It an 87 F, and i have replaced the water pump, still over heating, and i have taken the thermostat out, still over heating. Theres a small coolant leak from the right side were that metal....pipe...goes into the block up by the carbs. Its very small. Im talking a drip on the ground every 5 seconds or so.
ALso a small leak coming out of the cover of the engine down by my shifter.
(i hear gasket sets are a rediculous amount for this bike)...
would these 2 tiny tiny leaks be effecting weather my bike is getting cooled?
also when i had the radiator cap off and was removing the thermostat i sat and revved it for a good 3 to 4 minutes without that cap on because someone said that would get air bubbles out? Im not sure how to get this thing to cool down. Its litteraly a mile or 2 before the needle is pointing at the sun. only takes a few minutes of riding.

 

yes, those leaks could be causeing the overheating. the cooling system works off pressure, and your bike isn't building any cause it leaks it out. the metal tube up by the head had just a simple oring, easy and cheap to replace. you'd have to be more specific about the one by the water pump. go to hondaparts-direct.com, they have about the cheapest parts for these bikes. you might want to get a new coolant cap also. and you can test the thermostat in boiling water to see if its opening. sometimes removing the thermostat entirely will mess up the whole system also.

just a couple gaskets isn't going to be expensive, check with the dealer if you dont want to wait. only a few certian things are pricey, like molded gaskets ie float bowls...

 

First of all, Put your thermostat back in. The bike will not cool properly in traffic with it removed, it is designed to keep coolant in the radiator longer to give it the chance to cool down.

First question, does your cooling fan kick in? If not there is your problem. These bikes run VERY HOT, ie Right on the line before hot. Thats when the fan kicks in.

Second, have you checked your spark plugs to see if you are running lean? A lean mixture can also cause overheating.

The BEST method for getting air out of your system is to leave the bike on its sidestand, and disconnect the RIGHT side coolant hose comming from the engine head to the thermostat housing. Disconnect it at the thermostat housing then fill your cooling system. This will allow the excess air trapped in the engine head to escape. That blip the throttle trick never worked properly for me either.

For your gaskets, the metal coolant pipe you can either replace the o ring and hope the corrosion doesnt make it continue to leak, OR you can use some High Temp gasket Maker. Just apply a small bead on the coolant pipe on the outer area of the o ring and shove it back in. Let it set and peel off the excess.

As far as down by your shifter, you will have to take a photo, the only thing down there is the water pump. Another posibility is that the left side coolant hose is also leaking, or the connection at the rear of the engine beside the cct, and it is just running down the block.

 

Hey guys great suggestions. Ill try them all! Specially removing the hose
A few things to also think about:
At any point I can squeeze the coolant lines and i dont feel any pressure. Its that normal?
Also the fan does not work, but I thought that didnt really matter while i was riding the bike, only when I was sitting and it was idoling.... The reason for it not working is that i cant find the wires that are suppose to connect to that fan switch on the left of the radiator. Theres 2 prongs there on the switch and i can only find one Live black wire that would hook to it, so im not sure how it hooks up. Please let me know, or take a picture of yours that would be even better.
Then if you could explain how to remove the Metal tube on the upper right of the engine block, so i can reseal the gasket, that would be great. Thanks guys! together, Helga the Hurricane will recover!

 

i think there should only be one wire to the switch on the radiator. i think its a ground, it shouldn't have power going to it. ill have to double check my manual in the morning.

the metal tube on the engine should only be held on with one 10mm bolt. i would check with a honda dealer and get the correct size oring, it shouldn't be more than a couple dollars. when you pull the metal tube, make sure its not bent or damaged in the seal area. i would only use RTV / silicone as a last resort. and if you do go that route, make sure you let the sealant cure for atleast 24 hours before you put water back in / test it.

look at the stickies in this forum, you can download the maintenance manual. it will help you out

 

yup just 1 ground wire going to the temp sensor in the radiator. you can just hook it up to a toggle switch that is grounded out so you can manually turn the fan on and off.

 

Check the radiator cap as well, if it's weak it blows coolant out instead of back through the system.

Ern

 

The coolant cap I dont think is a problem. No leaks around it....
And i dont see any bolts holding this tube on but ill double check.
How can the fan temp sensor only have a ground? It needs to have power going to it....
Ill take the best pictures i can tonight, and please check back here tonight, about 4 or 5 hours from now.

 

the connection at the rear of the engine beside the cct, and it is just running down the block

where is this? i dont know what a cct is. You mean the hose that comes up off the water pump and goes straight into the middle of the block in the back?

 

the fan gets power when you turn the key on and when the temp in the radiator reaches a certian temp the sensor grounds out and completes the circuit for the fan which allows it to run. You can check the sensor with a multi meter when the bike is cool the sensor will have no continuity with the neg terminal of the battery. Once it gets twards the top of he temp guage where the fan should kick on it will give you a reading in ohms.

i can take a pic of the bolt that holds the metal coolant lines in if you need it but if your looking at the back of the engine where the lines are the bolts are on the inside side of the coolant lines. They hold down a metal tab the holds the line in. The left one will have the bolt at 2 o'clock on the line and the right one will be at 10 o'clock.