02 Civic overheats, losing coolant

[Chris.F]

I have a 2002 civic ex and for a while now my coolant has been going somewhere. I not sure where tho. It s not in my oil so i don't think its my gasket. My car leaks coolant even when the heat inst on but for some reason it leaks faster with the heat on. I have replaced the thermostat and radiator. Is it the water pump? Heater core? Also may i add i never notice any coolant on the ground after my car is parked either. I have to pour coolant in my car at least 2 times a week.

 

[HeX]

Have you inspected the water pump for leaks or the passenger side floor for leak signs?
Do you smell anything strange inside the cabin?
Have you inspected the radiator hoses to ensure they're properly tight and not leaking?
Have you inspected the coolant reservoir?
There are only so many places the fluid could escape so inspect them all and make sure there is no frothing or odd discoloring in the oil or vice versa.

 

[weav01]

I'll bet it's your head gasket. I'll bet the leak is into the cylinder and burning the coolant. '02 notorious head gasket leak. Almost 100% of the time.


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[XpL0d3r]

The fact that is overheating and there are no signs of coolant anywhere lead me to believe that it's also the head gasket. As said above, it can leech into areas where it burns off, rather than pooling up or contaminating your oil.

Do a compression test and see what the results are.

 

[weav01]

There are coolant ports and oil ports around the heads. The gasket can fail and leak into any of these as well as out the side. Just the symptom of overheating and loss of coolant and an '02 I am very very certain it's a head gasket. While it's running and cool take off the coolant cap. If your getting bubbles then there is at least a leak into the coolant channel.


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[lunder03]

I'll 2nd weav01...any bubbles which may come from under your radiator cap at intervals or constantly definitely means your head gasket is bad.

Further more, if you've never replaced one on this car be prepared to have all the necessary tools...unless you're planning to have a mechanic do it.

Good luck and report back; let us know your findings.

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[Brandon Friederich]

I had a very slow coolant leak too. I did all the shade tree diags and found nothing wrong. Foud that it was a slightly blow gasket. Just got done replacing it yesterday. Soory for bad news but if you have no puddles under your car its your cylinders burning it off.

Its not hard to do just time consuming. If your lazy and / or dont pay attention to detail I would have someone else do it. You could cause a slew of other issues if you get it wrong. Best of luck!