[EdNaviEx]

I always thought a weld could fix it, but what do I know. JB weld sounds (to many of us) like applying bubble gum to a crack, but if it works, it isn't stupid. Thanks for sharing, very interesting points. Let us know any updates on your repair. My rig has 284K on the clock and haven't had any coolant/radiator/crackedblock problems.

 

[Dan Ward]

I always thought a weld could fix it, but what do I know. JB weld sounds (to many of us) like applying bubble gum to a crack, but if it works, it isn't stupid. Thanks for sharing, very interesting points. Let us know any updates on your repair. My rig has 284K on the clock and haven't had any coolant/radiator/crackedblock problems.

I get it - JB Weld sounds like a crazy idea, but for many years it has proven to be effective on cracks on cylinder heads where pressures are quite high. I know of several repaired with JB Weld, and I've done 2, where the result lasted for several years, even cracks inside the cylinder chamber area (on the head).

There is even a video online where someone fashioned a cylinder head out of nothing but JB Weld, drilled and tapped an opening for the spark plug, on a small 1 cylinder engine - and it ran for about 30 minutes without giving out (just an experiment).

JB Weld would have zero challenge plugging a hole that is otherwise not even under typical mechanical stress.

 

[Blanche]

Add me to the list

2007 EX with 155000 on it. I'm the only owner and it's a daily driver - and driven responsibly

I diagnosed it by reading and finding the four spots where leaks form, and noticing fluid on the front of the engine to the left of the exhaust manifold. With the car running, I blew compressed air on the area and completely cleaned it, then watched as the fluid came back. I also looked underneath, but it's never easy to see the source of a leak because a liquid runs over various surfaces and doesn't just drip down, so from under the vehicle, the best I could say was that it was somewhere on the front of the block

The good news is that I've found a place in Dallas (Garland really) that brings in used JDM motors and has some pretty good reviews. They want $800 for the engine and $600 for the swap. I think that's a good investment for what's otherwise a very clean and mostly problem free vehicle. I'd post the name, but am not sure what the policy is on this site. Perhaps someone can let me know.

A few final points:

- I thought about the JB Weld fix, and while it might be a temporary way out, there are four potential places for the cracks to form and two of them are on the back, so even if you find and fix one, and it holds a second might open up

- As for the comments that said caveat emptor, perhaps information about this problem is "readily available" on the internet, but then again (as others have pointed out) I bought mine in 2007, so that comment has no bearing on my situation nor, I'd suggest, on the situation of many others

- I added my name to the list of vehicle complaints at NHTSA, in case it had any beneficial effect.

- Finally one of the pics I saw when researching this was almost identical with one I had taken of the underside of my vehicle. It was sort of funny to see the similarity, but good confirmation that I was on the right track

Good luck to those who follow in my footsteps

Oh, and the next vehicle will be a Tesla, not a Honda

 

[EdNaviEx]

Add me to the list

2007 EX with 155000 on it. I'm the only owner and it's a daily driver - and driven responsibly

I diagnosed it by reading and finding the four spots where leaks form, and noticing fluid on the front of the engine to the left of the exhaust manifold. With the car running, I blew compressed air on the area and completely cleaned it, then watched as the fluid came back. I also looked underneath, but it's never easy to see the source of a leak because a liquid runs over various surfaces and doesn't just drip down, so from under the vehicle, the best I could say was that it was somewhere on the front of the block

The good news is that I've found a place in Dallas (Garland really) that brings in used JDM motors and has some pretty good reviews. They want $800 for the engine and $600 for the swap. I think that's a good investment for what's otherwise a very clean and mostly problem free vehicle. I'd post the name, but am not sure what the policy is on this site. Perhaps someone can let me know.

A few final points:

- I thought about the JB Weld fix, and while it might be a temporary way out, there are four potential places for the cracks to form and two of them are on the back, so even if you find and fix one, and it holds a second might open up

- As for the comments that said caveat emptor, perhaps information about this problem is "readily available" on the internet, but then again (as others have pointed out) I bought mine in 2007, so that comment has no bearing on my situation nor, I'd suggest, on the situation of many others

- I added my name to the list of vehicle complaints at NHTSA, in case it had any beneficial effect.

- Finally one of the pics I saw when researching this was almost identical with one I had taken of the underside of my vehicle. It was sort of funny to see the similarity, but good confirmation that I was on the right track

Good luck to those who follow in my footsteps

Oh, and the next vehicle will be a Tesla, not a Honda

JDM motor? How many miles on it? Will it be compatible with our R18s (computer)? Anyway, if so, great price.

For those reading this, realize that Honda remedied this problem from 2010 on (can't remember if that is 100% correct), so look for engines of this year or newer. They are "plug and play" (a block from a 2010 will work on a 2006). Honda messed up, but statistically speaking, it's not a widespread problem. If JD weld works for a couple or several years, then awesome. If not, find a block that is not affected and find someone who can do it for cheap. This isn't an option for most people as they figure it's not worth it. To each their own.

My next vehicle will be a Honda.

 

[Blanche]

JDM motor? How many miles on it? Will it be compatible with our R18s (computer)? Anyway, if so, great price.

Theoretically fairly low; they quoted me 60k, though I'll have to take their word for it. I'm assuming it'll be compatible because mine won't be the first they've done. I did pull the dipstick and it looked pretty clean

I'll keep you posted

 

[EdNaviEx]

Theoretically fairly low; they quoted me 60k, though I'll have to take their word for it. I'm assuming it'll be compatible because mine won't be the first they've done. I did pull the dipstick and it looked pretty clean

I'll keep you posted

Awesome, good luck to ya and let us know how it goes.

 

[avadokht]

Hey guys,

Sorry if this isn’t the right area to post but I am too grief stricken with the repair cost of 4.5k. I would like to start a thread to so we can document how many other people's engine blocks are cracking after the 10 year warranty expiration. I just had mine crack (after 102k) last week and brought it in. I am 2 months out of the warranty coverage.

I did a bit of research and saw that the engine normally fails at around 90k-110k miles.

Since there are people out there who dont drive more than 8k miles a year it would take about 11.25 years on average for their engine to fail.

I want to know from other owners do they think it is possible to get a class action put together to cover this issue indefinitely because 100k and buy a new engine is a bit ridiculous.

Again sorry if it isnt the right area maybe a moderator can help me. Again this is a 2.5k-4.5k issue. I feel that it should be addressed by the community.

Hi all

I've just joined the club of pissed off Civic owners yesterday! I'm in Canada, my 2008 Civic was diagnosed with the engine crack by a Honda dealership, it only has 112K on it!

They told me to reach out to Honda Canada etc but we all know it won't go anywhere, so here I am looking to see which path others have taken. This is a manufacturing defect known as early as 2010 and it's not a subject of warranty, Honda should have recalled these cars as soon as they found about the issue instead they kept it quiet and protected their brand at the cost of consumers! This can justify a legal action however are we able to get together and form an alliance against a giant company?

I've read all the responses under this thread, we all are middle class families who just wanted to have a reliable car, this is not fair by any means.

I'm asking the moderators and the original creator of this thread to reach out to all the owners in here if possible and get an update so we can see what our next steps can be. A petition would be the least we can go for, also any advise on how to approach Honda? It's better to be nice and beg for subsidizing the cost of changing the engine or be rough and threatening to sue them?!

 

[Blanche]

I picked her up over the weekend and made it home, so that's the first hurdle passed.

Everything seems to work: A/C, Heat, Pwr Steering, Alternator, Starter, lights, etc. No stains on the concrete since it's been parked either. I told them going in that the pwr steering pump might be leaking, and they apparently fixed it or maybe replaced a hose during the install. That was nice of them.

There's a smell in the car, like diesel, so I guess it's some sort of engine cleaner and hopefully it'll go away. The only thing that bothers me is there's a ticking sound, both at idle, and when under a load, though it seems to go away when cruising. I'm assuming it's valve lash, and I've watched a video that shows it as being pretty easy to adjust out. I'll monitor that for a while and maybe mention it to them, or wait until after the warranty and just do it myself.

I'm quite happy right now and seeing as nobody said I couldn't give the name, it was JDMAllianceUSA in Garland (just outside Dallas) Texas. They ship their engines too, so if you're out of town it's still a possible source for a reasonably priced replacement if you have the dreaded cracked block. They said this one had ~54,000 miles on it

I'll keep you posted with how it goes, but so far, definitely so good

 

[Aristoc]

Hi all

I've just joined the club of pissed off Civic owners yesterday! I'm in Canada, my 2008 Civic was diagnosed with the engine crack by a Honda dealership, it only has 112K on it!

They told me to reach out to Honda Canada etc but we all know it won't go anywhere, so here I am looking to see which path others have taken. This is a manufacturing defect known as early as 2010 and it's not a subject of warranty, Honda should have recalled these cars as soon as they found about the issue instead they kept it quiet and protected their brand at the cost of consumers! This can justify a legal action however are we able to get together and form an alliance against a giant company?

I've read all the responses under this thread, we all are middle class families who just wanted to have a reliable car, this is not fair by any means.

I'm asking the moderators and the original creator of this thread to reach out to all the owners in here if possible and get an update so we can see what our next steps can be. A petition would be the least we can go for, also any advise on how to approach Honda? It's better to be nice and beg for subsidizing the cost of changing the engine or be rough and threatening to sue them?!

One person can start a class action. Contact a class action lawyer and find out if you can start it. Then others can join.

what you haven't mentioned is what are you going to do now with your car? trade it in for another Honda? Try to repair it as others on you tube have? Keep driving it until it stops? Sell it to a junk yard or give it to a charity? That is more interesting question.

 

[EdNaviEx]

Hi all

I've just joined the club of pissed off Civic owners yesterday! I'm in Canada, my 2008 Civic was diagnosed with the engine crack by a Honda dealership, it only has 112K on it!

Honda isn't going to do anything. They covered this defect years ago and the (extended) warranty on your particular car has run out. You can try to get them to fix it, but I wouldn't bet any money. Realize the car is now 12 years old. I would go after the dealer who sold it to you. Talk to a lawyer and you will more than likely go into some settlement. You didn't know about this defect, THEY (dealer) did.
Good luck

 

[wakerunner08]

JDM motor? How many miles on it? Will it be compatible with our R18s (computer)? Anyway, if so, great price.

JDM R18’s are completely compatible, if you read earlier posts several of us have swapped out for them because of the cracks. The Japanese castings didn’t have the same problems as the US blocks.

I wish I had a repair quote for that price! My engine was $960, and install quotes were $2-$3k, so I went DIY.

If you go the DIY route with a JDM motor, you have to switch over the wiring harness, throttle body, and I think it was the oil pressure sensor. There’s a really good post on this forum detailing the swap that I followed to do mine. It wasn’t difficult to do, but not everyone is comfortable or has tools/space to pull the engine block themselves...

Honda must have had the best reliability engineers in the world calculate the 10 year warranty extension, cause I have hardly read of anyone’s block cracking inside of the 10 year mark... personally I was 4 months to the day past it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[EdNaviEx]

JDM R18’s are completely compatible, if you read earlier posts several of us have swapped out for them because of the cracks. The Japanese castings didn’t have the same problems as the US blocks.

I never looked it up b/c it was never an issue with me, until I realized my block was affected. I'm close to 300K miles and so far, so good. But, when/if my block cracks, I'd like to know where to look on how to do this swap. I'll try to find and post a link.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Blanche]

Well she died on me

I was driving home, got on the interstate and the CEL came on, the RPM dropped to zero and I coasted to a halt.

When I tried to start her, I could hear what sounded like a short-cycling relay under the dash when the key was turned. The starter would turn, but the engine wouldn't catch. I waited a while, then tried again and she started up (CEL stayed on) and I was able to drive it for maybe 400 yards. I did this repeatedly trying to get to an 'Auto Zone Near Me' but eventually she died and wouldn't restart. I got a tow to the AZ (stupid really as I should have gone directly home) got the codes read and had two:

P2610 - PCM Ignition Off Internal Timer performance problem
P0685 - ECM/PCM internal circuit malfunction (Power Control Circuit)

and the recommendation is: Repair Engine Control Module


I eventually did get towed home, parked the car on the front and was able to drive it round the back this morning. I called JDM and they said it was my old ECU on the vehicle, that they hadn't replaced that, which is true or they'd have had to reprogram the keys and they said they hadn't changed the wiring harness for the ECU

Because the car will drive from time to time, I have the feeling that it's merely a bad ground or a bad connection somewhere - though where, and whether I'll ever find it is a different matter. I'm not about to go throwing money at the vehicle

I did look up used ECUs on ebay, but also read about the VIN and immobilizer programming involved. One YouTube even suggested desoldering the chips from the old ECU and soldering them into the new ECU as a way to avoid the reprogramming - lol

Anyway, that's where it stands right now. Anyone have any ideas where the ground/connection fault may be?

As for JDM, I have to agree with them that it's not a warranty issue if they didn't change the ECU, though I did read two posts above "a JDM motor, you have to switch over the wiring harness" so I'm not sure about that part yet. If someone could explain what that phrase means.

I'll keep you all posted

 

[Blanche]

I took it to a local independent Honda shop and he diagnosed (and fixed) what we both suspected was the problem - a bad ground on the harness coming out of the ECU and running behind the engine

He said there was a gounding bolt that was either loose or missing and the connection was touching but not secure, so that every now and again, it would disconnect and then cool down and reconnect.

I'd tried to look for this, taken of the cowl, and the top of the air box and removed the air filter, but I couldn't even see the wiring harness. He said he'd removed the air box completely, so I guess I should just have tried harder

Since his repair it's run ok, but the valves are STILL really noisy

 

[Missy445]

I have a 2006 Civic with ......wait for it.......
Only 36k in it. Bought brand new. Drove a few miles a day. Garage kept and maintain religiously. Today I got a cracked engine block diagnosis. If this car had more miles on it the out of warranty pill would be a little easier to swallow. Called Honda but after reading these lost I don’t expect anything

 

[EdNaviEx]

I have a 2006 Civic with ......wait for it.......
Only 36k in it. Bought brand new. Drove a few miles a day. Garage kept and maintain religiously. Today I got a cracked engine block diagnosis. If this car had more miles on it the out of warranty pill would be a little easier to swallow. Called Honda but after reading these lost I don’t expect anything

Wow, what a shame. Your car is still a baby. I would check with some independent shops to see how they can help you. Apparently welding the block seems to hold up for a while. The alternative is to get an 2010 engine (cast correctly so it will never crack), but not sure how motivated you are and how much you are willing to spend. Still, good luck!

 

[rish]

My 08 civic (about 90,000 km = 55923.407 miles) has the same crack problem too.

We are on the same boat. If someone start a class action, please post info to this forum. I am sure lots of people have the same issue and want to join the class action.

We buy Honda because it is reliable. They destroy themselves. My next car will not be Honda.

 

[Blanche]

That sucks - especially because apart from this one problem I'd still say it was a bullet proof car that will pretty much last for ever

Update: After I got the ground fixed I've been driving it and it's just fine. I have to remind myself it's a replacement engine. The valves are still really noisy, but who cares really? I'm going to do a valve job on it - just for the fun of it. I bought a valve cover gasket from ebay, then I thought ... I wonder if the JDM gaskets are the same as the US ones? I guess I'll find out

Bottom line is the installation appears to have missed one significant item, but then again the price was right. The engine itself is difficult to fault

 

[NKaufman]

Well, another year passed without any issues so far. Am thinking on how to approach this issue if it occurs now. Mine is a 2007 EX with only 105K.

A little over a year back, I was thinking of replacing the block at the dealer (under 5k I was told) and then take Honda to small claims. Since 5k is still much less than 20K for a new car and I know that this one runs smooth, has been maintained well.

But as time goes on, I'm re-evaluating my options..

 

[NKaufman]

I have a 2006 Civic with ......wait for it.......
Only 36k in it. Bought brand new. Drove a few miles a day. Garage kept and maintain religiously. Today I got a cracked engine block diagnosis. If this car had more miles on it the out of warranty pill would be a little easier to swallow. Called Honda but after reading these lost I don’t expect anything

If I was in your situation, I'd get the block replaced and then take Honda to small claims. Your car is still - like new - after 14 years..