I am back... Greetings from cooler Arizona !!!

My 91 Civic came out with white smoke yesterday and I had to pull over... it was my coolant leaking form somewhere for sure... Firestone guys ran a pressure check and came out with some leaks in the system... they told me that it would cost around 350 dollars to replace hoses...

I have a couple questions...

1. Can I wait replacing those hoses to seal those leaks... would it affect the car anyway ? Ocourse I can top off the coolant level every now and then...

2. Is there a better way of repairing the problem other than replacing the hoses... ?

I would appreciate any suggestions here... thanks a loads...

Ciao !
Vinit

txgreasemonkey

It may be a cracked head, where antifreeze is being burned in combustion.

veronv

nah.... I dont think so... cause I checked it and even did it at Firestones... they said its hoses for sure...

RichardBondMan

$350 seems a lot for hoses, I know it's very tight and difficult to work on most cars now but I tend to think that's a little high. Try an independent shop that doesnt have to pay their mechanics, $35 - 50 an hour, or even a shade tree mechanic, a handyman neighbor or such, buy the hoses yourselft at a parts store. But no your cannot wait, without coolant in your system, the engine will burn up and that's very expensive and proabably not practically feasable on a 91.

veronv

ok... I would try and find someone on more reasonable side of prices... but the leak is not that big and coolent is not vanishing fast (I would guess its a small hole and surface tension comes to the leak's rescue...) ... but if I keep replacing / adding coolent in the system for some more time and then do the repairs, would I hamper the car immensely?

hint: I dont have that kind of money (around 350 bucks just for hoses) right now, so looking for cheaper deals

thanks,
Vin

grammadidi

$350.00 is way too high! I just replaced my entire heater core for less than that! You can buy those hoses and clamps yourself probably for less than $75. It is not difficult to replace them yourself. Especially in a 91 Civic! Trust me, if I can do it, anyone can!

Didi

veronv

I did replace the heater hose myself... its was easy as you said !

But as yet, my temp reading goes high up to red... coolant is fine a I replaced it yesterday... I think I need to replace thermostat / radiator cap ...

Any suggestions what I should be doing ?

-Vinit

txgreasemonkey

I would consider replacing the radiator, which may be partially blocked due to corrosion or mineral buildup.

veronv

But they (Firestone) did the Pressure check and came out with leaks in hoses and a suggestion to replace thermostat... would it be apossible to detect (in a pressure test) blocks in the radiator ? wht I am asking is, whether it would have showed up in the pressure test if the radiator was blocked partially ?

thanks,
Vin

rpg219

No it wouldn't. Honda's are know for this!! The problem....when 1 thing is wrong with a Honda, you end up replacing about 3 things to fix it. Yes, you should replace your thermostat, but either way....if you keep driving the car with it overheating, then you'll crack the head (REALL easy to do!). I wouldn't take it to Firestone for mechanical problems...in my area (Alabama) they won't even work on a Honda (I have to take it to a Honda specialist or do it myself). I say get a Haynes manual and get to work. I'm a girl and almost completely rebuilt my 87 Honda Accord by myself. The instructions are very easy.