My Car is overheating.?
I think it might be a couple things based on what you've said but it's true that more information about your vehicle will be needed to properly assess what's wrong - for one thing it may have something to do with a temperature sensor in your car. Once your car goes above a certain temperature this sensor turns on the fan automatically in order to cool down the engine compartment and radiator, so if your sensor is broken, then the fan won't know if it's hot or not. Another thing you might want to check is the level of coolant in your car. Before you start your car in the morning, pop the hood open and check the level of the coolant in the container. This container should be a clear container so you can see the level of the coolant (usually greenish in color.) It should be slightly below a hashmark, marked on the container. The reason why it should be slightly below the hashmark is because as your car is running, the coolant heats up and expands as it takes the heat away from your car. Also check for leaking of coolant underneath your car. If there's a leak, take your car in for service to have it pressure tested. For the interim, until you take your car to a mechanic, you might want to blow the hot air out of your car by turning on the heat in your car - I know it sounds ridiculous being summer and all but it will help your car cool down for the time being.. plus it forces you to take it in to have it serviced as I'm sure you would hate to have hot air blown in your face all day in the summer. Aside: Make sure that if you have a passenger, ask that person to move their feet away from the heating fan underneath the glove compartment or they might burn their feet.. just saying this because I had a car like yours and I drove it once and my friend fell asleep.. woke up and his feet were all red. If it's got nothing to do with coolant levels, leaks, or sensing / thermostat issues - I'm at a loss as to why it overheats. I dunno, another thing that just occured to me is that it might have to do with something in your radiator and it's blocked somewhere along the line with rust or whatnot which is preventing the flow of coolant.. or *maybe* it thinks you're hot and it's getting all excited. Either way, take it to a mechanic.. but don't let yourself get ripped off - be warned.
Why is my car overheating?
I would suggest the primary issue be the overheating. I will list the things I know that should cause an engine to overheat. Bad thermostat: You mentioned it has already been looked at, does this mean it is working fine? Low Coolant: Also this I assume has been taken care of. Low Oil: Oils acts as a lubricant as well as another way of keeping the engine running cool. Water Pump: It could be faulty. I have seen this issue twice before on a 2000 Nissan Quest, as well as an 03' Chevy Trailblazer. On the Quest I believe it was an issue with air in the cooling system, I was never able to confirm this. It had an overly complicated series of steps on how to properly work on the cooling system. I miss the days where a cold engine and removal of the radiator cap was all that was needed.Make sure that there isn't a code being thrown, was there a check engine light on? Generally when an engine starts to overheat the heater still works and can be used as a way to squeeze some distance out of an overheating engine by turning on the max heat and fan speed.
HELP PLZ! My car is overheating while idle and going slowly?
It's not the thermostat, which doesn't care at all whether you are idling or not. In my entire life I have only once seen a thermostat cause overheating, and that was in a car that had been driving down the highway when it suddenly overheated. They are often suspected but almost never responsible. There are two possible reasons for a car to overheat while idling but be okay while driving - air flow or water flow. Air flow (fans) is the far more common problem but from your description that is all working right. The radiator is supposed to be colder near the outlet because the radiator is cooling the coolant down. And that other fan is the A/C condenser fan, so it is working right also. Actually, other than the basic overheating problem everything you describe is completely normal for the conditions. That leaves us looking at water flow trouble. Water flow is not a common problem, but if there is a large bubble caught in the cooling system that will do it. I'm not familiar with the Mitsubishi, but many cooling systems have procedures for bleeding trapped air. It is also possible that the radiator is nearly plugged so the coolant doesn't circulate enough at idle; this will happen if tap water is added to the cooling system in large enough amount. The hard water minerals precipitate out in the radiator as the liquid cools and the small tubes become blocked. If that is true the heater will put out lots of heat as the engine overheats, while if the water pump has disintegrated (rare but not unknown) the heater will put out cold air when the engine overheats. The test for a plugged radiator is a flow test. Shops can do it for about half an hour labor or you can do it yourself by removing the radiator hoses and sticking a garden hose in the upper hose fitting of the radiator. If the radiator is okay it will pass all the water the hose can put out. The last radiator I changed (for a friend) was so blocked I could hardly blow air through it. Radiator blocking typically shows up at higher speeds but if the pump is not trying hard it can happen at idle.That 25 minute lag makes me a bit suspicious of the radiator.
If my car engine had a problem with overheating, would it help if I cranked up the heater to help diffuse the heat?
Question: If my car engine had a problem with overheating, would it help if I cranked up the heater to help diffuse the heat?I borrowed our son’s old Bronco to tow the rally car to it’s first event after I bought a trailer for this type of activity (the first couple of events we ran in, I drove the car up…how times have changed).I had about 200km to get the the event…about 10km into the journey, going up Hwy 400 out of Toronto, the temperature gauge started rising alarmingly. I took the first off ramp so I could have a look at the problem. The radiator was full and there were no external leaks. I decided to keep going, but I put the heater control on full.It was summer so conditions in the cab were difficult. I have lived in hot climates but this was a whole new experience. However, the temperature stabilised just in the green at 80kph and tow car, trailer, and rally car made it to the event. Same deal on the way back, but it is very slightly downhill into Toronto so the engine was doing a little less work.I went out and bought a Ford 250 Econoline van for the next event. No problems towing at 140kph ;-)Conclusion: So to answer the question….YES, but you are just borrowing time if you don’t correct the underlying problem. With the Bronco it was a head gasket.
Does running the heater in your car help cool the engine?
Generally Yes.The heating coil, or core inside your car is basically a small radiator. Here is a typical car cooling system.When you run your heater the hot water/coolant from your engine is circulated into this small radiator. The heater fan blows air over the radiator moving the heat from the water to the air.I said generally because this only works if your water pump is moving the heated water. If your water pump failed or is plugged then you are out of luck.It also helps if you turn off your air conditioner.If you do this open your windows and be ready to get really hot.
Why would a car smell like it is overheating but it is not showing overheating?
Can you describe the overheating smell? Is it like burnt oil? Is it a somewhat sweet smell (antifreeze)?For me, I’d associate the antifreeze smell with an overheating smell, but not everyone would. If this is the smell, what’s the level of the overflow tank? What’s the temp gauge reading on the dash? Check and make sure your overflow tank doesn’t have a whole someplace, allowing the fluid to drip out. Check around the water pump area and see if it has a slow leak. Look for other potential leaks, if you got fluid, use a cloth wipe it up, smell it, look at the color and determine what it is. If you don’t know ask someone who does.
My car is overheating and my wheel is extremely hard to turn can it be my radiator?
My steering wheel is hard to turn. My car juat overheated for the first time I have power steering fluid in my car & My antifreeze must have a leak bc I constantly keep filling it up PLEASE PLEAAE SOME ONE HELP ME THIS CAR IS ALL I GOT 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix
My car is overheating, and has no heat inside, please help!?
I have no heat in my car and have not had this winter so far, I have, however, had AC during the summer months. The coolant is where it needs to be. This is the first time that my car has overheated since I have owned it so I'm completely lost at the moment. I was wondering if it may be thermostat needed replacing? Please, any help will be appreciated! Thank you! :)
What happens when your car gets really overheated and you keep driving it?
if you drove the car with the temp light on for 20 minutes you should just keep driving it now and start saving for a new engine,because the lack of acceleration is a good sign of the rings have lost tension and are now worn.you most likely have the bore as an oval shape instead of round and all the hardening on the crank,cam,valves etc is probably worn/chipped off due to the excessive heat.in short there is probably not much to save inside the engine.drive it till it stops but be ready for it to stop.save save save for a new engine or sell the car while the engine still runs.
My FIAT Cinquecento keeps overheating. Have changed thermo and header cap but doesn't help. Can anyone help?
Ok I'll tell you what to do, Start the engine and then remove the radiror cap run at fast idle untill engine heats up watch water in radiator to see if it starts to circulate. If it does replace cap and speed up engine, watch upper and lower radiator hoses to see if one is colapsing, if so get new hose. If water does not move in radaitor after engine is hot or if it moves very slowly the water pump is not working as it should. If hose collapes , replace it. Head gasket is last thing to check, look for foam on breather cap or dip stick.