When the outside temperatures climb, you depend on your vehicle’s cooling system, so it’s important to know how it works. The cooling system of any vehicle performs a very important job, to prevent the heat-producing engine from overheating and quite possibly seizing up. If an engine did not have a way to transfer heat, produced through combustion and friction, the hot metal parts would melt down and seize up. Trip over.
How It Works
Some heat the engine produces is removed through the exhaust system and the remainder is removed by way of the vehicle’s cooling system. All heat-producing components of an internal combustion engine need to be cooled, including the combustion chamber, cylinder heads, cylinder walls and the engine block itself. The way this is done is by circulating coolant around these heat-producing areas of the engine. The coolant circulates through the engine, carrying the heat to the radiator where it is cooled by air passing through the fins on the radiator. Water does a good job helping cool an engine, but it has some drawbacks. Most importantly, it freezes quickly during cold winter temperatures. Water can also cause certain metals to rust and corrode over a period. The hotter it is outside, the hotter the components inside the engine are. Therefore, water in a vehicle’s cooling system is mixed with automotive antifreeze.
Antifreeze Advice
Your engine relies on antifreeze to keep it cool. The average consumer is aware of the long-term benefits of changing engine oil on a regular basis, but many are not aware of the benefits of changing the antifreeze in their vehicle at recommended intervals. If you don’t flush and replace the antifreeze periodically rust, scale and corrosion build up in the radiator and the engine coolant passages, eventually resulting in an overheated engine. You should follow the guidelines in your vehicle owner’s manual for flushing and replacing antifreeze and make sure you are using the proper type of antifreeze recommended. Make sure to dispose of glycol antifreeze properly. It is poisonous to humans and pets.
Be Aware
Your first line of defense is to monitor the vehicle gauges, especially the water temperature gauge. Think of vehicle gauges as early warning devices for potential trouble. Some vehicles do not have actual gauges that register numbers or normal operating zones. Instead they have warning lights. Regardless of the type of gauge your vehicle has, it’s important you are alert to them and what they mean. Every time you lift the hood, check the coolant level in the reservoir. Never remove a radiator cap when the engine is hot! The bottom line is monitoring gauges, periodic inspections of the coolant system components, and flushing and replacing antifreeze at recommended intervals will add years of life to the engine and prevent untimely breakdowns.
Tips to Help Keep Your Engine Cool in Hot Temperatures
- Monitor your gauges, especially the temperature gauge in hot weather.
- New antifreeze provides maximum protection against overheating and corrosion.
- Flushing the cooling system at recommended intervals helps remove old scale and rust, and the corrosion inhibitors in new antifreeze help prevent scale and rust build-up in the cooling system.
- New antifreeze helps keep the engine operating at its most efficient temperature regardless of operating conditions and outside temperatures.
- Oftentimes the cause of a cooling system component failure can be contributed to not flushing and replacing the antifreeze. Rust and scale build up can lead to a radiator hose, water pump or thermostat failing and leaving you broke down alongside the road.
- Schedule a yearly visit with your mechanic to inspect the vehicle’s cooling system, to include radiator hoses and clamps, heater hoses and clamps, fan belts and the condition and concentration of antifreeze.
This article by Mark Polk was originally published in Girl Camper Magazine.
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By Mark Polk
Mark Polk of RV Education 101®, a trusted RV expert and educator, has spent the past 25 plus years educating millions of RV consumers on how to properly and safely use and maintain their motorhomes, travel trailers, 5th wheel trailers, all known as RVs through RV Education 101s vast offerings of RV training material found at rvonlinetraining.com
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