drakescherer

Hey guys,

The X just rolled 200k km and of course develops its first problem in over 90k of great service (Ive owned it since 110k).
Last night I was driving home and the temp gauge shows up that i'm about to overheat. Of course I pull over let it cool down and then drive like your grandma all the way home (it stays at its normal heat)
I checked the coolant and there was none in the reservoir, so i topped up to max and I haven't been out to check it today.

I am also experiencing odd events with the heater. When this happened last night, I maxed the heater and left the ac on to force the radiator fans on, but I was getting no heat. This makes me think that I am facing a failed water pump or blockage of some sort.
Anyone have any insight? I have to go to work today and will be taking my motorcycle so I won't be able to look at it until tonight.

drakescherer

I had a look this evening, took the splash guard. i had coolant on one of the plastic retaining tabs and a little bit pooled in the splash cover. I checked and sure enough there were telltale stains on the bottom casing of the water pump. I have ordered a replacement part and will be bringing it to my mechanic (dont have the ac clutch wrench). I will post back with labor cost on this.

CrAzYNeSs

Spend $20 at Harbor Freight and do it yourself. Its cheaper and you know you get ti done right.

Serpentine Belt Tool Kit

drakescherer

Any direction on how to maneuver etc?

Its pretty tight in there.

CrAzYNeSs

This was posted by a generous member on the board - its the service manual. It will tell you how to take your car apart and put it back together:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ctif6q2u55...%2007.pdf?dl=0

CrAzYNeSs

Page 10-6. Seems very straight forward. Might need the holder, some state that its not needed but its only $10 on Amazon.com

https://www.amazon.com/Powerbuilt-64...6WQM6CEY7WGK9D

Good luck, let us know what you decide and how it goes!

drakescherer

Thanks so much for the info, I am posting to follow-up here.

I have replaced the water pump at this time and can confirm it does not need that special tool to get it off. I will note that the cup holding the actual pump is not removable until the pump is undone from the engine itself. The way I did this was I removed the serp belt altogether (replaced it as a part of doing this job), then I undid all the bolts around the water pump and then used the screwdriver between the cup at the water pump itself to break the seal. The replacement was easy to install, just a pain keeping the seal in place while you maneuver it in there.

IN ANY CASE.

Turns out it wasn't the water pump and I feel like a complete retard at this point. I saw it leaking again and this time from the bottom of the coolant reservoir. So I was ok simple, I'll order the part and in the meantime silicone the bottom of it to seal any cracks. Drove home.

STILL. GODDAMN. LEAKING.

I get home, and I find coolant on the bottom of the reservoir. I am like ??????? wtf is going on. Sees a drip. Its coming from the top of the radiator where the plastic seals onto the aluminum. I've now ordered a new radiator. If I find another leak after. The bed will be shit in.

Tomtwtwtw

Just curious, did you have the system pressure-tested before you started swapping parts around? Not that a water pump and serpent belt isn't good preventative maintenance at some point in time, but it may have saved you some frustration.

DRR98

With at least 2 cooling system failures mentioned here recently, remember that coolant becomes corrosive over time.

If you leave it in too long it will eat through the system.

5 years and no more.

And never add tap water (city water) to the cooling system.

Always add only distilled water mixed 50/50 with Honda coolant.

drakescherer

Hey guys,

Radiator is in, hopefully going to install tomorrow (although we are expecting it to piss rain all week so I may have to do it at work after hours..)

To answer some questions:

Tomtwtwtw:
No, I did not as the bike season is ending and I did not have the time to wait for the radiator to come in nor did I want to pay for a: the pressure test and b: the cost to replace it locally as after a pressure test it would likely not be driveable (maybe it would, but I know for boilers at work if it fails a pressure test, it's down until it's repaired). My logic was to replace what needed fixing but also to replace parts as I come across them (water pump, serp belt, will be doing all the hoses now too now that i'm pulling the rad. Also Big 3 upgrade for the aftermarket woofer).

DRRR98:

I did not know that it needed to be flushed after 5 years, always thought it was okay for as long as needed. (naive now that I think of it, forgive me I'm 23) I know not to add tap water and in this case I never did, what I used was the Prestone premix from Canadian Tire that is supposedly ok for the X.

Tomtwtwtw

For reference, all a pressure test is on a cooling system is pressurizing it to 15 psi (which is about where it gets under normal operating temp), and checking the hoses and other items for tiny leaks. Often times small leaks will not make themselves known when a car is sitting because gravity alone isn't enough to force coolant through whatever tiny hole it's leaking from. Good luck with the repair though, and take some pics! Some of us pushing this car to 200k and beyond will probably be in the same boat someday.

drakescherer

I am doing a write up on how to replace the Radiator, keep your eyes on the DIY and FAQ forum section.

drakescherer

https://acurazine.com/forums/1g-rdx-...cement-951920/

sawjai526

it happened to my rdx as well, there was no apparent damage. but it was cracked/dmg @ the bottom where the fin meet the plastic, slow leak and evaporate before it reaches the floor. @200k just replace the radiator, put in OEM coolant, and OEM honda ATF