Why does my car thermostat keep overheating?
A car’s thermostat regulates the flow of coolant through the engine and is an essential part in the operation of your vehicle. In most cases, an overheating or no-heat condition in your vehicle is due to a faulty thermostat.
What are the symptoms of a bad thermostat?
The first and potentially most alarming symptom will be the temperature gauge reading high into the red within the first 15 minutes of your vehicle engine running. This is often the very first sign that the thermostat is not functioning properly.
What to do if your car thermostat is stuck?
The coolant should warm to the right temperature and begin to flow after 10 to 20 minutes. If it does not start to flow, but the temperature gauge on your dashboard rises, your thermostat is stuck closed. If your coolant flows normally, there may be another cause of your overheating engine.
How does a car thermostat work when the engine is cold?
Next, a metal “skirt” is welded around the pellet. When the engine is cold, a spring forces the skirt up against a seat (just like a closed faucet), stopping the flow of coolant. As the engine heats up, the wax melts and expands. Expansion pressure builds to the point where the wax tries to “spit out” the metal rod.
A car’s thermostat regulates the flow of coolant through the engine and is an essential part in the operation of your vehicle. In most cases, an overheating or no-heat condition in your vehicle is due to a faulty thermostat.
The coolant should warm to the right temperature and begin to flow after 10 to 20 minutes. If it does not start to flow, but the temperature gauge on your dashboard rises, your thermostat is stuck closed. If your coolant flows normally, there may be another cause of your overheating engine.
Next, a metal “skirt” is welded around the pellet. When the engine is cold, a spring forces the skirt up against a seat (just like a closed faucet), stopping the flow of coolant. As the engine heats up, the wax melts and expands. Expansion pressure builds to the point where the wax tries to “spit out” the metal rod.
How big is the thermostat in a car?
Car thermostats are the small device that sits between the radiator and the engine of a liquid-cooled car. The thermostat in most cars is about 2 inches (5 cm) in diameter and play an important role in the car which is to regulate the flow of the engine coolant from the engine to the radiator.