[memo_rex]

Hello All,
Not sure if to start a new thread for advice on these issues. I will post here for now. I have a 2018 1.5t Touring. Bought new and currently at 48k miles with NO issues so far. How do I start to prevent the head gasket issues? Is there anything I can do proactively? It is my wife's daily driver. Her drive to work is 3 miles one way. South Texas heat. I follow the MM recommendations. I do oil changes myself or take it in to Honda. I make sure the coolant, and oil is looking good every month or so. I recently topped off (to the full line) the coolant reservoir, but I think it leaked since the cap was not set correctly so that was on me. I read in a bunch off forums to do oil changes more often (every 5k maybe?), use premium top tier gas, make sure coolant is full, and don't drive like crazy (we dont). We do make highway trips to Dallas (~500 miles one way) and out of state (~900 miles one way) several times a year. What do you all think? I wonder if these gasket issues are cars that use Turbo more frequent and push the engine hard, which we don't. We purchased the Accord to be what it is, a boring Accord, not a racer type with turbo. I am asking since obviously I can trade it and get money now while still Ok, and just purchase something else. I hesitate to do that since my plan was to keep the Accord for a long time. I wonder what the percentage of gasket issues (in 1.5t, civic, accord, crv) are compared total sales and if low, those that go bad are running the turbo engine as intended, but obviously not made to hold up.

 

[memo_rex]

Great questions.
I treated my accord with kid gloves - probably stomped on it once since I bought it new just to feel it.
Never had an overheat situation.
Changed oil and flter per MM.
Looking back, only tell-tale sign was a very slight rough idle at cold startup.
Followed by the xmas tree warnings on the dash some number of months after rough idle (and a P0301 code).
Followed by coolant slowly disappearing over this time frame.
My recommendation is to check coolant level often.
Mark the resevoir level when dead-cold with a piece of tape.
If the level drops at all (when dead cold), begin to suspect a blown head gasket.
I think it might take sometime before the dreaded misfire is detected which results in enormous number of warnings.
My rough idle experience started before 59000 miles but i never suspected that a "honda" would blow a head gasket.
So I wrote it off as a minor issue. Expensive mistake; cause now I'm just over 60000miles and honda is thumbing it's nose at me.
Stealerships are not there to help you out. They will tell you it's your battery, ignition coils, spark plugs, fuel injectors, etc. All the while charging you for all these parts replacements. Caveat emptor.

Thanks for your reply. Can I ask where are you located, as in cold weather climate? Not sure that matters but wondering. In south Texas, we have 3 seasons, almost Summer, Summer and Fall. I'll keep an eye on the coolant. I guess once and if I ever hit the Xmas tree lights and P0301 code, it will be my sign to trade in.