What To Do When Your Car Overheats

You want to fix the engine overheating issue as soon as possible as it can cause severe damage. Here is what you need to do if your engine is overheating. Let's dive in!

Indications of Overheating

• There might be smoke or steam coming out from under the hood. 
• There is an engine temperature symbol on your dashboard, and when it turns on, it means that your engine is overheating. Refer to your owner's manual to understand the symbol. 
• There will be an uncommon smell under the hood that you will smell.

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What to do when your car overheats?

1. Turn Off the A/C

As soon as you notice that the car is overheating, turn off the air conditioner. This reduces the stress that the engine faces. Once you turn it off, turn the knob to heating instead of cooling. It will make you feel hot, but it will keep your engine from overheating as you will pull the heat away from it.

2. Pull Over in a Safe Place 

Find a safe space and turn off your car. Let your car cool down for 15 minutes. Once you let your car cool down, you will notice that the temperature in your car has reduced. The temperature should soon come back to normal.

3. Refill the coolant.

It might be that the coolant in your engine is low. A quick refill will help your engine not overheat. However, if you have a clogged cooling hose on your water pump or your radiator fan is broken, adding coolant will not help. Refer to the car's owner's manual to see where you'll find the coolant tank and how to refill it. 

4. Engine Restart

Restart your car's engine once the temperature comes back to normal. Head to the nearest mechanic shop and get your engine checked out. If your car's temperature rises again during your trip to the mechanic, turn off your engine again until it cools down.

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How To Stop Your Engine From Overheating

To prevent your engine from overheating, you should change and refill the coolant in your car frequently. You should also regularly maintain the radiator and get your car serviced from time to time. 

Bonus Tips

• If your car overheats, stop for a few minutes before popping the hood. You can burn yourself with the heated parts or smoke. Let the engine cool down before you check what's wrong. 

• Don't keep driving if your engine is overheating. Let your car cool down before you start driving to your destination again. 

• Do not ignore the warning signs and fix the overheating issue as soon as possible, as it can cause irreparable damage to your engine and car.