The
first thing to check in a car that is overheating is to perform a
visual check. First, look underneath the car for any visible sign of a
coolant leak. A light green, yellow, or orange fluid on the floor is a
sign of a leak. A leak can occur anywhere around the engine bay. Check
the radiator reservoir and make sure that there is enough fluid. Is
there is not enough fluid, add fluid until it reach the full mark.
The quickest way to check for coolant is
to perform a pressure test. Hook-up the equipment to the radiator and
apply pressure. This will help you determine where the leak is coming
from. Set pressure to around 16 pound and if the gauge start dropping,
the pressure is not holding then there is a leak somewhere. Now here are
seven reasons to look for in an overheating car.
1. A bad radiator cap can cause the
engine to overheat. A radiator cap should hold pressure according to the
cap specification. If the cap is rusty or looks like it is worn, you
will have to replace the cap.
2. A failed cooling fan will not
help the radiator to dissipate the heat. Coolant flows from the engine
water jacket passage to the radiator. The radiator fan helps remove heat
from the radiator. If the cooling fan fails to do its job the car will
overheat.
3. A stuck closed thermostat will
not allow coolant to circulate around the engine. The coolant will sit
in the engine water jacket and in the radiator causing heat to build up.
Replace the bad thermostat.
4. A failed water pump will overheat
a car. The fins on the water pump have been worn down and are not able
to circulate the coolant.
5. A clogged radiator like most of
the symptoms above prevents coolant from circulating. Keep in mind that a
radiator can look like it is in good condition but in fact clogged.
6. A blown head gasket will allow
coolant to seep into the chamber and burn the coolant. The end result is
low coolant and an overheating vehicle.
7. Bad hoses or worn hoses are
common for a car to overheat. Coolant leaks out of the hoses resulting
in loss of coolant, therefore causing a car to overheat.
Cars overheat most often in very hot
weather. It’s rare with modern vehicles, but even a well-tuned
automobile can overheat. If you find yourself in stop-and-go traffic or
climbing a steep grade on an extremely hot day, and your dashboard
temperature indicator starts to rise or a malfunction indicator light
comes on, here’s how to help your vehicle regain its cool:
At the first sign of overheating, shut
off your air conditioner and open your windows: Doing so decreases the
load on the engine and helps it cool off.
If it continues to overheat, turn on the
heater and blower: Doing so transfers the heat from the engine to the
passenger compartment of the vehicle.
If you’re stopped in traffic and the
temperature gauge is rising, shift into Neutral or Park and rev the
engine a little: Doing so makes the water pump and the fan speed up,
which draws more liquid and air through the radiator. The increased air
and liquid circulation helps cool things off.
Try not to ride your brakes: In
stop-and-go traffic, crawl along slowly, on little more than an idle,
rather than moving up and then braking repeatedly. Brake drag increases
the load on the engine and makes it heat up. If traffic is crawling,
move up only when the gap between you and the vehicle in front of you
gets too large.
If you think that your vehicle is about
to boil over, drive to the right-hand side of the road, open the hood,
and sit there until things cool off. Remember, don’t open the radiator
cap under these circumstances, and if your engine has boiled over, don’t
add water until the engine is quite cool again.
Sources: enginemisfire.com, dummies.com
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