Temperature Guage Getting Hot!!

Alroos

Hi All,

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.

On the way home I noticed that the temp guage was showing that my motor was overheating, it even hit the red light but luckilly wasn't too far from home, so made it back in one piece.

Im really worried that this can mean that gasket has blown (hopefully not as Im poverty stricken!).

Anyways going to try and get this sorted tomorrow, but I just wanted to know should it be safe to drive to the garage in the morning? Unfortunately Im new enough to Limerick so dont have any contacts whereby I could get a mechanic to come out to me.

Also if anyone can recommend a good garage in Limerick Id be really greatful.

Many thanks

Seth Brundle

If the temp gauge goes up, then stop the car!
Although it may well be safe to drive, nobody here can or will advise to do so as it could easily cause more damage if the temp went up again.

Heroditas

If you stopped in time, the gasket shouldn't have blown. Wait until it cools down for a while, then start the engine. If it sounds fine, it should still be ok.
EDIT: but don't drive it though!

If you're with Hibernian, they'll provide a tow truck free of charge to bring the car to a garage.

How old is the car? Could be a number of issues causing it.
Same thing happened me yesterday. Looks like the water pump is knackered on mine.

mike65

I trust you checked the coolant header tank? Did this happen in traffic?

Alroos

Its a 01 Punto - I know I know Fix It Again Tomorrow!

Was at a red light when the needle went up to the very top of the guage, wouldn't have thought that should stress the car out that much. No other signs of anything being wrong, no labouring noises etc..

Unfortunatley Im no good under the bonnet, I did get the car serviced 5 months ago, and I was told she was in good nick. I really dont know...

Guy:Incognito

Alroos wrote: »

Unfortunatley Im no good under the bonnet, I did get the car serviced 5 months ago, and I was told she was in good nick. I really dont know...

Theres your issue tbh. You (or someone else ) HAVE to check the levels regularly. Going 5 months without lifting the bonnet on a car is a recipe for disaster.

thescruff

thermostat or water pump gone i'd say.....provided u havn't driven it too far u can't have done much damage.....i'd fill up the expansion bottle usually identifiable by a hose coming from under it and going towars the radiator with water or coolant (bought from motor factors) and get it fixed as soon as possible.

Alroos

Fill it with tap water?

Alroos

I know Im clueless, not driving that long.
Is there any girl friendly courses etc that would bring me up to speed on all of this?

Alroos

Got onto a garage very close by, so they will take a look at it tomorrow, thanks for all your comments.

Guy:Incognito

Alroos wrote: »

I know Im clueless, not driving that long.
Is there any girl friendly courses etc that would bring me up to speed on all of this?

The manual from the car will tell you how to check the basics tbh. It's fairly foolproof. Things like the expansion bottle will have a min and max level indicator. A weekly check to make sure the coolant is between the levels will only take 1 minute. Again, the oil dipstick will have marks. The manual will most likely have a pisture of the engine bay with an arrow pointing to each of the fliuid resevoirs.

Alroos

Me and my manual, heading out to get aquainted with car now.

Figerty

Could be the Water pump or the Thermostat. Happened to me a few weeks ago.

Just a tip, if it is the water pump, and the car starts to head for the red line; Turn the internal heater (fan) on full blast and put the heat setting to the max. This will take a considerable amount of heat out of the water and engine.

Get it checked out though.

One other tip. DO NOT TAKE OFF THE RADIATOR CAP to have a look. The radiator is under pressure when hot and if you open the cap you are likely to seriously scalded.

Check the little plastic header tank attached to the radiator.

Alroos

Thanks

Alroos

One other question - sorry ye must be sick of me at this stage!
I was told that it would be a good idea to put water in the coolant tank before my short trek down to the garage in the morning - not the ideal but that the tank could be bled by mechanics once at the garage, and better to have some fluid than none at all.
Does this sound ok?

Mycroft H

Definitely have the water topped up.

Seth Brundle

landyman wrote: »

Definitely have the water topped up.

...up to the max mark!
(sorry for stating the obvious)

Out of curiosity, has the coolant level dropped at all or what does the coolant tank look like (oily?)?

Alroos

Actually, it does look a bit oily alright.

Seth Brundle

Be afraid*!






* hopefully its not bad though

Bobo78

Alroos wrote: »

Actually, it does look a bit oily alright.

Unfortunately it means the head gasket is gone.

thetyreman

Of course its the head gasket.....she said its a Punto.....(notorious)....


sorry for your trouble OP

Alroos

Oh blast! How much are we talking?

mike65

Depends if the cylinder head needs skimming or not.

Alroos

we're talking moucho pricey though if thats the case?

Alroos

Just to give a quick update, car was fine on way to garage. Mechanic had a look and put in coolant and she seemed to be fine, temp guage bang in the middle. Was told to go for a drive all went well and fan was working fine on my return. Mechanic told me she seemed fine, just to keep an eye on guage and come back if she started getting hot again.
From shelling out for head gasket to 0 - Pheww!!

mike65

Keep us informed, I'll be interested to see how long the coolant stays in the system.

Alroos

Will do.
Maybe I should be giving a very cautious pheww!

mike65

Its a FIAT!

Alroos

LOL Fair point!

Alroos

Ok me paranoid now, car still going fine - needle never goes beyond mid range. I feel though Im just waiting for something to go wrong - mechanic had a look under the hood and told me to go away as she seemed ok, just to keep an eye on guage and come back if temp started increasing again.

Should I be going to someone else for a second opinion, could I be multiplying the damage by keeping on driving even with the mechanic's say so?


Any advice?

thethedev

No, once you have coolant in there and the temperture is steady I wouldnt worry.
It was probably just low on coolant in the first place.

Alroos

Thanks, thats a relief. With everyone talking of head gasket and the massive cost involved its hard not to get anxious.

CJhaughey

If it was my car I would be wondering why the coolant dissappeared in the first place, Since you are getting comfortable looking at things under the bonnet you may as well start pulling the dipstick on a regular basis (once a week) and checking the oil level.
This has to be done on level ground and with the engine warm but not running, once you stop the engine wait a minute or two for the oil to run back down inside the engine and then check the oil level.
You only need a small piece of rag/paper to wipe the oil off the dipstick before you check the level.
Running out of coolant, you can be lucky and get away with it,running out of/low on oil will always end in a bad result.

Muckie

You were very lucky. Keep a bottle of coolant in the boot, for just incase

if happens again. Maybe that was all that was wrong with your car

in the first place. Live and learn. Least it wasnt a costly lesson. Happy

ending.