There aren’t many times that you’ll find yourself doing major engine work on Honda’s line of cars. If there is a pattern failure, and I’m not really sure it’s common enough to call it that, it would be head gasket failures on late ‘90s Civic models. If you’re comfortable with engine repairs, there is no reason not to welcome this work. The cars fix well, should offer no surprises to the tech, a little profit for the shop and as good an experience possible for the customer.

A head gasket failure will present itself as an overheating condition, or maybe a customer complaint of the heat occasionally blowing cold as a result of coolant loss. More severe cases will have the customer reporting white exhaust smoke on start up. Like any other job, the first step is to diagnose the problem. You never want to dive into an extensive engine job like this without first confirming the problem.

Before you do any testing, be sure the cooling system is full. You’ll never find a leak in the system if is there is no coolant to leak. While th...