A couple years ago I was taking a long trip on a hot day. About 3hrs into the trip i hit stop & go traffic in Dayton, OH. While waiting for traffic to get moving (ambient temp was 100deg) my engine temps crept up. I pulled over, shut down he car and waited for it to cool off. I noted a burp of coolant on the ground, opened up the cap and it was slightly low. Problem solved…..

Fast forward to today……drove 5 hrs yesterday and 4hrs today with no issues whatsoever. Pulled into my destination and had to wait a bit. (Ambient temp= 95 degrees in Minnesota today). About 6 minutes into waiting, temps began to creep up and check engine light came on. I opened the hood and got it cooled down. Did my tour (3 hrs) and started it up with no issues. Drove 30 minutes and at the end of my trek, same issue just as I was pulling into my hotel. This time I turned the heat on full blast and the car cooled down pretty quickly. The hot air coming out of the vents was H O T…..like way hotter than it should’ve been. Worried about my thermostat, which I have a new one on my workbench at home. .

Not sure what to make of this, but worried about the drive home in a couple days. Any thoughts on what to check/look for??

Jim

 

Hi Jim, I experienced the same issue a number of years ago. I since changed my cooling water (over time it loses cooling quality) as well as the Thermostat which opens at a lower temperature. Not sure what year your car is but my 2004 now has a Thermostat that opens 8 degrees Celcius / 46F earlier.: I believe at 82 instead of 90 degrees. This makes a heap load of difference.

 

Thank you @sdekoning ! Unfortunately, I'm 700 miles from home right now. I have a brand new Thermostat on my workbench but did not have time to swap it out. Hopefully, I can get this thing home.

Jim

 

Might be worth bleeding the cooling system after you top it off. The bleed valve is on a hose back near the brake reservoir....

As always, YMMV!