i need help

I have a 95 Civic Dx that is overheating. I was told that I need a new head gasket, but I really dont think I need it. This guy at the shop was like quoting me 1000.00 to fix everything. He said I need a thermostat, radiator and head gasket. Im going to start with the thermostat first then go from there. The thing is I dont have a manual and my cheap ass dosent want to pay for one. =) Does anyone have any ideas or guides that could help me out? Any help would be greatly appriceated. Thanks
Been

sorry dude with that much work you need to buy a manual

haha yeah Im going to purchase a manual. I was just wondering if anyone had any pointers for me. Thanks

Ok here are my $.02. First, change the thermostat, then change your coolant. What you do is, you go to your auto parts store and get a gallon of coolant and they have "radiator cleaner" too. Drain all your coolant put in the radiator cleaner and fill it back with water. Save the coolant untill later. Drive it for a day or two and then drain the water and the cleaner out. Fill it with water again and then drive it for another day. After that mix your coolant with water (the ration is on the back of the bottle) and fill your system. Then you done. That should fix the probem. Good luck

PS: You will have to open your cooling sistem vents when you refill the system with new fluid. You can do it with a flat tip screwdriver on the top r/h sid of the valve cover. R/H side as you drive the car. Right by the hose that goes in the engine.

Like I said this should work if your head gasket is not blown. You will know if your head gasket is blown if you get oil in the cooling system. When you drain the water look at it and see if you have oil/grease in the water. DON'T FORGET TO DUMP THE COOLANT ACORDING TO YOUR STATE LAW.

aights

Ill do that today when I get off work, someone had also suggested that I get a thermostat and radiator from a Acura Intergra. This will help with overheating issues because it will allow more coolant.

Yup... exactly. Some mechanics will try to get you to buy things that you don't necessarily need, yet.

Do exactly as Stephan said and check for leaks in the radiator and hoses. The head gasket should be okay if you don't find oil in the coolant... but at the time that your engine overheated... if you saw a large amount of white smoke and water vapor come out of the tail pipe, it's probably your head gasket. Especially if the vapor smelled like coolant, that would be bad.

But get that thermostat replaced right away... that's what you really NEED. If things are okay after that, you've saved a lot of money.

Nope no white smoke from anywhere. Its just that my gauge reads hot and my radiator is really hot. Seems like my coolant/water evaporates out of my radiator quite fast. But there isnt any thing leaking under my hood nor any white smoke from my exhaust.

check and see if both of the radiator hoses are hot. You might just have air in the system. Good luck. Stefan525

What if I do have air in the system? How would I resolve this ?

Well from what I know, if you have air in the systm then the coolant flow will get blocked here and there and not allow the engine to cool properly. That's why I said that you have to relese the air from the system when you refill it with water. Remember the screw at the top left side of the valve cover. That is what is for.

As for the thermostat from an integra...it probably won't fit your D series engine. It would if you had a B16 Si engine tho.

And the radiator also won't fit if you have AC installed. The integra radiator a full row radaitor that takes the space where your AC condensor is currently located.

You could get a performance thermostat that opens at a lower temperature than your stock one does. And also get a fully aluminum racing radiator. But that'll cost some major dough that you probably don't have and you really don't need to spend for the stock Dx engine.

My problem is similar to been. I have a 95 Civic LX. I drove up the Grapevine to LA this weekend by myself, and the needle was at 3/4 up. I stopped twice to let the engine cool down. No white smoke from tailpipe. Anyway, I made it. The next morning, I checked the coolant, adn there was no film or oil residue.

No cooling/overheating problems ever in 8 years on city driving, even with A/C. Only this weekend going uphill (w/o A/C, of course).

So do the recommendations to been - the new thermostat & the Integra rad - apply to me too?

RR, will those Integra parts fit my configuration?