You’re driving down the road, singing along with your favorite tunes when suddenly you notice clouds of what appear to be smoke, billowing out from under your hood.  You may also notice some sputtering from your engine or hesitation when you push your foot down on the gas pedal.  Checking your dashboard panel, you probably see the engine light on or notice the temperature gauge in the red zone.

First things first: Don’t panic. 

Those white billowy clouds are not smoke, but steam rolling off your engine because your car has probably overheated.  Engine overheating happens for a variety of reasons, but the most common is simply when our vehicle doesn’t have enough engine coolant to prevent the engine from getting too hot.  This happens when we’re driving in heavy stop-and-go traffic, when we forget to check vehicle fluids, or both.  

If you find yourself with an engine that seems to be overheating, take these steps to get back on the road:

1.} If you have the air conditioning on, turn it off and roll down the windows.  You can also try turning the car heater on at full speed, which may help prevent complete overheating.

2.} Immediately pull the car out of traffic and on to the side of the road or into a parking lot.

3.} Turn off your car and pop the hood release.  If the hood feels very hot to the touch or if you see steam coming from under the hood, wait until the hood cools and then open it all the way.

4.} Don’t open the radiator cap or touch the engine until the engine has cooled completely. This may take as long as 45 minutes to an hour.  The radiator is under pressure, so it could cause bodily injury if you open the cap while it’s hot.

5.} Once the engine has cooled down completely and you can touch it comfortably, check the coolant reservoir tank {it looks like a plastic milk jug with a hose going to the radiator}.   Twist open the radiator cap slowly, paying special attention to the radiator and coolant level. If it doesn’t have any coolant, you’ll have to add coolant, water or both if you have them, directly into the radiator. Be certain to fill the radiator to the top and if you have both coolant and water, use a 50/50 mix.

6.} Replace the radiator cap and check all hoses, making certain they haven’t sprung a leak or busted.

7.} Restart the car and check the temperature gauges on the dash.  If the needle starts moving into the red zone, shut off the engine immediately, wait a few minues and try again.

Keep in mind that it is possible to continue driving while your car is hot, especially if you’re on a dark road or in unfamiliar territory.  In this case, start up the engine and continue driving until the gauge reaches the hot zone, then stop, turn off the engine, let it cool down significantly and continue again, repeating the stopandstart method until you reach a safe destination. You don’t want to drive this way over long distances, however you can do this until you find a suitable or well lighted and safe area to examine things further.

Remember that engine overheating can be caused by a variety of problems, such as a blocked radiator, a fan that stops working, a bad water pump or a stuck thermostat, so if the coolant level is at normal levels, it’s probably time to see a mechanic.

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