I have 2 Integra - 87 & 99 with 75k & 150k. Both parked undercover and not used for commuting.
The windshield fluid container lid is cracked on the 99 Integra! What might have caused it to crack? I also had to replace the radiator a yr ago.
Whereas the 87 still has the originals on those both items!
It looks to me that if we buy cars for lighter use a lot of these things will likely go bad outside the warranty and cost more!
What is your question???
sometimes things just crack. You’re talking about a part that will be under 10 bucks. I wouldn’t be terribly upset in your shoes.
Radiator is under 10 bucks? When it cracked the car was also out of use till repaired.
Whether you use your car or not, parts age. Service intervals are based on mileage or a period of time, whichever comes first, just like warranties.
Yes, if you buy a car for light use, things will go bad after the warranty expires, but they would have likely outlasted the warranty whether or not you used the car.
If you are putting so few miles on your 1999 Integra, it sounds like you really only need one car.
Just a generation or two ago, whole families got by with only one car. My parents made it work by taking the bus to work, and making other compromises. Today, people think they need two or three cars per family, when they really could get by with one if they had to.
Your 1999 Integra is now 12 years old. Did you expect it to last forever without being repaired? I think you have unrealistic expectations. My radiator cracked on my 1998 Honda Civic last year, and I didn’t cry about it. It lasted about 12 years and about 190,000 miles. That’s pretty good for a radiator.
Your 1999 Integra is now 12 years old. Did you expect it to last forever without being repaired?
My point is comparing with 87 integra.
I realize that. For whatever reason your 1987 Integra didn’t need these repairs, you got lucky. So you haven’t been as lucky with your 1999 Integra. Worse things could happen, like needing a new transmission or a new engine. All you needed so far was a couple minor repairs. Consider yourself lucky.
If your car was two, or even five years old, I could understand your complaints. You are making a big deal out of what most people consider normal repairs.
I know the 99 Integ has plastic radiator whereas the 87 has metal/alum.
Well, you did say it was the windshield fluid container, which isn’t the radiator, is the thing that’s cracked now.
Radiators go bad too. Just because it has an H on the hood doesn’t mean it’s completely unbreakable.
You apparently live a life without any real problems to obsess about these things.
Replacing the side parts with plastic reduced weight and simplified construction reduceing cost. The plastic parts work well in most cars. You got 12 years of use on that so what is the problem. Plastic parts are just as tough as metal and in this application better than the same weight of metal. They are more resistant to being punctured and corrosion.
The typical reason that a radiator ends up needing replacement is poor maintenance of the cooling system on the part of the car owner.
So what is your point anyway? Honda products aren’t supposed to break? Hondas are machines. Machines break. There’s no special magic about it.
I’ll take either one off your hands . . . sounds like you’re in for a bunch of little problems from now on. Where are the cars located? I’m kidding, of course. The cap on the windshield washer fluid reservoir is a minor item. Go to a junkyard and get one . .I doubt that they’ll charge you more than a buck. Good luck with your Honda-type cars! Rocketman
Lets see if I’ve got this correct:
Your '87 Integra has Seventy-five Thousand miles on it.
Your '99 Integra has One Hundred and Fifty Thousand miles on it.
So, you are trying to compare a car with twice as many miles on it for overall parts reliability with one that has only gone half the mileage?
Here’s a question directly related to the radiators:
How many times did each car get its coolant flushed during its life?
Did you own both since new?
Anyway, from what I can see, you’re comparison between the parts longevity of the two cars has nothing to do with Honda and the parts it uses on car, but the fact that the newer of the two cars has double the mileage of the older car.
Here’s one last question:
When the '99 had 75k miles on it, was the radiator still original, and was the windshield fluid container lid cracked? I’m betting they weren’t.
Try driving the '87 Integra non stop until it is at the 150k mile mark, and see if the radiator dies, and the windshield fluid container lid cracks.
BC.
Bladecutte wrote: Your '87 Integra has Seventy-five Thousand miles on it.
Your '99 Integra has One Hundred and Fifty Thousand miles on it.
Sorry its otherway - my mistake when I typed it using a netbook.
I took good care of the cars - I drain & fill the radiator coolant very regularly - every 2 or 3 yrs. I have Excel spreadhsheet to write what I did so I can remember 1 yr later (every summer, I go over the Honda manual - if I did it at the shop I would have the receipts - no need to write them).
Cracking of the plastic radiator has nothing to do with the coolant change - it in fact cracked after returning from an oil change at Goodyear tires - I don’t know if Good year did anything to it.
Underhood heat plays a part in things like this and the '99 has twice the mileage as the '87.
Stuff happens. This problem (?) is so minor as to be just about irrelevant.
1987 has 150k
1999 has 75k
Sorry about it.
Plastic side tank cracking is not uncommon for just about ALL radiators as old as yours, yours is no exception, so not worth worrying about. Mine (Lexus) went out about the same time, caused by worn-out engine mounts allowing the engine to rock, cracking the tank where the radiator hose entered - you might want to check that. As for your coolant reservoir cap - really? You’re worried about that?
The plastic part of my '88 Accord radiator cracked after 18 years. Such is life…
Update:
The windshield fluid container lid that was cracked on the 99 Integra, turned out to be from a different car (not sure which one).
I bought it from a dealer after a lease rtn - dealer (non- Honda) acquired it at an auction.