VIP Legend

Hello Legend enthusiasts,

This may be my last post here as my 1990 Acura Legend L Coupe is on its deathbead. Here's the story:

Driving home from work I noticed my temp gauge spiked all the way to the red. I limped off the freeway after about 5 more miles and pulled into a gas station. Smoke/steam coming from the engine bay. I add some water and drive home about 3 miles. I call a mechanic, he comes out and after some fumbling about, he tells me it's the water pump. I call a different mechanic to do the job because the first guy took 2 hours to determine that it was the water pump. New guy installs water pump but my car is still leaking coolant. Not like a dribble leak, but a constant stream. He says it may be the freeze plugs or the intake manifold. I noticed the leak coming from under the passenger side from the oil pan. The leak is making it's way down and coming out from the oil pan area. I went to O'reilly's, bought some AlumaSeal hoping that might stop the leak enough to where I can drive on it to and from work. Now, when the engine is not running the leak has slowed to a dribble. However, when I start the engine it leaks like crazy again. Any inputs? I might have to sell the car. I already have an ad on craigslist...Mechanic's Special $1000 obo.

BIGBOY

Never put that stuff in a car you plan to keep. All it does is create more issues. There is no cure for a leak but to fix it. I would start by finding out exactly what's leaking and go from there. Chances are you need a new motor since it went all the way to RED.

__________________

l4zy415

Naw, these engines are bullet-proof. Sounds like you have a torn hose coming from the oil cooler line. Its what the oil filter sits on, so start looking at the hoses.

__________________

17" DRAG DR-11 Rims/\Matador Red Paint/\Custom CAI/\LED Bright White Dash Lights/\Kenwood KDC-X590 Excelon Mp3 Deck/\Ford Taurus Coin/Cup Holder/\2 12" Kickers/\1800 Watt Kenwood Mono Amp/\Power Acoustic Capacitor/\Clear Rear Turn Signal/\Reverse Glow Gauges/\Swapped 88' Headlights to 89'-90'/\Swapped 88' seats to 89'/\JDM Rear Chrome Trim/\JDM Clear Corner/\JDM Power Folding-Heated Mirrors/\Stromung Muffler

VIP Legend

Could it be something as simple as a hose? The two "mechanics" I called off craigslist couldn't determine that? That would be pretty sad....

This motor is a beast though, for sure. 230k on it, it leaks oil like crazy, I overheated it as mentioned, and it still fires up and runs strong. I know putting additives into the motor is not the greatest idea, but at this point, I'm willing to try anything. I've had a few inquiries from the For Sale ad I listed on craigslist. One guy decided to give me a testimonial on a product called Blue Devil. He said it was $64 bucks! The price of a designer fragrance! Anyone heard of it? It's supposed to be a magical potion capable of repairing almost any leak in the cooling system. One of my mechanics told me the leak may be from the freeze plugs, and quite serendipitously, this product states right on the bottle that it can cure this exact problem. Anyway, this dude swore by it. He told me about how it worked on his '92 Legend and his buddy's Caddy. Come to think of it, I may have been duped by a particularly insidious sales representative. Either way, I made a leap of faith and put my trust in humanity. I ended up buying the half size bottle for like 39 after tax. This liquid gold better work...

1st Gen Legend

DO NOT ADD THAT CRAP TO YOUR COOLING SYSTEM!!!!! Think about what youre doing. If this stuff will stop a leak like you describe, think about all the little passages in your heater core and radiator. It will coagulate in those areas also. The cooling system should have two things flowing through it. Coolant and distilled water. PERIOD!!! Get the leak diagnosed by a real mechanic and fix it the right way. youll be dollars ahead.

JKLedbetter

You must be a young one, grasshopper. You got screwed by two mechanics and a sales rep.

Unfortunately, most mechanics these days are merely parts swappers who depend on the computer for diagnosis. As the G1 is somewhat rare, and quite old, most mechanics, even the few that are competent, have never worked on one. Listen to the people on these Legend forums, they know more about Legends than any mechanic you're likely to find.

Flush out whatever you can of the stuff you put in it, and then look for the leak. If it is leaking as bad as you say, it should be easy to find. If it is not a freeze plug, then, as L4ZY415 said, start with the two coolant hoses that connect to the oil cooler (the oil filter screws on to it). That is the most likely source on the passenger side. Also check the Sealing Cap, it could easily be mistaken for a freeze plug. It's between and above where the exhaust pipes run side by side.

If you go to some of the Acura Parts web sites (Delray Acura, Honda parts unlimited, OEM Acura parts, etc...) you can find diagrams that show the various engine parts.

The next time your engine overheats, pull over and shut it off immediately to let it cool. Since it's a G1 you might have gotten lucky, but a lot of other engines would be toast.

Also, you can fix most of your oil leaks by replacing the fossilized oil pan gasket, the oil cooler figure-8 gasket, and the four valve cover/side cover gaskets.

-Kennon

Sjano

Smoke/steam coming from the engine bay?
Did you see from where? I had a similar problem, where the cooling fluid seemed to be boiling. I tried using a head gasket resealer fluid, hoping it would help, which it kinda did, since by using it i found out my cooling system took in air from the radiator lid. I only bought a new lid, and then there was no more hot air in the cooling system.