clogged radiator, busted thermostat or water pump since your temp rises whenever you downshift or going uphill. this means no enough water circulating on your engine. you can't say that you have a good radiator by just looking the water inside. try to remove first your thermostat and drive it a few kms. and observe if your temp still rises. if the temp still goes up,then your thermostat isn't the culprit. next move is to have your radiator cleaned. drive it again a few kms and observe. do it one at a time until you hit the main problem. you have to be patient in dealing with cooling system since there's a lot of parts on it that's causing the problem. hth

also don't forget what mr. ghost hunter said about checking your radiator cap. replace it if it's already as old as your car.

**rye_lara26** · January 24th, 2011 12:49 AM

Originally Posted by D15B

most likely you have clogged radiator, busted thermostat or water pump since your temp rises whenever you downshift or going uphill. this means no enough water circulating on your engine. you can't say that you have a good radiator by just looking the water inside. try to remove first your thermostat and drive it a few kms. and observe if your temp still rises. if the temp still goes up,then your thermostat isn't the culprit. next move is to have your radiator cleaned. drive it again a few kms and observe. do it one at a time until you hit the main problem. you have to be patient in dealing with cooling system since there's a lot of parts on it that's causing the problem. hth

also don't forget what mr. ghost hunter said about checking your radiator cap. replace it if it's already as old as your car.

Thanks sa update sir D15b! will check that tomorrow. I hope clogged lang ang radiator ko. When i rev while the radiator cap is open, should the water overflow in the radiator tank or aapaw lang ng konti? i'll check the thermostat tom. =) thanks!

**LNopal** · January 24th, 2011 02:31 PM

1st: never use tap water to fill up the reservoir. this will expedite the corrosion in your radiator; use 50/50 mix of coolant -- prestone or some other brand.

2nd: at least flush your coolant every other year. this will help declog the buildup in your radiator.

if a new water pump did not help, then the thermostat must be the culprit. if i were the mechanic, i would have checked the thermostat first prior to changing the water pump since it is cheaper to change.

check mo radiator cap mo for traces of oil; smell it or touch it, there will be some traces if your head gasket is leaking. other traces of busted HG is the sweet smell (not really sweet) on your exhaust or white smoke coming out when you first turn on your ignition. madaming possibilities.

if you have a leaking HG, have it corrected immediately, otherwise you are looking at 20k-50k overhaul... yung engine block mo, baka ipadala for resurfacing and it's costly.

and if in case it is really a blown HG, then i would suggest go to the dealership and have it done the correct way. only if you have money, otherwise go to a reputable shop.

good luck!

**rye_lara26** · January 24th, 2011 11:02 PM

Originally Posted by LNopal

1st: never use tap water to fill up the reservoir. this will expedite the corrosion in your radiator; use 50/50 mix of coolant -- prestone or some other brand.

2nd: at least flush your coolant every other year. this will help declog the buildup in your radiator.

if a new water pump did not help, then the thermostat must be the culprit. if i were the mechanic, i would have checked the thermostat first prior to changing the water pump since it is cheaper to change.

check mo radiator cap mo for traces of oil; smell it or touch it, there will be some traces if your head gasket is leaking. other traces of busted HG is the sweet smell (not really sweet) on your exhaust or white smoke coming out when you first turn on your ignition. madaming possibilities.

if you have a leaking HG, have it corrected immediately, otherwise you are looking at 20k-50k overhaul... yung engine block mo, baka ipadala for resurfacing and it's costly.

and if in case it is really a blown HG, then i would suggest go to the dealership and have it done the correct way. only if you have money, otherwise go to a reputable shop.

good luck!

Hi Sir LNopal, there were no oil traces in the radiator cap. However i have not tried checking the exhaust upon start up. should the white smoke be evident? I still have to check on that tomorrow. I just had the radiator overhauled (or cleaned, should i say) Out of the many radiator columns, only 9 columns were actually without clog. I hope that is the culprit.
haaaist, i hope yun lang ang problem.. Will keep you posted on tomorrow's development, it was raining kasi kanina kaya i wasnt able to test drive it with real birit to check if the temp rises pa. =) thanks po!

**LNopal** · January 26th, 2011 04:05 PM

also have the thermostat checked... easier and cheaper to replace. also check for the radiator fan relay if it is still working. but i hate to break the news to you, your symptoms are signs of blown HG. my previous civic started with the same symptoms where the coolant keeps on spilling into the reservoir and not coming back to the radiator. the short term solution is to keep adding coolant until the blown HG damaged the engine block because of overheating.

i ended up paying top money to repare the damage:

replace HG, re-finish engine block, adjust valve clearance, replaced tension wires because they also got burned because of over heating, replaced water pump (kasi ibinaba na rin naman yung makina).

good luck!

**izzy06** · January 29th, 2011 10:22 PM

definitely tama si LNopal blown HG nga yan, ganyan din ang nangyari sa dati kong 97 vti, kaso yung sa akin di pa umabot na 3/4 ang temp pero laging bawas ang reservoir, naresolve lang ang problema ng magparesurfaced ng block at nagpalit ako ng head gasket, actually di pa nga nakuha ng isang beses kaya ibinaba ulit ang cylinder head.
akala din ng ibang mekaniko kailangan lang palitan ang radiator cap at overhaul ng radiator kaya pinagawa ko kaso di pa rin naayos hanggang sa umabot nga dun sa palit na ng head gasket.