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Fourth generation Honda Civic

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Water pouring out! Is it the radiator only or possible other problems?

Hit a curb in my 1988 honda civic. I am not a car guy at all, but I can replace a radiator. Before I do this I want to make sure the water pump or anything else involving the coolant system was not damaged. This I don't know. I'm also looking for a diagram/photo of the bottom of the car.

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First of all you need to pressure test the cooling system to see where exactly is leakege coming from. This process tests the integrity of the cooling system, by hooking up a pump into the radiator with the respective adaptor for your vehicle then pump up to 15 or 16 psi, Do Not exceed this pressure as you can damage even more the cooling system, then pay attention to the needle and see if presure drops significantly and if it does you cannot miss where the leak is coming from. A healthy cooling system should maintain 15 psi. Regarding the water pump, when they go bad. two main things happen: you hear a noise coming from the side your water pump is located , which could be the bearings on pump are going out and have failed, and also there is a weep hole where coolant comes out which means water pump is going bad. To test water pump, turn car on, squeeze upper radiator hose, hold for a few seconds, then release and if you feel a surge inside hose, it means the water pump is pumping coolant throughout system. Also, you can remove radiator cap, while car idling and you can see if the coolant is circulating. But only do this when you first turn car on not after it has been running as you can burn yourself. Hope this helps.

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Thank you for such a detailed response. It is fixed!

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Put it up on a rack and look to see where the water is coming out and where, if any damage occurred.

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jalago52 will be eternally grateful.
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