Stallion77: I recently experience over heating with my Honda babyboy 1999 and along the line, i was told my gasket was burnt as the water from the radiator was oozing out wen the engine was running... i had that fixed only to discover that the temperature went up again and water was leaking from a pipe,the mechanics said its the AC pipe and i dont use the AC. I had that fixed and just a little drive of less than 2km,the car temperature goes nearly above the middle. I was then told that my single cell radiator has expired and does not work as efficiently as it should and that i need to change it to a double cell radiator and things will normalize...here lies my question, is that really the problem?

Your candid responses would be highly appreciated.
Thanks!

ZIM DRILL:

on most cars the middle is the car's operating temperature arranging from car to car 82 - 89 degress celsius and the thermo opens at 90 degress celsius no need to change your radiator and it doesnt expire but they get blocked or leak thats when you change one

your water pump should also be checked it was supposed to be changed when they did the head gasket and also i dont see how AC pipe is linked to car's cooling except if s/he meant the pipes that go into the heater matric (a small radiator thats make the car's cabin warm)

sultaan: No part on any car expires I have a picture of a normal gage and you problem might be that you are using only water in your radiator

ikeyman00: @@@@

did u bleed ur radiator to get rid of air trapped in the line?

that alone will cause over heating!

ikeyman00: @@@@

and u might consider changing ur thermostat ? before bleeding

bleeding should be done when the water is circulating to drive out all the air so the engine should be ON

Stallion77:

Sir Sultaan,Thanks for this pix so does it mean that even when it was previously normal at the exact point in your uploaded pix and it goes above that point to about five or more bars above the half mark, inadequate coolant could be the culprit? how much coolant are we talking about? like how many tins of coolant is normal for a radiator cos me i dont understand 50/50 when i cant measure the coolant and water accordingly.
thanks again for the pix dear.

Hmm! Nwanna! I dont know about that one o!

Ikenna.

sultaan: No part on any car expires I have a picture of a normal gage and you problem might be that you are using only water iplean your radiator

ikeyman00: @@@

yes bro ikenna



well i never ask her to remove the thermostart; i said change which means replace right?

Stallion77: I thought both fans should be on as soon as the engine comes on... cos the last time i discovered that it overheated, i checked and discovered one of the fans was disconnected so i asked someone to connect it thinking that was the cause for overheating. so honestly,i dont know what to think again cos i have had the radiator washed and flushed....all to no avail. my next move is changing the radiator as they said it is rusted and not working well, then probably check the water pump.

I thought both fans should be on as soon as the engine comes on... cos the last time i discovered that it overheated, i checked and discovered one of the fans was disconnected so i asked someone to connect it thinking that was the cause for overheating. so honestly,i dont know what to think again cos i have had the radiator washed and flushed....all to no avail. my next move is changing the radiator as they said it is rusted and not working well, then probably check the water pump.

Stallion77: I thought both fans should be on as soon as the engine comes on... cos the last time i discovered that it overheated, i checked and discovered one of the fans was disconnected so i asked someone to connect it thinking that was the cause for overheating. so honestly,i dont know what to think again cos i have had the radiator washed and flushed....all to no avail. my next move is changing the radiator as they said it is rusted and not working well, then probably check the water pump.

dan_dollar: my radiator fan doesn't come on even after idling for like 15mins.is this normal,please?

Ikenna351:


Before you take it up with your fans, you need to clarify something for us.

Does the needle in temp guage goes above the middle of the guage when the car is in motion (like above 60km/h) or does it only rises above middle of the guage when the car is stationaly? If the car overheats when the car is in motion (about 50-70km/h), then your radiator fans are not the issue here, because those fans shouldnt be spinning or running when the car is in motion at such speed, unless your A/C is on.

You said the cooling system was bled before you while you watched, how was it done?

Your fans arent suppose to start spinning as soon as you start the car. If that is what is happening in that engine bay, then you are saying bye-bye to that your engine, poko a poko. They need to be reverted back to the factory connection. Running the fans constantly wont stop overheating. If there is a problem with the cooling system, the system will boil like hell, whether four fans are spinning constantly or not.

There is a way you can know if the fans you said wasnt running when you checked, still have the original connection to the factory trigger. I have treated this recently in a similar topic. Its very simple. It will also help you to know if the thermostat is still in that system or have been removed. If its there, it will also help you to know if its working or has failed: stuck closed or opened. Though, it will be difficult to tell the difference between a stuck open thermostat and a system that the thermostat is lacking or been removed. In that case, you may have to open the thermostat housing to find out.

If you are very sure that you have tested for head gasket failure and it hasnt failed, then your issue is a minor one. You just need to do the right thing at the right place and you start smiling again.

That clown that told you to replace your radiator with the double cell one, what did you call him again? Mechanic? Is that how to solve a problem?

The rusty coloured water you see in your radiator was not formed in your radiator, rather, around the engine walls, as a result of the water you usr only. The more you use only water, the more you see that terrible colour. It will get to a point, some tiny passages that the fluid flow around the engine wall/block will get clogged/blocked by those things that look like sand in the radiator, which start a terrible overheating, more than the one you are experiencing now, if that is not the cause of the overheating you are having now sef. Tell that your clown to flush the cooling system by removing the flush bolt on the engine block. Removing the radiator hoses is not cooling system flushing. Big quantity of fluid is still trapped in the engine block. Those are the ones that clogges the radiator or contaminates the fresh fluid when not flushed out. And the fluid in the engine block is the one that traps air in the system and needs to be bleed out. So, let him do a thorough flushing and bleeding.

I would advice you use water first after the flushing and bleeding. Then test drive it a day or two. iF you the overheating problem doesnt happen again, then you can take it back to him to repeat what he did: flushing and bleeding. This time, refill the system with coolant, a good one.

I still need you to answer the questions i asked above to know how to deal with your fans issue, if there is any issue with them.

Ikenna.

Stallion77:



Thanks a mill Ikenna...yes the temp guage goes above the middle of the guage wen car is in motion 50km/h and above.

It was bled by loosing one small bolt near the top of the engine that trickled water out wen water was poured into the radiator.

Is there somewhere u can refer me to in abuja pls?

sultaan: When she said she had someone reconnect the fan, another question from that fix will be if the fan is turning in the right direction.


Whenevr the needle gets half way on the thermometer your fan should automatically come on

Stallion77: Thanks alot Ikenna and Sultaan...i will test the fan connection at dawn,and make sure an engine block flush is done.
Thanks again.... But u sha ignored my last question Ikenna.

Ikenna351:


How did it go? Any improvement?

I didnt ignore your question actually. It just that i didnt want you to come back and say "You sent my car to its early grave", simply because i recommended someone i didnt trust enough not to complicate issues more.

Can you bring the car to me on Saturday to look at it and see what i can do, if the issues are yet to be fixed?

Ikenna.