2003 Honda Accord sedan: A piece of the neck of radiator where the top hose attaches broke off a second time. Drove it a few blocks unknowingly. I put the hose back on, could not add fluid to the radiator, it was full at the cap. Few more blocks to auto parts. Anyway have diven it a few blocks to park, mechanic, but I let it cool down as soon as it gets up 3/4. I think there is just a piece lodged inside. Why cant i add fluid? Should I thru the top hose to see if it dislodges and fluid moves.? If it doesn’t move i know it could be water pump.
The First,highly rated (so many are, unreliable, the ratings: Yelp, which seems to copy Google. Found articles saying they are unreliable) auto shop is saying it’s head gasket , thermostat, and water pump - it’s not. anyway they are lying about a couple things (an oil leak and not saying why not able to add fluid). There was nothing wrong with any of them before the neck piece broke. It ran at its normal temp always. I didnt drive it hot long enough for damage and no liquid steaming (of course it doesnt have much in, since I could not add more after re-attaching the hose.
UInfortunately I will have had to take it to another mechanic by the time I can check answers. Other than get parts back, after spending $$, how can I know what was really wrong? Why I can’t add fluid, which SHOULD stop the overheating.
How pick a good auto shop since the ratings seemed rigged (not here, but too few ratings on this site)? sry long post. Thx for help
Highly rated What? Who?
How do you know? How would we know? You didn’t tell us ANYthing
Wrong with WHAT? The radiator? The overheating?
I can’t offer any answers to your questions at all. You typed a lot of text but told me absolutely nothing about the car. Not even the type, let alone year, engine or anything else.
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Yeah. What piece of the radiator broke off?
You say a piece of radiator broke off a second time. The first time any piece of a radiator breaks off the radiator needs to be replaced. Who knows what other wear or damage the rest of the cooling system has as a result of a broken radiator?
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I put in the heading the neck…of where the top hose attaches. Yes, radiator should be replaced.
It functioned normally for weeks after we re-attached the hose to the remaining part of the neck.
If the cooling system has a leak anywhere it won’t be able to maintain the correct coolant temperature. Since you know the radiator won’t hold pressure, the first thing to do is replace the radiator. Once that is done post back with any remaining problems. I replaced the radiator in my Corolla a few years ago, very easy job, and the part is inexpensive. The new aftermarket radiator was priced less than $100. Living in Phoenix you’ll probably want to buy an oem radiator, which will be priced a littel more than that. But still even oem radiators for common cars like this usually aren’t overly expensive. For the V6 engine, an oem radiator looks to be about $350. 1 1/2 hours labor. A little more time if equipped with an automatic transmission.
Thanks George etc. I replaced a radiator also myself once on my long lasting Toyota Corolla (I am a woman btw), but cant any longer. I Did brakes, oil changes, carburator too.)
I got more info from the mechanic, will post here when I’m certain, Monday.
I still wonder why under the cap is full, when it all should have leaked out when the hose came off.
I thought a piece of the radiator might be blocking it inside radiator.
i don’t live in Phoenix btw, name is for the firebird.
Thanks
When the thermostat is closed (engine cold) the coolant inside the engine just goes around in circles , powered by the water pump, and that circulation doesn’t involve the radiator. When the engine warms up the coolant would pour out of that top hose into the radiator and then I expect you’d see some noticeable coolant loss. Note also that when you have a leak, a full radiator doesn’t necessarily imply the engine is full of coolant.
thanks for the education.