92 accord LX overheats

Hi. I have 92 Honda Accord LX. It has 100 thousand miles on it. I had
no major problem with this car since I bought it new 13 years ago.
Recently, I noticed that the temperature guage sometimes goes up above
the halfway point. So I took it to my mechanic and he checked the few
things but he said he cannot find anything wrong. The mechanic let the
car idle for 20 minutes but the temperature didn't go up either. So I
drove it a few miles and I noticed the temperature guage was going up
again. So I immediately slow down and the temperature goes down. I
don't know what's wrong with my car. Anybody have idea or suggestion?
Thank you very much.

 

Generally speaking...

If the temperature rises over a period of a minute or two and drops over a
period of a few seconds, you have a coolant flow problem. That probably
means the thermostat is sticking, since the mechanic almost certainly looked
at the coolant itself. Catching a sticking thermostat in the act is tough,
especially in a constant state like idle (the thermostat mostly just sits
there at idle).

Otherwise, if the temperature rises over a period of a few minutes and drops
at about the same rate, there is probably a problem with the flow of air
cooling the radiator - intermittent fan, too much dirt in the A/C condensor
or radiator fins, that sort of thing.

The possibility we all hope it isn't is a bad head gasket. The temperature
rises rapidly and usually fluctuates pretty wildly when it is acting up, and
some of the coolant mysteriously disappears. Once that starts, there are
normally more bad times than good times. But unless wild fluctuations are
what you see, I wouldn't worry about this possibility at this point. We all
have enough to worry about and this one is a fairly long shot.

If none of this really rings a bell, a relatively cheap thing to try first
is a new thermostat and washing out any dirt from the radiator fins and the
condensor in front of the radiator with a hose. I like cheap and simple
approaches

Mike

 

My thoughts;

When it heats up, do you see/hear the cooling fan come on that sits behind
the radiator?

Personally I think this is the root of your problem. Because when you drive
it, you have air flowing through the radiator. Sitting, the fan has to
supply that air.

If this fan is not working, it can be the sensor at the Thermostat housing,
the fan motor, or maybe a blown fuse. The motor is expensive, the sensor is
not.

I checked this on a civic by disconnecting that conector at the thermostat,
and just short it with a paperclip, and the fan should come on. Al that
sensor does is close the circiut. By inserting the paperclip you are doing
the same thing.

Check to make sure the Accord is the same though. You don't want to blow a
fuse. Maybe someone else here can answer that.

G-Man

 

I believe that you should take the car back to your mechanic and ask him
to change the thermostat. After the thermostat has been changed, keep an
eye on the temp. guage for the next couple of weeks. If the problem was
solved--that's great. If not, repost and tell us that you had the
thermostat changed and still have the problem--There are some other
possibilites but the thermostat is the best place to start. Also, have
your mechanic make sure the water pump is not leaking. If you have never
had the water pump replaced, it's likely that it won't last much longer.

 

Good advice. Since the mileage is about 100K miles, the timing belt is about
due for replacement if it hasn't been done yet. It's an expensive job, but
only a fraction as expensive as putting it off too long. The water pump is
only a tiny bit extra labor to change when the timing belt is off, and a big
job to change otherwise. Many of us have the water pump changed when the
timing belt is changed.

Mike

 

Ok. Thanks everybody for your prompt responses. I am going to back to my
mechanic right now with these information.
Thanks again.

 

As thanks, you have to let us know the outcome

G-Man

 

My mechanic changed the thermostat for $26.00 total which fixed the problem.
Thanks alot everybody!