Technical Help please

G

Gokwi

Contributing Member
Joined
22 October 2002
Messages
233
Location
va beach
today has been a bad day


i brung it to my dads place
he thought he knew wat he was doing

he flushed out the coolant
and then put another type of coolant which was red
which he was not suppose to use
then he told me to start it, so i did
then he closed the door
and my keys were locked in
i was like holy $#@$
so i had to drive to my restaurant to get my mom' house key then, drive home to get my spare key
and that all took 30 minutes
while that was happenening he called me up and said the car was heating up
the radiator container was steaming
so he let slowly lose of the radiator cap to get all the steam out
while this was happening I'm pretty sure the engine temperature was all the way HIGH, you know that thermometer near ur speedometer
R he called his friend who used to be a mechanic
Romir0: he took out the radioator container and flushed out the whole thing, with a water hose
and put the right coolant (bluish greenish) in there

questions
I would like to know, if there could be any internal engine damage cause the engine was so hot, cause nothing was going through the radiator

does radiator coolant harm the paint of the car, when my dad release the pressure from the radiator, the coolant splatter, but then we hosed it down with water right away..

is it diffulcult to change the oil of an NSX by yourself, or should I just leave it to Acura?

thank you in advanced for your help
 
Changing the the oil is not difficult at all, IMO. I prefer to do it myself that way I know it was done correctly. I back ut up on custom made ramps (shallow approach angle). For material, I use Honda OEM filters with a new crush washer (I buy online), and Mobile 1 10W-30 Synthetic (4.X quarts with new filter). The whole process takes 15 mins tops once you are practiced. I also use the oil filter wrench that Dali carrys. YMMV.
 
and right now it runs normal.. when the new coolant was in..
but I'm scared of any internal damage..
 
I would GUESS the following:

I would think that the car is ok as far as heat related damage goes. No leaks now right?

I would certainly wash down the car with soap and water and rewax to make sure I got all the coolant off. The sooner the better.

I know that different types of coolants do not mix well together, I don't know if that is the case for the two types of coolants you used (whatever was in there before, the red stuff, and the current) or what the long term consequences of that are. I might make a few phone calls and then flish out the coolant system a few more times if the situation called for it.

Also, depending on the year of the car, it might be time to get some hoses replaced anyways. I recently had this done on my 94.

Hopefully some other forum members can speak more intelligently on the potential consequesces of mixing coolant types.
 
i'm sure of that, i'm letting acura and my friends shop do the work..

what is a helms manual (helms?)

no leaks

it is a 91' black on black,
yea i just got the car, looks like I'm going to have to spend MORE money..

thanks for your help

[This message has been edited by Gokwi (edited 22 October 2002).]

[This message has been edited by Gokwi (edited 22 October 2002).]
 
Originally posted by Gokwi:
i'm sure of that, i'm letting acura and my friends shop do the work..

what is a helms manual (helms?)

no leaks

it is a 91' black on black,
yea i just got the car, looks like I'm going to have to spend MORE money..

thanks for your help

[This message has been edited by Gokwi (edited 22 October 2002).]

[This message has been edited by Gokwi (edited 22 October 2002).]
Click to expand...

If you have your owners manual, look near the rear of the book for the service books available for the car. You can call them (800)to order them or if you have a fast line..download the pdf on this site.
 
Originally posted by Gokwi:
what is a helms manual (helms?)
[This message has been edited by Gokwi (edited 22 October 2002).]
Click to expand...

Helm publishes Acura shop manuals, electrical manuals, supplements and the like for the NSX (revised content specific to years with updates). For example, all the information on my 1994 NSX
 
Originally posted by chudson1549:
If you have your owners manual, look near the rear of the book for the service books available for the car. You can call them (800)to order them or if you have a fast line..download the pdf on this site.
Click to expand...

BTW keep your dad away from your car
wink.gif
 
but looks like no one can answer, if there is any internal damage to the engine, like it being warped, since it was idling for 30 minutes

and the engine has an alumiunm block with aluminum heads, so it's differnet..
 
Incidentally, welcome to NSX ownership!

My Ad-Hoc quickstart guide would be something like the following:

Info Resources
NSX Prime FAQ
The Helm Manual
NSX Prime Forum (you're here!)
A trusted mechanic (ask around in your area, I drive to Gary Force Acura in Nashville for Barney's services (NSX Prime ID Barn Man)

Parts Suppliers
Niello Acura (30% off with NSXCA membership)
Chris @ Science of Speed
Mark Johnson @ Dali Racing
 
Originally posted by Gokwi:
but looks like no one can answer, if there is any internal damage to the engine, like it being warped, since it was idling for 30 minutes

and the engine has an alumiunm block with aluminum heads, so it's differnet..
Click to expand...

Not that I would solely take my word for it (I am not an NSX tech) but I think you are probably fine here.
 
man.. when he engine was heating up, no coolant was going to the radiator, only little..

when you all bring your NSX to acura, how much do you usually spend on it?
 
the coolant system is a pressurized system, and has to be bled after flushing, or breaking into the system for any reason (opening the bottle to add coolant does not require a system bleed, provided your bottle already has fluid in it). there are four bleed ports that must be opened sequentially, but i can't remember the sequence right now.

the coolant bottle is higher than the radiator, so if there wasn't a lot of air in the system, you may have gotten a gravity assist for coolant flow.

aluminum blocks and heads are more susceptible to overheating and rapid temperature changes than their steel counterparts. to know for sure if damage was done you'll need to monitor for water in your oil, water leaks from the head gaskets, loss of power, perform compression checks...

get the manuals, they're worth every cent.
 
Man, I'm sorry to hear about your car
frown.gif
What a chain of events! Oh well, when we DIY sometimes things like this happen and that's the risk we take!

Because of the mid-engine design of the NSX, the coolant system is longer and more complicated than front-engine cars. There are 5 drain points on the underside of the car, four of which take some time to remove, drain and flush. Unless you get to all these points, the procedure is incomplete. As frunobulax said above, the bleeding procedure for the NSX is also a little tricky and involves four bleed points in sequence. Often this bleed sequence has to be performed several times to get all the air out. I have seen cars that that have had coolant changed at good dealerships and even these cars have problems with air in the lines.

Unfortunately, the NSX sometimes does not respond well to overheating. Mark Bash has said several times that overheating the NSX is not a good thing and can cause problems immediately and/or down the road. Hopefully there was no damage to your engine as it was only idling, but it's better to test as frunobulax mentioned above (check for oil in the coolant and check for compression in all cylinders). My take is it's best to find out early rather than later.

Most likely, your car still has air in the lines and may have overheating problems. The system needs to be bled according to the sequence in the service manual over and over until all the air is out of the system. Sometimes this sequence has to be performed over several days of driving. When you are bleeding the system, make sure there's some coolant or distilled water around to fill the tank in case there's LOTS of air in the lines.

You may also want to double-check to make sure the coolant that is in your car now is rated for an aluminum engine and coolant system. Honda recommends their own coolant brand, which is specially formulated for their coolant systems. I have no idea whether the other brands out there are appropriate for our engines (I assume they are but that's a pretty big assumption).

If it were me, I'd totally redo the coolant flush according to the service manual with the Honda fluid. But I'm anal, which in my book isn't that bad of a thing when playing with a ~20k engine.

Oil change procedure help is here: www.danoland.com/nsxgarage look at both Oil Change #1 and Oil Change #2. If your Dad is involved in anyway with the oil change, I would recommend Oil Change #2 <g>.

Was your rear hatch open while your car was overheating? I've been trying to figure out what would be the procedure to shut the car off in a similar situation (assuming the rear hatch is closed) with the doors locked! Hmmm...

Good luck and tell us how things turn out,

DanO

[This message has been edited by DanO (edited 23 October 2002).]
 
Holy S&*t!!!!!!!!!!!!

DanO, I thought the same thing after reading this post. How do you shut the damn thing off!!

Well it sounds like this episode, may not be completely over as all your points are on the money.

A few things I wanted to mention:

The oil change is 5.3 quarts, Mobil One is a good choice. Honda 15400-PL2-004 is the ONLY filter to use.

In regard to bleeding, DanO mentions about rebleeding, probably true. Use Honda Coolant ONLY. It is not overpriced and is formulated for the aluminum. This will usually stay on the car for a long time, so do not use anything else.

The best way to bleed the system is to put the car on jack stands in the REAR, so the nose of the car is pointed down, and the radiator is the lowest point. Fill through the coolant bottle and close the bleeders in sequence, based on the sequence you get full flow out of each one. Typically radiator, heater core, then the two bleeders in the engine bay.

After you are complete, run the engine up to operating temp, then make sure you run the climate control at 90 degrees to insure the heater core is full. Test drive it, let it cool and check the level. I had to add an additional quart after this process.

And last, but should be first, GET A SERVICE MANUAL, before attempting these DIY's and understand the proper procedures. Even with the service manual, things are not always clear, so ask us here. We will help. The mistakes that can be made are just too costly to omit this step.

HTH,
LarryB
 
frunobulax covered the potential problems from overheating pretty well. I would just add that even if you do not find any obvious problems right now, there is still a chance you will end up replacing a lot of seals and gaskets over the next couple years because they were over-stressed when it overheated. So if you start developing weird oil leaks, or need a new head gasket or something, you will know what probably caused it. There is nothing you can really do now unless you want to go through and replace all your seals and gaskets which may or may not have a problem. I'd just wait and see.. if problems start to develop, you might want to think about replacing all the rest while you are in there replacing whatever failed.

I agree w/ the guys who say to just start from scratch on the coolant flush and fill. Follow the manual (there is a copy online here) and make sure you bleed the air out. You may even need to bleed it, drive it a little and then bleed it again.

Due to the nature of the NSX mid-engine front-cooling design, it is a real chore to flush, fill and bleed the coolant. Be sure to:

Look it up in the sevice manual here: http://www.nsxprime.com/FAQ/Reference/1991_svcman/1991_svcman.htm

Read this write-up: http://www.nsxprime.com/FAQ/DIY/coolant.htm

Take your time!

Also double-check your coolant. I don't know what coolant you put in it, but the factory Honda coolant is more yellow than green-blue. If you use the wrong type of coolant you can end up with big problems down the line. And make sure you flush out ALL of whatever wrong coolant was put into the system to begin with.

BTW I see you have a vt.edu e-mail address, so I assume your car is at your parents place in VA Beach and you are at VT for school? I am in the VT area, so if you like I can lend you a service manual or show you how to bleed the coolant system on my NSX (I'm not actually going to DO it, because I just did it recently, but I'll show you the bleed points!)
 
Originally posted by DanO:
Was your rear hatch open while your car was overheating? I've been trying to figure out what would be the procedure to shut the car off in a similar situation (assuming the rear hatch is closed) with the doors locked! Hmmm...
Click to expand...

My first thoughts on that are:

You could slim-jim the lock or call a lockout service to do the same assuming they could get their quickly.

Could you jack the front and get to the battery terminals? I've never tried, but there is a little room on the sides of the battery tray...

Could you jack the left rear, pull the wheel and wheel well liner and suffocate it by putting a trash back over the intake?

Or get to the fuel line?

If all else failed, I'd break a side window to get in before I'd let it overheat!

[This message has been edited by Lud (edited 23 October 2002).]
 
Oh man! My sympathies! I'd be crying if the same thing happened to my NSX, and maybe even disowning my dad!

Let this be a lesson to the rest of us: don't go cheap on the maintenance of a car like the NSX unless you can afford to sink major $$$ into fixing mistakes, and don't let anyone not experienced with such cars touch your vehicle! Sorry you had to learn the hard way
frown.gif
 
yup I know it sucks.. , the front hood and the rear hatch was open while the car is overheating..
from now on,
I'm letting Acura do EVERYTHING

well I planned to take it to my friends shop Meineke, or should I just let Acura do it, and let them use the Honda OEM filter, my neighbor said that OEM filters are cheap, and a waste of money..

any comments?
well my engine has a 108,000 miles, might as well replace all the seals, etc.
at eh Acura dealer I'am going to let them do a diagnosis..

anymore tips, comments, opinons, etc.
are appriciated..


as of now, normal temp, no leaks, and drives normal to me..
my neighbor said the oil must been cooked badly, so I think I have to change the oil soon, thank god I put a lil synthetic oil in it before it happened..
thanks for your help guys

[This message has been edited by Gokwi (edited 23 October 2002).]
 
I've not heard anyone on this board recommend anything other than OEM Honda oil filters. I think I'd stay with that.

As for oils, there are many to choose from but the prevailing opinion there is to stick with 10W-30 sythetic (Mobile 1, Red Line, whatever).

I certainly wouldn't be afraid to change your own oil. If you decide to take it elsewhere, I make certain it was someone I TRUST.

For major services, not even all Acura dealers fall into that category. I don't anybody furthering their NSX education by making mistakes on my car.

I believe Lud is from your area, perhaps he can recommend a good local shop
 
Gokwi - Please see the last part of my message above that starts with "BTW I see you have a vt.edu e-mail address..." and let me know.
 
first off: I am very sad to hear of your unfortunate chain of events. the guys all ready posted some great advise.if you are still concerned take it to the dealer and have it checked out.although as lud mentioned some or all of the damage if any may not present itself right away the dealer will be able to diagnois anything major I would think.try not to be to upset with your father as he was trying to be a good dad!but dont let him work on it again.it could get costly.and as already stated get the service and electrical manual from helm
david
 

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