TheFunk : 1991 Acura Legend

[sonikaccord]

Heck yah, looks better than the one I made a thread about.

[TheFunk]

Well I was woken up to a call to come into work this morning.
Quickly threw my intake back on and let it run for about 20 minutes with the radiator cap off.
Drove the 2.5 miles to work gingerly but when I got there I popped the hood and the cracks are back.

[TheFunk]

Had been working in the parking lot of my apartment. Sun was blaring down on my brother and I today so we went under the bridge a block from my place. Definitely where I am working on it from now on. .




Today I replaced the drive belts with new ones I found in the trunk. Got my A/C working now... needs to be lubed a bit though, seems to have had no belt on it for quite some time.

Re-patched my radiator... just because I still had JB weld. Not expecting much.

Semi-polished my headlights and made some progress getting the retracting antenna to actually retract.

Helped my brother clean up his summer rims and mount them. Also cleaned almost of his electrical components under the hood and the intake. These old Volvos love to collect dirt in the wiring harnesses. The Legend is very much the opposite, everything was super clean once unplugged.

Could certainly say I got my brother into Volvos, and cars in general. Will be teaching him how to properly clay bar and wax his car soon as he has been neglecting his paint and it really is a beatiful 740.

[TheFunk]

Made a more well planned attempt at bleeding the air from the cooling system today.

Got it up to operating temp with heater blasted. Waited 10 minutes watching for the cooling fans to come on so I could loosen the bleeder valve... watched and waited and fan never came on.
Also had little to no air bubbles escaping.

Held it at 2k rpm for about 10 seconds and saw some bubbles escape... then noticed some white smoke in my rear view. Not too much smoke, but enough that I'm going to assume the head gasket is blown. Shut the engine off right then and there.
Car has not once overheated or even begun to overheat.

Did two 30-45 minute drives when I got the car and can't honestly remember if the cooling fan had kicked in. I know I had checked the exhaust both times and there was no visible smoke.

Not sure if it just now got bad or what. Not expecting to be able to afford the fix until near the end of summer so the car will sit and wait while I gather all the parts I need to fix everything at once (Head gasket kit, radiator, timing belt, water pump, whatever else I find).

Luckily, I have a bicycle...

[H311RA151N]

I have a 4.0L HO straight 6 in a TJ (1997 Jeep Wrangler Sport) that has a cracked head. Been driving it for 4 and a half years. When I found out the head was cracked (2 years ago) I drove it 80 miles to the lake where it stays as a ride to the boat dock when I'm there. My point in mentioning this is sometimes, although it's rare, a head can crack on the exhaust side and not have nearly as much of an impact on how the engine operates. Mine simply squirts coolant into the exhaust. A head gasket is different and I couldn't tell you which your issue likely is and it doesn't really matter. But I figured I'd mention this anyhow.

This is unfortunate and I hate hearing it. It is a good thing it's warming up and you have other means of transportation. I hope the fix goes as easy as possible.

[sonikaccord]

2.5 miles away from work, I would bike too!

I always assume these things have a blown gasket unless I see proof otherwise.

[TheFunk]

2.5 miles away from work, I would bike too!

I always assume these things have a blown gasket unless I see proof otherwise.

Yeah its not a bad ride, this city is extremely bicycle friendly.

I did expect I'd to replace the head gaskets at some point, was originally thinking of using some of that Blue Devil head gasket sealant after replacing the radiator but I know I'll be best off just not using the car at all and fixing everything the right way.

I've never done a head gasket but I learn best by just doing it, I love learning so aside from the price tag I look forward to it. Plus when it's all said and done my love for the car will grow significantly.

[sonikaccord]

Oh, make sure you get the egr system squeaky clean.

HG aren't hard, but tedious on this car. Stay calm, stay organized, follow the g2 hg diy posted on one of the legend forums. Good luck!

[crazymikey]

Nice find! Just to be abe to find a running Legend these days is a bonus!

Definetly a classy ride once it's all cleaned up.

But I'll tell ya, that Volvo wagon really tickles my fancy.

[TheFunk]

But I'll tell ya, that Volvo wagon really tickles my fancy.

Yeah I know what you mean. Before buying the Legend I was looking at buying a dirt cheap 240 wagon but it would have needed to be towed home.

My brother wasnt a big car guy at all then I convinced him to buy his 740 wagon and he fell in love with Volvos. His is a 5-speed turbo and is a blast to drive.

[sonikaccord]

I've never really looked into Volvos. I always thought they were crap, but I'm sure I can blame the owners' for me thinking that. That was also a younger me, I'm going to revisit them now and see what they are about.

[crazymikey]

Yeah I know what you mean. Before buying the Legend I was looking at buying a dirt cheap 240 wagon but it would have needed to be towed home.

My brother wasnt a big car guy at all then I convinced him to buy his 740 wagon and he fell in love with Volvos. His is a 5-speed turbo and is a blast to drive.

Haha that's awesome. I briefly owned a '91 940 Turbo sedan for a few months. I'd love to pick up a wagon.

I also came across a nice Legend coupe for sale locally. Really, really clean, but way out of my price range. Damn thing is near mint. Last time I saw a Legend was in the junk yard.

I'm glad there's still guys out there who appreciate the oddball Hondas/Acuras and try to keep them going!

[TheFunk]

I've never really looked into Volvos. I always thought they were crap, but I'm sure I can blame the owners' for me thinking that. That was also a younger me, I'm going to revisit them now and see what they are about.

Well I'd definitely only recommend the older RWD ones, things went downhill after Ford bought out Volvo and got even worse after Ford sold it to a Chinese company.

Its a great platform though, lots of interchangeable parts and easy to work on. Pretty consistent with what parts have certain issues so anyone who appreciates their Honda for those reasons should also enjoy a Volvo.