A brief introduction to Car Coolant:
This picture shows the worse consistency your coolant can have. Coolant fluid should flow like water. Coolant keeps your car operating at the temperature it needs to be at. Under the hood, it keeps your car from overheating and causing serious damage, like destroying the engine or causing leaks that can damage other systems. In the cabin where you spend most of the time, it affects your air conditioning and heating system.
What and Where is the coolant system?
The coolant system works to keep your engine from overheating. It absorbs the heat and pushes the now-hot coolant toward the radiator where it is cooled. Major parts of the coolant system include the coolant reservoir, water pump, radiator, thermostat, hoses, and cylinder head in the engine. The Coolant system is in the front end of your car and around your engine block.
What can go wrong if you do not change your coolant or if there is a leak.
If not changed every 30,000 or 3 years your coolant can become acidic which can deteriorate the plastic components, then the rubber, and lastly the metal it meets.
The coolant itself can also be affected if not changed regularly. The coolant will become less effective and its limits of hot and cold will change. Its freezing and boiling points change and become less. If the coolant deteriorates this way, it can also damage your system.
Things to look for:
- Leaks
- Temp gauge is getting higher than halfway (or in newer cars your car will alert you with a yellow or red alert that your car is overheating)
- The heat in your cabin is not working right
- In summer or when temps are hot your ac system will shut off to not overwork the engine.
- Steam from under the hood
- White Smoke from the tailpipe.
- Sweet Smell
Pullover Right Away and Turn Off your vehicle if:
- Temp Gauge is higher than halfway or if your car alerts with a yellow or red warning that your car is overheating
- Steam is rising from under your hood
- White Smoke from the tailpipe.