Good morning all,

Well my sis has finally decided she doesn't need a car.  More like
she's finally realized there is no way (or need) for her to afford
insurance and maintenance on a 9 year old vehicle and a bad driving
record.

She bought the car in 2001 with 120000kms on it from a reputable Honda
dealer.  However, on my initial inspection (she bought the car before
I was able to inspect), noticed that the maintenance that had been
done to it up to that point was obviously not done at the dealership.
The battery was A/M (not a huge indicator but nonetheless), the t-belt
was A/M, the tires were all the wrong size (instead of P185 65R14,
they were P175 70R14, and really bad tires too).  The car just did not
give me a great feeling.

Of course I told her to ask the dealership if the t-belt had been
done, and also what they did to it to get it saleable.  Sounds like
they pretty much washed it and put it on the lot.

She started getting CELs about 3 years down the road.  P01857.  She
still drives with the CEL on to this day.

Also, at about 170000kms, the timing belt snapped.  Shouldn't have
happened, but without the actual work history on the vehicle, it was
the roll of a dice.  They fixed the car (she was married at this
point), 3 new valves, timing covers and crank angle sensor.  $1700.

About a year or so after the t-belt repair, she started complaining
that the car was running hot, and that the rad was boiling when she
pulled over.  The rad needed regular fill ups, but the coolant bottle
never overflowed.  There is no coolant in the oil, but there does
appear to be a little oil in the coolant.  Also noticed that the
little rubber hose that goes to the bottom of the coolant overflow
bottle was not connected.  I have reconnected it now.  Not sure how
many times she overheated the car.  Very frustrating... who drives a
car that is overheating?!?!!?!

OK, so based on my novel above, here is the info I am looking for:

1.  Cooling system issues - any pointers on diagnosing this issue are
appreciated.  It could be a head gasket, and it is suspect since it
was replaced a couple years ago, but not all the symptoms are present,
and it seems sporadic as to when it decides to overheat.  Rad cap is
new, thermostat has not been replaced.  When I step on the gas with
the rad cap off, it definitely bubbles up, but I don't know if this is
an indication of bad head gasket, or just normal operation.

2.  P01857 - Evaporative system fault.  Please let me know what I need
to look at on the evap system to repair this.  I have checked for
vacuum leaks, found nothing.  Is there something simple I am
overlooking here?

Thanks for everyone's help.

Terry in Winnipeg (trying to cross post, but am at work and do not
have a news reader!)