The heater core went bad flooding the carpeting with coolant. No sign of coolant leak externally.
Changed the radiator hoses, no fix. TRIED to change heater hoses... couldn't access or even get a good view of heater hoses from under the hood! Tried filling radiator the slow way - few spoonfuls at a time letting percolate down thru system. Didn't see any leak. Placed dry cardboard under car below drivers seat and let sit overnight. Sure enough radiator was empty again. Checked cardboard under drivers seat and it was wet - coolant seeped out overnight! Pulled up floor mat and floor was wet.
After checking out what repair required on line I decided not to try this myself! I called a local repair shop as I live 60 miles or so from dealer. What a shock that was! Had priced a heater core online, was $40-50. The cost of having the repair done was the SHOCK! Estimated around $800 dollars!
Seems Honda saved a few dollars by eliminating access plates on the firewall and to repair heater/AC parts installed behind dash you have to removing the dash, much wiring, steering column and some other things just to access the heater core! LOTS of work. Verified removal of all the stuff required online at a DIY site. I realize manufacturers seem to be trying to stop "shade tree mechanics" from doing their own car repairs but this is totally ridiculous!!!
There doesn't seem to be any reinforcement in the engine compartment for the radiator hoses going thru firewall. Had a motor mount go bad not long ago and I suspect the movement and vibration this caused the engine had something to do with heater core breaking. This car gets excellent gas mileage but has the worst repair stats of ANY car I have had in the past 30 years! It is also the hardest to work on. My daughter bought a Honda Odyssey and it has had several problems too. Honda dependability has tanked!
Honda IS DOING NOTHING TO HELP US! They are trying to deny the problem and say that it is the manifold which we know that it is not. We took our Honda to our mechanic first and he did all the tests he could and could not find any leak even though I kept losing anti-freeze. He said he got online and it was TSB problem and Honda should cover it. Buy they are denying the problem so where do we go from here?
My 2008 Honda Civic began leaking engine coolant on the passenger side under the engine. The Honda repair technicians said it is because of a cracked engine block. A CRACKED ENGINE BLOCK??!! On 29,924 MILES??
Honda covered it under warranty as it is a lease, I only have 29,924 miles! I just got the car back today after my second visit to them with this problem (more on this later), drove to work, and upon checking on my car around lunch time, all the coolant has leaked! It is still a problem! Now the coolant is leaking on the driver side under the engine. I am very displeased with Honda. I called the Honda Dealer Repair Shop and they asked me to bring it back. C'mon ALREADY!!!
Don't know what the issue will be this time. I was without the car for 6 days and have to bring my 2008 Civic back... So frustrated...
In addition I took the car to them before and they said it was "just a clamp". The next day all my engine coolant was in a puddle under the car! I took it back and that's when they told me about the cracked engine block. This will now be my THIRD time going back to them with the problem not resolved!!
Thinking about not buying a Honda again...
- hondacoolantleak,
Bronx, NY, US
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A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
The heater core went bad flooding the carpeting with coolant. No sign of coolant leak externally.
Changed the radiator hoses, no fix. TRIED to change heater hoses... couldn't access or even get a good view of heater hoses from under the hood! Tried filling radiator the slow way - few spoonfuls at a time letting percolate down thru system. Didn't see any leak. Placed dry cardboard under car below drivers seat and let sit overnight. Sure enough radiator was empty again. Checked cardboard under drivers seat and it was wet - coolant seeped out overnight! Pulled up floor mat and floor was wet.
After checking out what repair required on line I decided not to try this myself! I called a local repair shop as I live 60 miles or so from dealer. What a shock that was! Had priced a heater core online, was $40-50. The cost of having the repair done was the SHOCK! Estimated around $800 dollars!
Seems Honda saved a few dollars by eliminating access plates on the firewall and to repair heater/AC parts installed behind dash you have to removing the dash, much wiring, steering column and some other things just to access the heater core! LOTS of work. Verified removal of all the stuff required online at a DIY site. I realize manufacturers seem to be trying to stop "shade tree mechanics" from doing their own car repairs but this is totally ridiculous!!!
There doesn't seem to be any reinforcement in the engine compartment for the radiator hoses going thru firewall. Had a motor mount go bad not long ago and I suspect the movement and vibration this caused the engine had something to do with heater core breaking. This car gets excellent gas mileage but has the worst repair stats of ANY car I have had in the past 30 years! It is also the hardest to work on. My daughter bought a Honda Odyssey and it has had several problems too. Honda dependability has tanked!
- Bob T., Oldenburg, IN, US