Does the heat suck in your car?
01-29-2005, 11:18 AM
#11
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Originally Posted by 18secFerio
:werd:
my heater doesn't really start working until the temp gauge is up. And its not just our small block honda's that does this. I work for a rental car company, so in the mornings, I get to deal with a bunch of cold cars, from v8s to i4s, and they all more or less have the same "problem."
suck it up pansy :fawk: either prewarm your car or get a thicker jacket :reechy:
or move to a warmer climate
we haven't dropped below 20* this year :db:
my heater doesn't really start working until the temp gauge is up. And its not just our small block honda's that does this. I work for a rental car company, so in the mornings, I get to deal with a bunch of cold cars, from v8s to i4s, and they all more or less have the same "problem."
suck it up pansy :fawk: either prewarm your car or get a thicker jacket :reechy:
or move to a warmer climate
we haven't dropped below 20* this year :db:
01-29-2005, 11:24 AM
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Originally Posted by Jafro
:werd: What XS said.
However, you have a 95 LX... which means you have the same engine as I do. D15B7's don't generate much as much heat as the 2.0L+ VW's you're used to. They also don't hold it. My engine cools down completely within 5 minutes.
It takes my car forever to heat up. The heat sucks. It takes 15-30 minutes if it's below freezing for it to start feeling luke-warm if I let it idle. If I get the car up to highway speeds, it takes about 5-10 minutes. Once the temperature needle is half-way, it will roast you unless you're at a stop light.
If the temp needle drops while you're sitting at a stop light, the thermostat might be stuck open. That would also make your car take forever to warm up, but it won't hurt your engine.
I went skiing last year when it was -4° at the resort. When I left, I let my civic idle for 20 minutes, drove 15 miles down the mountain, 22 miles to the highway, and 5 minutes after getting on the highway, it began to warm up. My girlfriend was bitching the whole way about it. This was when the engine was brand new and nothing was wrong with it, or my antifreeze mixture. 1.5L Honda engines just don't make much heat.
However, you have a 95 LX... which means you have the same engine as I do. D15B7's don't generate much as much heat as the 2.0L+ VW's you're used to. They also don't hold it. My engine cools down completely within 5 minutes.
It takes my car forever to heat up. The heat sucks. It takes 15-30 minutes if it's below freezing for it to start feeling luke-warm if I let it idle. If I get the car up to highway speeds, it takes about 5-10 minutes. Once the temperature needle is half-way, it will roast you unless you're at a stop light.
If the temp needle drops while you're sitting at a stop light, the thermostat might be stuck open. That would also make your car take forever to warm up, but it won't hurt your engine.
I went skiing last year when it was -4° at the resort. When I left, I let my civic idle for 20 minutes, drove 15 miles down the mountain, 22 miles to the highway, and 5 minutes after getting on the highway, it began to warm up. My girlfriend was bitching the whole way about it. This was when the engine was brand new and nothing was wrong with it, or my antifreeze mixture. 1.5L Honda engines just don't make much heat.
OK, so I need to check my coolant level. Easy enough. Someone else mentioned thermostat. It's an easy fix although I really don't think that's the problem. My car runs at 1/4 when it's fully warmed up. The temp gauge does not come back down after the car has warmed up. Two cars ago, my VW Jetta's thermostat was on its way out and would fall back down if I started driving faster.
Someone else mentioned water pump...how timely. Just this week I stopped by a shop to get an estimate for a timing belt/water pump replacement. I was quoted $350 parts/labor for the entire job. I bought my car used on 7/5/04 with 130K miles on it. I now have 143.5K. I bought it from a Honda dealer in PA, and while it appears that the Asian boy who owned it before took VERY GOOD care of it, I don't have the peace of mind that the water pump/timing belt was replaced at 90K. Considering everything else in the car was absolutely perfect (literally there is nothing wrong with this car), I am inclined to believe that he did the required maintenance. But $350 for peace of mind is not all that bad.
Thanks guys for the practical responses.
-Jim