Announcement!: B3 installed! and now I need a little help.

[josephfpu]

Hello, Everyone.

I have just completed my B3 engine swap! I am now part of the serious members of ff.com.
it has been driving around Kingsburg, California with a large hole in the muffler! How fun it is having that thing back to life after Five years.

So heres Questions I have:


Preliminary Info:
The Festiva is overheating. Water is working as coolant. It starts to overheat after 1/2 hour of relatively hard driving. Water boils out of the radiator coolant reservoir. The water pump is working, the Temp gauge is working. The cooling system has been "flushed" The radiator is eighteen years old! since 1991, its been on that thing. Also it sat for five years after blowing a head gasket. so water/oil mixter in it all.

Question: Since I am planning to do a B6 or BP swap in the future, should I replace the radiator with a Civic radiator or something that can withstand more heat? Is this difficult? Is there a write up on this as a "sticky" somewhere? what about the connections to the radiator? Do they fit on without ridiculous methods?

Question:
It did not pass smog. So that means its can be on the road for 90 days. I dont think it is "missing". So what should I look at guys?

[GenevaDirt]

if it sat for 5 years without water movement...I would flush it at least. Especially since it had oil mixed with it. You should be able to tell if it is flowing well with the radiator cap off and radiator full. Once up to temp you should see the water flowing by the opening. If you do not it is at least partially plugged.

[Tim]

Mine failed the smog test, so I replaced the O2 sensor with another from a junk engine and it passed.

[josephfpu]

Hey tim, nice to see you on here man.

-Joe

So any news about a modified radiator?
who has done a radiator swap?
Let me know how to do it!

I will be hopefully completing the radiator swap very soon.

[mattswabb]

If you can get one from an automatic festiva use that. They are thicker than the 5 speed radiators.


I would drain the radiator and remove the lower hose and stick a hose in the top and see what comes out the bottom and see how it flows.

[Tim]

Auto radiator's definitely the way to go.

I had one in my first Festy, and it didn't even get warm in rush hour traffic with the A/C cranked up and 120 degrees outside!

[josephfpu]

Matt thanks, I will definately do that right now to "see how it flows". how should it flow? how would I know its bad?
Think a radiator from an automatic would suffice if I put in a bp/b6? it gets to be 115 degrees here in the summer...

fyi, I am buying a new radiator.
what about a 323 radiator?