Your vehicle packs a whole lot of power into a sleek and stylish space, but that kind of power comes with a lot of heat – and you don’t wanna know what happens when your engine ‘loses it’s cool’. In today’s article, we’re going to help in that regard with some of the top tips for keeping your car’s cooling system in peak condition.
Understanding Your Cooling System
A basic understanding of how your vehicle’s cooling system works can help to ensure that you take good care of it. What basically happens is that your coolant – a mixture of water and antifreeze – is going to be circulated through the engine and the radiator.
As the coolant travels through the engine, it absorbs a large amount of heat, and the heated coolant gets to the radiator where air from the grill is going to help cool it back down so that it can repeat the process. An overflow bottle helps to reduce the chances of coolant loss and fans help air to circulate in the radiator, but you get the basic idea – fluids are kept moving to keep the engine cool.
Top Tips for Keeping Your Cooling System Cool
No matter how sophisticated the machine, without maintenance you’re going to run into problems quickly, so in this section we’ve got some hot tips for keeping your cooling system cool. Here are the top 3:
- Get in the Habit of Checking for Leaks – Coolant comes in many differentcolors, which actually helps quite a bit in spotting leaks before they can become a bigger issue. Look for puddles of green, pink, orange, red, or blue around the front of your car. If you see one and haven’t just topped off your fluids, then it’s high time for a checkup at your local shop.
- Keep an Eye on Your Fluids – YouTube videoscan teach you how to check your coolant levels on your own and once you know how to do it, you should practice this new skill every 2 weeks. By topping off your coolant regularly, you’ll have a much better chance of avoiding overheating and other unpleasant surprises down the road.
- Check Your Radiator Cap Regularly – Whenever you check your coolant levels, it’s also a good idea to take a peek at your radiator cap. You’ll want to make sure that it’s tightly in place and also that it’s not starting to corrode. It only takes a moment but you’d be surprised how many folks forget this little tip until their vehicle overheats and it’s already too late.
Don’t Forget Your Regularly Scheduled Preventative Maintenance
While the top 3 tips are going to be your bread and butter for basic maintenance (unless you’ve got some mechanical skills), the biggest way to protect your coolant system and the rest of your vehicle is by making sure that you are getting the regularly scheduled preventative maintenance your manufacturer recommends.
Too often when our vehicles are performing well we fall into the trap of thinking that we don’t need to get them checked. The thing is, like a race car driver’s vehicle makes regular pit stops, you need to get regular preventative maintenance at certain mile markers to keep your vehicle in tip-top shape.
During these checks, fluids often get flushed and filters replaced, your brakes may get inspected, and parts of the engine are going to be machine and hand-checked for signs of wear and tear.
Your shop can tell you about the specific checks for your vehicle and when they are recommended and if you stick with them, you’ll not only maximize your miles and keep your performance at its peak, but you’re also going to be protecting your resale value in the bargain.
It just makes good, solid sense!
At Car and Trucks Engines 4Less We’ve Got You Covered
Whether you are looking for rebuilds, repairs, preventative maintenance, or upgrade installations, at Car and Trucks Engines 4Less we have got you covered. For just over a decade now, we’ve been providing our expert services in the South Florida area and since we do all our own machining, you’ll save time and money when you choose our shop.
Come and see the difference that it makes having a REAL full-service shop at your disposal. We think you’re going to love it!
