2000 Honda Accord thermostat

Tiny
LESLIE CAGAN
  • MEMBER
  • 2000 HONDA ACCORD
2000 Honda Accord 72,500 miles

On Saturday evening there was smoke coming from my engine. I was in downtown Manhattan and not near the garage I usually go to, but a man walking by noticed the problem and said he was an auto mechanic and could help me. He crawled under the engine and banged something and said it was fixed. He said the problem was that the thermostat pins were locked (or un-locked.I don't recall which it was) and they had slipped out of position. He said he had knocked them back into place and there shouldn't be any more problem. He also put more fluid into the radiator. All I had in the car was windshield wiper fluid so he used that and some plain water. The car then worked fine, and was fine yesterday when I drove it.

This morning I took it into the garage I usually go to and they said they had no idea what the guy was talking about. They said there are NOT any thermostat pins! Instead, they thought the problem might have been that the clamp/s around the hose from the radiator might have expanded and released some of the fluid, and when that hit the hot engine it caused the steam which looked like smoke.

Do you have any thoughts about this? Does the thermostat have - or not have - pins. Or some other part that one might think of as pins?

Thanks for whatever insights you might have.
Monday, November 9th, 2009 AT 10:16 AM

7 Replies

Tiny
KHLOW2008
  • MECHANIC
  • 41,814 POSTS
Hi Leslie,

Thenk you for the donation.

There is a pin at the thermostat but it would not affect the overheating as described and banging would not be of any use. The guy was spouting nonsence.

The only thing that affects overheating and works after banging it would be the cooling fans.

Check if the cooling fans are working when Ac is turned on.

Did you check the coolant level?
There could be a small leak at one of the hoses and when pressure increases, it spurts out some coolant causing the emission of smoke.

The other possible cause is that the fans stopped working when temperature was high and coolant was pushed to the recovery tank causing the steam emission.
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Monday, November 9th, 2009 AT 11:39 AM
Tiny
LESLIE CAGAN
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Our answer was very helpful. Thanks a lot.
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Monday, November 9th, 2009 AT 11:58 AM
Tiny
KHLOW2008
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You are welcomed and if you have any other queries, just post reply and I would get back to you once I am notified.

Remember to check if the fans are working. Banging on them would only be a temporary measure as the carbons are running out and the motor would fail anytime and banging would not work anymore.
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Monday, November 9th, 2009 AT 12:03 PM
Tiny
LESLIE CAGAN
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
I'll check about the fans. Is this something I can do myself or does a mechanic have to do it?

I am now thinking the whole thing was a scam and there really was no problem to begin with. There are too many details to go into here, but I think some folks pulled a fast one on me. Such is life in the big city!

Thanks again.
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Monday, November 9th, 2009 AT 2:21 PM
Tiny
KHLOW2008
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You can check the fans yourself.

With engine running, turn on AC and fans should be working.

With Ac off, fans should start working after about 20 mins of running and temp gauge should not show more than 1/2
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Wednesday, November 11th, 2009 AT 11:37 AM
Tiny
LESLIE CAGAN
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Thanks. Will do! You've been a big help. Much appreciated!
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Wednesday, November 11th, 2009 AT 11:42 AM
Tiny
KHLOW2008
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You are welcomed.

Hope you get the problem solved soon.

Have a nice day.
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Wednesday, November 11th, 2009 AT 2:14 PM

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