When Your Car Overheats

Posted on February 9th, 2009 by Warranty Direct

Car overheating Overheating is one of those car problems that can occur in any car or truck at any time.

Knowing what causes a car to overheat and how to deal with the problem are definitely important for any owner.

What Causes Cars to Overheat?

Overheating can have a number of different causes. You need to understand that the processes that run your vehicle produce large quantities of heat and that heat needs to be dealt with by the car to prevent damage. For this reason, cars have a number of parts and systems that work only to help deal with that heat. When any of those are not working correctly, overheating is possible.

A common problem is a leak. If any of your coolant leaks, you may end up not having enough to help transfer the heat away from the engine. Low levels of coolant thanks to improper maintenance can also lead to overheating, as can radiator cap problems that can lead to boiling coolant. Faulty radiators, water pumps, and hoses can all be contributing factors to overheating.

Problems with the exhaust system or with the electric cooling fan are also common causes of overheating.

Signs of Overheating

Before your car gets seriously damaged, you need to watch for signs of overheating in your car. One of the earliest signs is the thermostat light in your dashboard. This light will alert you that the temperature under your hood is getting too hot.

Steam or smoke coming out from beneath the hood is another sign. Sometimes you can see signs by noticing wet areas of water or antifreeze in parking spots after your car has been there for a while. These spots could be signs of coolant leaks.

You might also notice problems with the way your car runs, in general. Overheating can cause many problems within your car so eventually it will begin to affect the other parts.

Steps to Take with an Overheating Engine

When you see those signs of an overheating problem, you should take action. If your thermostat light comes on, you should immediately check your fluids levels. When these are low, you should refill them and keep an eye on the fluids. If they get low again, you need to see a mechanic.

Generally, if you have any reasons to suspect that your car is overheating, you should consult a mechanic as soon as possible. In some cases, the repair could be as easy as replacing an inexpensive hose. If the problem is with the radiator, you may find the repair bill to be quite costly. Unfortunately, overheating is a car problem you can’t ignore.

Now if you are worried about how you would deal with these potentially high repair bills, you might want to consider a Warranty Direct extended car warranty. This type of warranty will actually cover those repair bills so you can deal with that overheating without having to worry about racking up charges you can’t afford to pay.