A few questions about my new (to me) 1986 Accord...

[ventureforth]

Picked up a 1986 Accord LX-i hatchback recently and am learning my way around things.

My first questions are as follows:

1. In stop and go traffic, the temp gauge gets up to what I would normally consider to be pretty high (see pic)...but maybe it's normal for this year, make, and model. On the freeway at speed it runs nice and cool, but around town in stop and go or in heavy traffic it rises to the level in the pic. It never goes above this temp, but it always gets up to this temp whenever I'm doing anything besides freeway speeds.



2. Looked through the manual and tried to find info online, but can't seem to find anything in regards to what the little red light above the shifter is (see other pic). I imagine a warning light? But for what? Overheating transmission? Low fluid levels?


3. My Accord has fog lights (sorry, forgot to take pic). They are directly under the front fender. They look stock/OEM, but I haven't seen any info indicating they were an option for the year. More importantly, I can't find a switch anywhere to actually turn them on. Am I missing something? Does anyone else have fog lights? Do you have a switch? If you do and you can take a pic that would be friggin' sweet.

At any rate, I'm definitely a fan of the 1986 Accord. It drives like a dream. Nimble, fast, composed in the corners and smooth as silk...I really couldn't ask for more. Mine is in excellent condition inside and out.

Cheers.

I need more posts to embed images or links, but here's a link to my public dropbox folder with the images: dl.dropbox.com/u/6682582/120614_0001.jpg
dl.dropbox.com/u/6682582/120601_0001.jpg

[HLW]

The temp is a bit high. When my radiator needed to be changed it would not get that high in traffic, but it would get close
After I replaced the radiator, the temp in traffic is just above half way to the red line and when at highway speeds it is very low.
When you change the radiator, you need to get the cooling system flushed to make sure there is nothing in the system that can clog the radiator.

I don't think the light at the shifter is stock. There are no sensors in the transmission, the only wires that connect to the transmission are for the backup switch.

Fog lights are not standard, but there are side marker lights at the front of the fenders and turn signal lights in the front bumper almost in line with the fenders.

[A18A]

are your radiator fans working? if not, I would suspect a faulty sensor in the bottom of the radiator. Either that or it could be a stuck thermostat.

that red light above your shifter is not factory, someone would have added that at some time in the cars life, so I wouldn't be able to tell you what it's for

If the fog lights are factory, the switch should be next to the cruise control switch. if not, you'll just have to hunt around the car for the switch or follow the wires back from the fog lights

[HLW]

When I was talking about the radiator, I forgot that yo ustated that the engine stays cool at highway speeds, so the radiator is probably OK and the thermistat is also probably OK or the engine would be getting hot all the time if the thermistat was stuck closed or it would be overcooling all the time if it was stuck fully open, but if the thermistat is stuck partially open It might let the engine cool down a little bit more at highway speed than in slow traffic.

A18A is right that the fans might not be turning. You an test the fan control switch in the bottom of the radiator by disconnecting it and connecting a wire accross the connector on the wire harness. Then put the ignition swith to the run position and check if the fans are runnig. If they are, connect the wire harness to the switch and run the car until the engine warms up and see if the fans come on. If they do not come on when the engine is warm but they do when you jump accros the switch connector, you need to replace the switch.

If the fans do not come on when you jump accross the cooling fan switch connector, you may have bad fans, a wiring issue or a bad coling system relay.

[ventureforth]

Hmm, I'm thinking the little red light may be from an aftermaket or dealer installed alarm system... one that would light up or blink when it's armed. If there was an alarm installed, it's now defunct and/or long since gone. I can't find it, at any rate.

I think I can tell where the fog light switch would have been. I just figure a piece of trim was missing, but it is the right size to house a switch and is right next to the cruise control switch. I'll have to find the wires and get a new switch.

Thanks for the tips on the cooling system. I'll be sure to get it purged and flushed and see if that helps. The fans seem to be working fine as far as I can tell. Right now, I'm also debating whether or not to fix the A/C. At the very least, the compressor is toast...and possibly more. And I have other things to deal with that are more critical, like replace the clutch which is starting to slip because oil is starting to leak onto it from a faulty rear main seal...so that will have to be the first order of business. Also have a CV joint to deal with on the passenger side.

Here's another question for you. Not sure if this is normal or not, but when accelerating there is a very minor but high-pitched whine/whistle type sound. It almost sounds like a turbo spooling...but of course I don't have a turbo. Is this as sound that is common to the older efi system. At first, I thought the sound was vacuum related, as I methodically replaced word and cracked hoses (man, there are a lot of vacuum hoses!!). That got rid of a lot of airy/whistle type sounds. I thought it might be a belt making the sound. But they all look good to me. Anyway, maybe it's a typical sound to the era and it's just all new to me. Thoughts?

[89HatchbackLxi]

Yeah, that red light is definitely not stock. When does it light up (if ever)? If it's not a button, there's a good chance it could be one of those fake anti-theft light things. My neighbor put one of those in his truck after one of his other trucks got taken for a joyride a few weeks earlier.

If the fogs aren't stock it could be somehow incorporated into that set up too. Or perhaps its an indicator for a wireless switch? There's thousands of possibilities. Like A18 said about the fogs, just follow the wire and see where it leads.

Edit: Oops late post, haha.

Also, I don't know if it's the same sound you're hearing, but my 89 FI hatch makes a very slight turbo-like whistle when going from 3rd to 2nd or 2nd to 1st gears and vice versa. I always figured it was just the sound of the engine

[ecogabriel]

In stop and go traffic, the temp gauge gets up to what I would normally consider to be pretty high (see pic)...but maybe it's normal for this year, make, and model. On the freeway at speed it runs nice and cool, but around town in stop and go or in heavy traffic it rises to the level in the pic. It never goes above this temp, but it always gets up to this temp whenever I'm doing anything besides freeway speeds.


My car does something similar (86 LX-i 4-door) but the gauge reading is at a lower point (about 2/3 of the gauge scale) when the fans kick in. Temperature drops a little, but not that much; however, once the car starts moving, the temperature starts dropping to between 1/4 and 1/3 of the temperature gauge.
I have driven it 100+ miles @70-75 with no problems regardless of heavy foot. Cooling system has been almost completely replaced (hoses, o-rings, radiator) and has zero leaks; the gauge behavior with the older parts was the same.
Check that your fans come on. If you want extra control, try installing a switch in the cabin to turn the fans on manually.

[Vanilla Sky]

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/6682582/120614_0001.jpg
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/6682582/120601_0001.jpg

I agree with the guys in saying that the fans aren't blowing. Have you turned the AC on when it gets hot? It should turn both fans on no matter if the AC is functional or not.

[ecogabriel]

Talking about clutches, I got an Exedy clutch for my Civic here,

http://www.clutchcityonline.com/

Prices are good, plus free shipping.
You may get a lower price for the flywheel if you get it from rockauto.com though. Resurfacing the old one would cost almost the same as a new one (plus you do not know how bad yours may be)
Clutch replacement is a job that you may do if you have a helping hand.