NHTSA Complaint #767512 — 2002 HONDA PASSPORT

THE MOTOR JUST RUNS HOT. 238 THRU 250. MY '01 RC-51 RAN BETWEEN 190 AND 212. THE '02 HAS TWO COOLING FANS WHICH WILL COME ON WHEN THE TEMP REACHES 219. IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC THE FANS WILL COOL THE MOTOR SOME BUT WHEN RUNNING ON THE INTERSTATE AT 70 MPH THE FANS WORK AGAINST THE AIR FLOW AND THE MOTOR WILL NOT COOL. THE TEMP JUST GOES UP FROM THERE. TO ACTUALLY GET THE TEMP TO START DROPPING YOU HAVE TO BREAK THE LAW AND DO AT LEAST 105MPH SO THE NATURAL AIR FLOW CAN OVER POWER THE FANS. THE DEALER MECHANIC HAD AT ONE POINT SWITCHED THE FAN MOTORS POLARITY, REVERSING THE DIRECTION AT WHICH THEY RUN. THIS DID HELP AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS BUT IN TRAFFIC THE MOTOR RAN JUST AS HOT, 238/250, BECAUSE NOW THE FANS ARE PULLING THE HEAT OFF THE MOTOR. I HAVE SEEN SEVERAL THREADS AT MOTORUSH.COM (RC-51.NET GENERAL DISCUSSION) ON THIS MATTER AND HAVE POSTED SOME THREADS MYSELF. SOME OWNERS OF THE '02 RC-51 HAVE HAD NO HEATING PROBLEMS AND SOME HAVE. I FEEL THAT MAXEY'S HONDA HAS DONE ALL THEY CAN AND WOULD LIKE TO SEE HONDA COME UP WITH A FIX FOR THIS PROBLEM. THEY HAVE REPLIED BY TELLING ME TO JUST PULL THR BIKE OVER AND LET IT COOLDOWN, IF THE HIGH TEMP OR OVERHEAT LIGHT COMES ON. I THINK THE MOTOR NEEDS A FRONT MOUNT RADIATOR INSTALLED TO HELP THE TWO SIDE MOUNTS COOL BETTER. OR MAYBE COOLING FANS THAT WILL NOT OVER POWER THE FRONT END AIR FLOW. IN SUMMARY, THIS '02 RC-51 RUNS ABOUT 30 TO 40 DEGREES HOTTER THAN MY '01 AND WHEN I HAVE SEEN IT HIT 250, 251 OVERHEAT LIGHT COMES ON, I WOULD HAVE TO THINK THAT SOME ENGINE DAMAGE HAS TAKEN PLACE. THANKS TO THE EXTENDED WARRENTY I WILL BE COVERD FOR THE NEXT FEW YEARS, I HOPE!*AK