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Jim Grant's Tech Tips
'92
Acura Integra, Overheating at High Speed
Q:
I
have a 92 Acura Integra that came from a warm weather climate.
When I first took the car for a test drive the car was fine. I drove
for about 13 hours straight and the car did not overheat but when
I got to the mountains I turned on the heater and there was no heat
coming out of the car so the next day I replaced the thermostat.
Bingo, I got heat but the car started to overheat almost all the
way to the red mark. I took it to the dealer to have it fixed. They
replaced the water pump, the head gaskets, the radiator cap and
tested the head for any cracks and they were fine but the car is
still overheating. It seems the faster I go, the hotter the engine
gets. The electric fan is also working. Any ideas as to what could
be the problem? Any advice is greatly appreciated.
A:
You may have to look outside the engine for the reason/cause
of your high speed overheating problem. High speed overheating problems
can be and often are related to the radiator. The faster/harder
and engine works the more heat it makes. A radiator that has internal
flow restriction or deposits coating the coolant tubes will not
be able to remove heat from the coolant efficiently enough to prevent
overheating. Take a look at the A/C condenser (which looks like
a radiator) mounted in front of the radiator. If the cooling fins
on the condenser are bent or filled with debris, like leaves, bugs,
etc., the air will not flow through and pass over the radiators
cooling fins. Also look between the radiator and A/C condenser,
debris can collect in-between the two and interfere with air flow.
Keep in mind, the harder an engine works the harder a radiators
job is. High speed overheating problems are a good indicator of
an inadequate radiator.
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