1999 Honda Accord Overheating Engine

1999 HONDA ACCORD
92,000 MILES • 4 CYL • 2WD • AUTOMATIC
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KRONOS
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My cars engine overheated and I took it to a Honda dealer, he said the crossover tube was leaking and charged me $600 to fix, also fixed a broken temperature gauge, dealer later said there is a head gasket issue too, shopped around and had the head gasket fixed for $1200 from local dealer. Other mechanic broke the temperature gauge and I then installed an external gauge. This gauge shows temperature between 210 F - 230 F, took the car back to local mechanic. He now says that there may be a crack in the engine and I will need the engine replaced.

Car runs fine and I am not loosing any power, what could be the problem? Is the mechanic right?
Jan 9, 2008 at 9:17 AM
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BRUCE HUNT
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Wow! You have been put through the mill. Do you have contamination of oil in the coolant or coolant in the oil?

The temp is high, have you considered replacing the thermostat in the vehicle? Personally, I might try taking out the thermostat and running without it to see if that brings the temp down. Just thinking out loud. I doubt you will hurt the engine by keeping it on the road. If the block is cracked the block is not good for anything so driving will not hurt it. The only way to tell for absolute sure that it is cracked is to physically examine it. A leak down test might provide further confirmation that it could be a block problem.

I wish there was a good easy way to handle this.
Jan 9, 2008 at 10:13 AM
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KRONOS
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Apologies for the late response, yes the local mechanic replaced the thermostat 3 times but no results. There was smoke from the exhaust earlier and I use to loose coolant but it is not an issue after the head gasket replacement.

Coolant stays fine too. No milky oil.

I leave the car overnight and check if there were leaks every morning ... nothing ...

Looks like I have ran out of options ... mechanic says sell the car ... I don't feel right on passing on my troubles to someone else ...
Jan 20, 2008 at 2:45 PM
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