95 Acura Legend overheating
 

Hello, I recently bout a 95 Acura Legend and it started overheating.
I replaced the thermostat , cap and fan switch. what it does is after running for a while it slowly drips coolant into the overflow tank . Do i need a higher pressure cap ? Does anyone hav an answer? Thanks

Check the Head Gasket...see if you have Oil in the Coolant and Coolant in the Oil

Did you bleed the air out of the system? The Legends are know for being very sensitive if they are not bled correctly.

Overheating
 

Mine did the same thing when the head gasket started to go. It was leaking hot exhaust gasses directly into a coolant line. Is your coolant boiling? If you need to do a head gasket, make sure they replace the timing belt at the same time.

Acura 3.2L head gaskets
 

Woodpecker1:

Sorry for the bad news - it is a head gasket leak. This gasket failure, however, does not put oil into the water or vice-versa, it allows combustion gas into the coolant space. The temperature gauge sees the high-temperature exhaust gas, spiking the temperature indication. The pressure is well beyond the rating of the radiator cap, which pushes liquid into the reservior.

Short-term fix: depending on the weather in your locale, you can completely remove the thermostat if ambient > 40 F. This improves coolant flow, thereby reducing the temperature and therefore the severity of the leak. WHEN THE ENGINE HAS COOLED, periodically (weekly or daily depending on leak rate) empty the reservior back into the radiator (unscrew reservior cap and simply lift the bottle out of the holder slot). I got by for 2-3 months like this and a friend's 95 legend has been running like this for 8-9 months.

The point of the short-term fix is this: it is a major repair - an Acura dealer will charge $2500-$3500. If you are a do-it-yourselfer, there are instructions on-line in other chat groups, but the risk of breaking O2 or NOx sensors (whic hare $300 ea) caused me to rethink that option. I has mine done by a private mechanic for $1400. Parts are ~$300-$500 depending on what you try to reuse. Have the timing belt and water pump replaced while you're at it if needed.

Feel free to email if you need more help - I do not use this chat group often.