over heating!!!

[teg91ls]

well my integra heats up and steam comes out. it just happened right after i took the ac out, and replaced the broken bolts on the headers. i checked the obvious coolant, and oil. i took the radiator out too. but everything is now connected. and still heats up. any ideas what it is:x

 

[Its a honduh]

Thermostat, loosing any coolant ?


Sent from tapataalllkk

 

[Nick_C78]

^^ Exactly. Sounds like a thermostat problem. Could be other things, but I say start there.

 

[Its a honduh]

Yup yup


Sent from tapataalllkk

 

[Ganyon]

The worst could be a bad headgasket. Definitely change the thermostat first and report back. Do the fans kick on after a while?

 

[dlo253]

Before you waste the money replacing the thermostat though test your current one. Why buy that then find out you blew a head gasket or sumthn.

 

[Nick_C78]

Well, changing the thermostat periodically is good to do anyways. Preventive maintenance. And he would need to buy a new thermostat gasket anyways once he takes out the old one..or at least should buy a new one lol. But yes, you can test your current one(if it isn't obviously broken) by putting it in a pan with boiling hot water(really only needs to be like 200 degrees but yeah).

You can also get a combustion test on your coolant to see if combustion is leaking in to your coolant, which will tell you if it is your head gasket. Compression test is another way, but those numbers can be misleading because other variables can cause compression to be low.

 

[teg91ls]

well im new with integras, learning as i go, but where is the thermostat?. i was thinking it was the fan cus it doesnt start. but i just want to make sure before i buy things i dont need

 

[teg91ls]

and i also put a new batch of coolant in it

 

[Nick_C78]

Follow the bottom radiator hose and it will lead you to the thermostat housing. If you search the web, you will find step by step guides on how to change it. Also, your fan wont come on if the coolant near the sensor is low, or there is an air pocket. Also that sensor is on the thermostat housing. So if your thermostat is messed up and the coolant cant flow passed that sensor, it can cause it not to work correctly.

 

[NemesisCBR]

If you can see the steam you should be able to pop the hood when its doing it and narrow down a location if not also identify it. Coolant will have what people consider a sweet smell or to me its like a candy scent. Not all candy is delicious. Why toy with all the guess work when you can get a visual queue.

 

[Nick_C78]

That is a good idea. However, I am not sure purposely overheating his car to find the steam is a safe choice. But I guess it is not any different then changing parts and testing it to see if it still has the same issue. And keep in mind the steaming can likely be a byproduct of the actual problem. Such as having some blockage, which built pressure and killed a hose, etc.

 

[NemesisCBR]

lol i suppose i wasnt clear enough given the problem. I wasnt assuming that his car is overheating even though its what he says. Definately wasnt suggesting to cause the overheat but we should probably first determine that the op is stating things correctly. You can steam like a mofo without overheating so, OP, how are you sure youre over heating? The engine temp gauge? If its not reading a over heat and youre just saying it because you see steam then do what i said. If its actually overheating then dont but if you happen to be at a point where youre driving and you see steam, naturally you should stop and then try to identify where its coming from. If this was done at an earlier point you could go back an inspect the area under suspicion when its cool.

 

[Nick_C78]

^Agreed. If it's overheating, try not to drive it until you isolate the problem/start fixing things. If it isn't over heating and you just see steam, do what NemesisCBR is telling you. Also, try to pay attention to coolant levels and such if you do decide to drive it. Your temp gauge tends to give inaccurate readings when coolant is low and combined with air/steam.

 

[NemesisCBR]

Yeah in reality there isnt really any details provided that allow anyone to help you specifically. Confirm that you are overheating first or what the steam is. Detail more about the occurance, when, where, what and how often. This should actually follow after youve inspected and couldnt identify or confirm what it is that is leaking.