Engine is overheating?

Unfortunately, this may be a head gasket. I have seen a number of times that the head gasket allows combustion chamber gases into the coolant when it gets hot.

The way to test this is when it starts to overheat you need to test for combustion gases.

I hate to say it but normally these hard to find and duplicate overheating normally always comes back to the head gasket.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/head-gasket-blown-test

Let me know what you find and we can go from there.

We fixed my stalling out and now my van is seeming to overheat. I replaced the coolant sensor because it was doing this before.

I drove the van to the gas station and the engine stayed at the right temperature. I go inside, come back out, and somehow the van overheated while it was turned off.

Turning it on and off a few times got the temperature to register back at operating level.

I do not see how it could be hotter while not even on than it was while running.

Hi,

It is not uncommon for an engine to get hotter when it is turned off however, it should not actually overheat when it is off unless it was on its way to overheating while it was running. The temperature goes up because the coolant is no longer moving so the coolant gets hotter and the temperature sensor is picking that up. Then starting the vehicle gets the coolant moving again and the gauge will come down.

Did the vehicle actually overheat?

I can only go by the temperature gauge. It was fully in the red.

It did overheat the previous day because the coolant ran low, it has an intermittent leak.

Ok. That makes more sense. I suspect you have an air pocket. I would use a funnel kit like the one pictured below. Make sure the fans are working and then hook up this funnel using the correct adapter that is provided and put some coolant in it. Then start the engine until it gets hot. Then run it until all the air bubbles come out and it is not pulling in any more coolant. Just make sure the funnel is not empty. However, don't put more than the bottom 25% of the funnel with coolant because it could overflow.

As for the leak, we need to pressurize the system to see if we can find the leak. Here is a guide that will take you through the basics of a leak.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/car-is-leaking-coolant

If we don't fix the leak then I would not start with the overheating. Basically it will be a never ending cycle.

If the leak is now repaired, then we need to use the funnel. Let me know if this doesn't makes sense.

we finally found one the issues. there is a tiny crack at the top of radiator (drivers side as look at front of van) that was under the plastic covering.

Okay. That is great. Once repaired we need to retest and see where we are. Clearly replacing the radiator will require a drain and fill of the system. Just make sure we use one of those funnels that I showed before and that will prevent an air pockets so maybe we will catch any other problems with that. Thanks

Engine Cooling problem
2004 Chrysler Town and Country 6 cyl Two Wheel Drive 103225 miles

After replacing the water pump, thermostat and radiator what can still cause the car to overheat?

Make sure none of the radiator hoses are collapsing when the engine gets hot. Also, a bad head gasket. HAve you checked engine compression? Also, are the cooling fans coming on properly?

My van is still overheating after replacing radiator, radiator cap and water pump. Where do I go from here? no water is leaking that I can see and yet i have to keep adding fluid and temperature jumps high very quickly while idling or driving.

You may have an internal leak into the cylinders. you can get a head check done, this is a quick and simple chemical test to determine if combustion gasses are entering the cooling system.most mechanics can do this test as you wait.

The fact that the temperature jumps up fast points at a head gasket leak, as does it using coolant with no sign of an external leak. Combustion gas test is an easy test, you can even DIY it with a rental kit. It uses a fluid that reacts to the gases present in engine exhaust, none of which should exist in the cooling system. The fluid starts as blue, you draw some of the "air" that is in the cooling system up into the fluid, if it turns yellow you have a leak.
https://www.2carpros.com/articles/head-gasket-blown-test

radiator and radiator fan repair/replacement. van overheats when idled, service center says fan went into radiator, causing engine to overheat, and says i need a new engine, is this possible?

If coolant is not leaking onto the ground, you should most likely not need a new radiator. As for the engine, is it running yet? If it runs at normal temperature at highway speeds, I don't why they would say you need a new engine. You might want to get a second opinion.

caradiodoc

The engine overheating light and signal start after about 1 mile of driving. The engine will often make a gurgling/grinding type sound, then the temperature gage drops and the signal stops. The sound seems to be coming from the engine behind the middle of the dash or lower passenger side. Often the gurgling/grinding sound will come when I stop (at a light or stopsign, etc.). Our mechanic thought it was the radiator and just replaced both the radiator and the engine thermometer. However, there has been no change. Any ideas?

Hi
Was any repair done before the problem? You maybe hearing the heater core as coolant passes through. Was new radiator cap installed? Does it overheat at each startup? after is it O.K.?
Let me know
Thanks for donate

Thanks for replying so fast!

No repairs were done immediately before the problem. The car was fine. On the way home from a trip to the beach (about a 4 hour trip), the overheating light/signal came on. My husband noticed that there was no coolant in the car. We refilled the coolant (and kept refilling it). That's when we took it to our mechanic. He replaced the radiator and thermometer. Not sure about the cap. I'll ask. It's actually there now. We took it back. At first he thought it may be the water pump, but that appears to be working fine. He's still trying to figure out the problem.

Yes, the light/alarm come on after each startup... usually after I've driven about one mile or so. After the sound and the light/alarm going off... it takes a little longer, but will eventually heat back up.

Let me know if you need more info. THANKS!

Hi
Have your mechanic check oil? and check for coolant in cumbustion chamber.

The van is overheating according to the gauge, it is almost all the way up. However there is no boiling from the overflow or steam. Have changed out temperature sending unit and thermostat. When diagnosing computer hooked up it says temp is around 240 running, does not go over and the fans are kicking on when they should. HELP!!!!

That's running somewhat hot. Have you tried flushing the cooling system?

Have not tried that yet, but when I am driving the temp is going up yet when I pull into the driveway and rev the engine the temp drops right away. If it is idling in the driveway it seems it should run hotter than when driving down the road.

What you are saying makes sense. Check something for me. Allow the engine to warm up to where it starts getting hot and check the radiator hoses. See if one is collapsed (the lower one in particular). Also, is the radiator cap good?

After thought... Remember, when you sit in the driveway, there is no longer a load on the engine which may help things.

I have 2001 Chrysler Town and Country. Just recently replaced the radiator and thermostat. Van now gets hot when ideling but when I begin to drive (i have a hour commute to work) the engine temp on the dash drops to cold and the air comeing out of the vents.

Van Now Gets Hot When Ideling But Begin To...?????????????????

Try bleeding the cooling system if okay check the water pump

how bad did u overheat it and how long did u drive it like this?is it boiling in the coolant jug?

Engine Cooling problem
2000 Chrysler Town and Country All Wheel Drive Automatic
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dear sir,
i have done every thing to stop the over heating but no result,changed the radiator checked the fuses, removed thermostat,checket fan cercuit braker,what happens is that whan the A/C is switched on one system the tem rises to about full when i tur it off it goes to half guage,note the climate temp here reaches 120f,any sugestions?

yeah I would check/change the engine coolant temp sensor. and make sure you have the correct, thermostat rating. I would probably get one that opens at 180 or 190 degrees as opposed to 205 or more.

Car is overheating; however, the fans are not running. Where are the fan relays or controls?

Start by checking fuse no.24 40amp in the PDC and then the relay-see below

temp gauge went to hot and light came on, didnt overheat, service engine soon light came on, the coolant level was down a little so i filled up, there was no leaking, it takes about 20 mins to get hot, i changed the thermostat the old one was stuck shut, now there seems to be a leak where the lower rad hose connects to the water pump, and the oil was down about 3 quarts, and there is a squealing sound at start it slowly lessens but changes with acceleration...

Is the squeal coming from the belt? It could be getting coolant on it. As far as the leak, check under the water pump for the weep hole where coolant can leak. Check that to see if the pump is leaking. It is easier to check through the inner fender.

Let me know what you find.

Joe

[quote:845e4cbe1d="Jacobandnickolas"]Is the squeal coming from the belt? It could be getting coolant on it. As far as the leak, check under the water pump for the weep hole where coolant can leak. Check that to see if the pump is leaking. It is easier to check through the inner fender.

Let me know what you find.

Joe[/quote:845e4cbe1d]

thank you for your reply...i have already found the problem...i found the water pump was leaking which was spraying onto the belts(squealing sound), so i changed the pump which i did through the wheel well, then i found the fan wasnt coming on but that was just a 40 amp fuse which also made the check engine soon light go off...working fine now...thanks !!!

I had a feeling that was the problem. I'm glad you got it taken care of.

Let us know if you have questions in the future.

Joe

[quote:a2eb06705e="Jacobandnickolas"]I had a feeling that was the problem. I'm glad you got it taken care of.

Let us know if you have questions in the future.

Joe[/quote:a2eb06705e]

i guess i spoke to soon ...the coolant fan isnt coming on now and i wonder if it is the relay or temp sensor ...how do i check to find out which it is???

The radiator fan relay is located on the side of the engine compartment on the driver's side near the bottom. You can see it from under the van. However, the easiest way to access it is to take the air filter assembly out and get to it from the top.

Engine Cooling problem
1998 Chrysler Town and Country Front Wheel Drive Automatic 150000 miles

I recently has the a/c worked on. Now that it's hot i am using it and my van keeps overheating. Last week I took it into the mechanic who said it was a blower fuse and replaced it. It is still overheating. I had the fuse tested and it's fine. The coolant is full as well. Where else should I check or do?

when the A/C is turned on, check to see if the radiator fan is coming on properly

yes it is

remove and test the thermostat