An overheated car engine can strand you very quickly. Here’s what Gulf Breeze Automotive wants you to know about why this can happen in your car.
The Radiator Failed
Your car’s radiator does most of the heavy lifting when it comes to cooling the car’s engine. If it fails, that means that the coolant isn’t able to cool down and keep the engine from overheating. In fact, radiator failure is one of the big causes of immediate overheating. The other is if the head gasket should fail, which is a catastrophic failure.
The Fan Isn’t Working
There’s a fan right in front of the radiator that helps it to remove heat from the coolant as it circulates through the radiator. That fan might seem like it’s just helping, but it’s doing more than that. If the fan fails, the radiator can’t do the job of removing heat from the coolant on its own and the engine is likely to eventually overheat.
The Water Pump Died
The water pump keeps the coolant flowing by pumping it around the cooling system. If the water pump gives out, there’s nothing else that helps to keep the coolant circulating. The coolant cannot do its job if it’s just sitting in hoses and reservoirs, so the engine quickly overheats.
Not Enough Coolant
There’s a reason that your car needs a certain amount of coolant moving through the cooling system. There has to be enough coolant that it can circulate through the engine to cool it and then discharge that heat that it gathered so that it can recirculate through the engine. Too little fluid in the cooling system means that it’s still too warm when it recirculates, which doesn’t get the job done.
Overdue Services
The various services that your car’s manufacturer recommends are suggested for a reason. They help to maintain the car’s engine so that it’s less likely to overheat. Some services, like coolant services and oil changes, work directly to keep the engine cooler. Others ensure that you don’t experience failures like hoses breaking or the head gasket failing.
If you’re having trouble with your car overheating, contact us today at Gulf Breeze Automotive in Gulf Breeze, FL. A thorough inspection can reveal the problem so that we can recommend the right repair for your car and get you back on the road as safely and as quickly as we possibly can.