I wonder if he somehow used the 5 gas analyzer in his diagnosis of the blown head gasket . . .
I’d guess it’s possible if that’s for measuring levels of hydrocarbons and other emissions it seems possible that could determine things like that.
Estimate seems high - but might be OK if you are in LA, NYC and any big city with high per hour shop rates. I’d get a quote from one or two Honda dealers.
I think you could find a good shop to do a quality job in DC area for $1300 - 1400.
When was you last timing belt replacement? If you skip these parts $1000 is feasible.
Not sure, bought this car used. So no telling. Might be a new water pump. But first things first is getting this head gasket taken care of. How much would you estimate with a new timing belt? Isn’t it cheaper if you get it all down at one time?
the labor to get to the head gasket is the big item, additional labor to do the timing belt and water pump at the same time is minimal. If you don’t know the history of the timing belt replacement, then it is best to assume it was never replaced. The interval on these Honda’s is every 7 years or 105K miles whichever comes first. If you think you’ll keep this car 4-5 years and drive 50 - 75K miles then get everything done now.
Altogether how much are we looking at? I think it need to works head gasket, resurfacing then timing belt and water pump replaced.
Jim, this is a business decision so you need to follow good business practices. Get a couple of estimates/opinions, get everything in writing, get a warrantee with the work and assurances that their diagnosis follows industry standards.
Then select the shop that you think you will get the most bang for the buck. If one shop is low but does not include things in their estimate that you see from other shops, feel free to ask for a new estimate that includes the other things, i.e timing belt, water pump etc. Make sure that there is a time to repair included so that the shop does not hold the car for weeks. With all the information, then you can make an informed decision.
If you take a business like attitude and not try to be the car expert, you will get a better outcome form this transaction.
Thanks Keith I will take all that into consideration.
I work on A LOT of Honda’s and sometimes finding the culprit in situations like this are tricky. I have seen COUNTLESS blown head gaskets in my time. The most common symptom in the Honda’s is where the cooling system gets OVER pressurized…do you notice “Over Hard Rad hoses” Notice any bubbles in the Overflow canister while engine is Hot and running? Run it a long while and keep an eye on these things. I have NEVER…EVER seen a water pump fail to circulate the coolant in the engine…and I mean EVER… WAIT I lied… I saw it one time…In over 26yrs I’ve seen only ONE impeller simply “Pop off” the pump shaft…But this was a rare and one time only condition. So I am in doubt of your pump being the culprit…Impossible? No of course not…just not high on the likely list.
Many MANY times when a vehicle is losing coolant and you cannot figure out where in the world it is going it is usually due to a leak in the system…and it leaks only or mostly while you are driving so it is quite difficult to see where it is going. Had this happen to me an awful lot and it drives me totally nuts each time. MANY MANY of the Honda OVERHEATS I find are due to AIR IN THE COOLING SYSTEM…ESP if you are regularly losing and adding coolant. EACH TIME you add coolant you MUST bleed the cooling system…and I believe your Civic has the cooling BLEED NIPPLE located close to the thermostat housing. I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH…The Hondas…ALL HONDAS are EXTREMELY SENSITIVE TO AIR POCKETS in the cooling system…and the Air MUST be bled out…each and every time Sir.
SO…In this situation… Check your Rad Hoses for overly firm hoses… Look at the Overflow tank and look for bubbles w engine running and Hot. CHANGE OUT The thermostat if you have not done so yet. BLEED the cooling system out…It also doesn’t hurt to let the system BLEED ITSELF…This is done by filling the overflow Reservoir while engine is HOT…and allow the engine to Cool overnight and siphon fluid INTO the radiator as it cools…but you must have the Reservoir FULL to ensure this happens properly.
Check all of the items I have outlined for you. I would change the thermostat out FIRST!!! then go thru all these items… I suspect Air in the system and a bad thermostat WAY before a Failed Water pump. The only Honda water pump I saw fail …Simply leaked out the weep hole in the pump body as its failure mode. Look for Air in that system…TRY to find that leak…and whenever you add ANY coolant…you MUST BLEED THE SYSTEM…without question. I would ALSO suspect a Radiator as bad before the water pump… I have seen bad radiators come RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX…they were bad because they acted like they were clogged/ they did NOT shed the heat properly… I discovered this by feeling the metal channels in the rad… I found 3 that were HOT…and the rest of those channels were almost cold. SO i RE-Replaced the Rad…bled the system …and away we went…perfectly cooling again.
Blackbird
Thanks but you really should have read this post because I already went through most of what you outlined there. The radiator was first changed and then the thermostat… et cetera. Besides I recently had an ASE master tech examine the entire cooling system and whatever else he could find and his diagnosis was a blown head gasket.
So you know its the Head Gasket then? Well hell…I definitely missed that line somewhere…LOL Sure thing…a head gaskets favorite thing to do is play with the temp needle. Been there… done that too many times to count. Not a difficult thing to fix after a visit to the machine shop to mill the head. Well this is sorta good…at least you know definitively what it is… Are you going to repair it yourself? Not too difficult to do really… Get a shop manual and have at it!
Blackbird
I was considering getting it done myself but I’ve never done anything that intensive. Changed spark plugs et cetera…I’ve heard it’s not that bad. But it’s mainly getting the tools together for it such as a cherry picker and all the little hand tools. And I am enrolled at University so I don’t really have the entire to learn and fix it and take the chance of making a mistake. How much does milling cost at a machine shop normally?
@JimFrost you don’t need a cherry picker to do a head gasket, not on an aluminum cylinder head for a 4 banger
@db4690 What tools might I need then? And what does it entail in a nutshell? this isn’t a beginner type job though is it? I’ve never even changed my own brakes before lol
A google search will turn up a how-to writeup, maybe even a video.
I had a '75 Civic. In hindsight I should have nicknamed it the Honda Citrus because it was bright orange.
Pulling head is easy