Overheating steam coming out from under the hood

Tiny
PKENNEDY
  • MEMBER
  • 2002 DODGE NEON
  • 4 CYL
  • FWD
  • MANUAL
  • 13,800 MILES
My car overheated yesterday. Steam coming out from under the hood, smelled of burnt coolant. I had to refill with water. I can only go a couple miles and the temperature gauge goes to red and steam is coming out from under the hood. However, it does not leak anywhere, nothing has ever been on the driveway. I did not have the air on and did not notice if the fan kicked on when it got hot.
Friday, September 24th, 2010 AT 1:12 PM

5 Replies

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 109,747 POSTS
Did it overheat at highway speeds or stop and go traffic? Have you ever replaced the thermostat or flushed the cooling system? Also, keep in mind, water will boil at 212 degrees F. The engine's normal operating temperature is around 200.

Here is a guide that can help:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/engine-overheating-or-running-hot

Let me know.

Joe
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Friday, May 21st, 2021 AT 3:46 PM
Tiny
PKENNEDY
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
Stop and gp traffic. No I have never replaced the thermostat or flushed the coolant.
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Friday, May 21st, 2021 AT 3:46 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 109,747 POSTS
If it only happens in stop and go traffic, check to make sure the cooling fans are coming on and let me know what you find.

Joe
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Friday, May 21st, 2021 AT 3:46 PM
Tiny
PKENNEDY
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
A new thermostat and flushing the coolant fixed the problem! No busted head gasket!
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Friday, May 21st, 2021 AT 3:46 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 109,747 POSTS
That is good. Let us know if you have questions in the future.

Joe
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Friday, May 21st, 2021 AT 3:46 PM

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