Honda crv 1996, after overheating while air con was on, we replaced a new cylinder head gasket but still it overheats. What could be the cause now?
Since you didn’t tell us anything more than '96 w new head gasket that overheats the list of possibilities is very long. Let’s narrow it down, shall we?
Tell us more about your car and when that overheating occurs and we’ll try and help.
i did headgaskets last summer on new to me car. ran fine and never used any coolant after repair. so i was watching all the usual indicators after job. temp gauge reads normal? coolant level is stable. i did notice cooling fans running while i was adjusting coolant level but after a few days i dont think they ran unless i had the air on. i did use a/c almost daily and fans ran a bit. so, its cold now so no a/c. when motor is hot now your coolant level is ok and fans are running?
does your temp continue to rise after a cold start? cold-warm=too hot?
The solution to engine overheating usually isn’t to replace the head gasket on a flyer. Was there another reason, tests done, etc, that you replaced the head gasket? The most common causes of overheating that seem to be reported here are
- coolant is leaking causing low level of coolant in the radiator
- cooling system isn’t holding pressure (could be the leak above, or something as simple as a faulty radiator cap)
- air trapped in cooling system
- radiator cooling fans aren’t turning on when they should
- faulty engine thermostat
- faulty radiator
- faulty water pump
- flow restriction somewhere in the cooling system
- wrong coolant (since you have a Honda, which seem to be sensitive to this, be sure to only use Honda-approved coolant)
- engine timing problem
If it passes a cooling system pressure test and the radiator fans are spinning like crazy when it overheats, and you otherwise feel lucky could could just replace the coolant and bleed the system of air and replace the radiator cap. Didn’t work? Replace the water pump, thermostat, and radiator. Still a no go? Off to your well-recommended repair shop you go.
Was the cylinder head carefully checked to make sure that it wasn’t warped by the overheating?
Replacing the head gasket on an engine with a warped cylinder head is only half of the necessary repair.
You first need to confirm that both fans are turning on when they are supposed to be on . Both fans don’t always turn on at the same time. The fan on the right side of the car is used for air conditioning. The fan on the left(drivers side) is temperature controlled. If it over heats at slow stop and go driving there’s a possibility that this fan is not working. If it also overheats at highway driving, make sure there is no air in cooling system. If there’s no air in system, make sure there’s circulation. Both radiator hoses will be hot when warmed up. If there is circulation, a pressure test is needed.
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Well, like others have said there can be many causes… Did you do the proper job when replacing head gasket…it is not a job that simply requires a new head gasket.
You have to be sure the cylinder head was perfectly square and not warped…same goes for an Aluminum engine block if an engine overheat had occurred in its lifetime, but block usually dont warp often. So basically check to see if both items are square…if not they need to be milled until they are.
If you did verify the head to be square and have a new head gasket…then the next suspects would be. First to make absolutely certain there is no AIR in the cooling system. Second would be to verify the A/C is turning on the electric fan/s at the radiator. Each is very important and neither can be ignored for a moment…do not just brush past these criteria.
If the head/block relationship were not proper…you would be pumping cylinder compression into the cooling system creating air pockets…which would then start this entire cycle over again in a never ending loop. I believe they call that Hell
Seems as if @stephen51 has floated off into cyber-space never to be heard from again…
The weight of the truth can sink the mightiest of ships…
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great quote… whom from?
I believe that it was first uttered by Robert Mueller.
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Maybe years ago, but not in this present circumstance. He’s too reticent. Not a showboat.
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To be 100% honest, I thought I just made that up… But I think those thoughts a lot, invent things already invented, sayings that already have authors. I thought it sounded funny whilst being apropos.
“Nothing new under the sun” they say… LOL I’m not laying claim to that bad boy but…
I honestly never heard the line I quoted there bout ships…I was trying to be funny… I make up silly quotes all the time. Did I actually coin a legit saying here ?
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Well, we’ll see where it goes! It reminds me of “Facts are stubborn things.” – John Adams