There are several common symptoms associated with a bad or failing thermostat that will alert you that service is due.

It’s usually noticed if your coolant is low, but low oil can also cause the engine to overheat. This can occur even if your coolant level is fine. If there is too little oil in the engine, it will continue to heat up because it has no opportunity to cool. While the engine is cooling, check the oil level.

If your engine is overheating, do the following to cool it down:

1. Turn off the air conditioner. Running the A/C puts a heavy load on your engine.
2. Turn on the heater. This blows some excess heat from the engine into the car.
3. Put your car in neutral or park and then rev the engine.
4. Pull over and open the hood.

• Temperature gauge reading very high and engine overheating.
• Temperature changing erratically.
• Coolant leaks around the thermostat housing or under the vehicle.

If the coolant leaks out too much, the computer will see this from the coolant temperature and coolant level sensors and shut off the engine to prevent any damage to the engine. If the engine does stall out and begins to overheat, then the engine’s head gasket maybe burned or the thermostat maybe stuck.

“Your personal safety is most important,” he says. “Waiting for at least 15 minutes allows the hood, engine and leaking coolant to cool.”

If you let your car overheat and keep driving, the cylinder heads will eventually begin to warp. When this happens, it can lead to a blown head gasket, which would require a lengthy and expensive repair. It also conflicts with the combustion process as the heads do not perform as well when they are warped.

around 30 to 60 seconds

As temperature of an engine exceeds 230 degrees Fahrenheit, the engine is overheated. Above 245 degrees Fahrenheit, damage may occur.

Replacing a car radiator, however, can set you back over $300-$900. Labour costs involve a mechanic checking for leaks, removing the radiator, a whole system flush and the installation of a new radiator. With costs this high it may be tempting to ignore the leak while the car is still functioning.

If you drive your car without a thermostat, it will run at 50 degree centigrade. When the car drives at this temperature, moisture or humidity will form. And when it is condensed, it will mix with oil and turn into slush (watery ice). This slush blocks out lubrication.

1.8 hours

How Easy Is It to Change Radiators? Changing your radiators is a pretty straight-forward job that can be done in just a couple of hours if you know what you are doing. The easiest way to do it is to replace your radiator like-for-like; meaning finding one that is the exact same size as your old one.

One common sign a radiator is going bad is if it is leaking coolant, which can be caused by a crack. If there is green liquid found under a vehicle, then the radiator should be inspected to identify the area where the leak is present. A mechanic can perform a pressure test to determine the source of the leak.

The average cost for radiator fan motor replacement is between $593 and $627. Labor costs are estimated between $128 and $162 while parts are priced at $465. This range does not include taxes and fees, and does not factor in your specific vehicle or unique location. Related repairs may also be needed.

Yes, technically your engine does not need a cooling fan to operate. If the radiator does not have cool air blowing on it constantly, it will overheat eventually, so you’d need the perfect combination of weather and traffic to drive effectively without a radiator fan.

Do not drive with broken fan blades. Close, but not quite. The motor mounts being bad allows the engine to move too much when accelerating and decelerating. Being as the fan is attached directly to the engine via the water pump, when the engine moves, the fan hits the shroud.

So: 1) Its ok, but neednt cut in immediate also. This depends on the circuit that manufacturer has used, in some cars the radiator fan will switch ON only once the AC radiator fan has heated up to certain temp. Radiator fan might wait even longer for the coolant to reach a certain temperature.

Your radiator fan should kick in at about 200 degrees Fahrenheit. If you notice your vehicle is overheating or at the very least running hotter than it normally does, listen for the fan to see if you can hear it.

Cooling fans stay on at all times If the cooling fans are staying on at all times, this is another (less common) symptom of a possible problem with the cooling fan relay. If the relay shorts internally, it may cause power to be permanently switched on, which will cause the fans to run at all times.

Both radiator fans should always run when the AC compressor is engaged. To check the temperature at which the fan comes on, turn the A/C off and keep the engine running until it reaches normal operating temperature. Most fans should come on when the coolant reaches about 200 to 230 degrees.

One of the first symptoms commonly associated with a bad or failing cooling fan relay is an engine that runs hot or overheats. If you notice that your engine is running at higher temperatures than normal, that may be a sign that the relay is not functioning properly.

Bad Cooling Fan Relay Symptoms

• The engine runs hot or overheats. Is the engine running hotter than usual?
• The cooling fans don’t work.
• The cooling fans keep running.
• Warning lights.
• Poor air conditioning performance.
• Normally open relay.
• Normally closed relay.
• Dual relay.

Reason #5: Faulty Cooling Fans When fans aren’t properly functioning, your condenser may not receive properly cooling. Over time, this can cause your car to start emitting only hot air. The best way to check if the cooling fan is broken is through a visual inspection.