Why is my engine overheating?

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 109,885 POSTS
Honestly, it sounds like a head gasket. Take a look through this link and let me know your thoughts.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/head-gasket-blown-test
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:23 AM (Merged)
Tiny
CARLOS THORNTIN
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
The car sits idling after startup for thirty minutes with or without the AC on. It does not overheat. I drive for seven minutes and it then overheats.
The car has two thermostats top "water regulator stat" I believe may be upside down with the tiny hole might be on bottom. I saw tiny bubbles after drain and fill radiator. Consistent bubbles in the radiator.
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:23 AM (Merged)
Tiny
KEN L
  • MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
  • 48,363 POSTS
Yep, it sounds like a head gasket. Below are diagrams to help you see how the job is done. Check out the diagrams (below). Let us know what happens and please upload pictures or videos of the problem.

Cheers, Ken
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:23 AM (Merged)
Tiny
CARLOS THORNTIN
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
Thank you all for your help.
Sold it and bought a 2015 Passat.
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:23 AM (Merged)
Tiny
KEN L
  • MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
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Good to hear, please use 2CarPros anytime we are here to help.

Cheers, Ken
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:23 AM (Merged)
Tiny
RICKYSH11
  • MEMBER
  • 74 POSTS
  • 2006 NISSAN ALTIMA
  • 3.5L
  • V6
  • FWD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 134,000 MILES
After running the engine or driving for at least 30 minutes it runs hot. I've noticed one of the cooling fans runs at a medium speed and the other won't start unless I give it a spin with a hand and then it moves but really slow. I'm suspecting the thermostat but it seems the fans could be an issue as well. I replaced one of the three fuses that are for the fans and before replacing it only one fan worked. I'm not sure in this case what the cause may be
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:24 AM (Merged)
Tiny
HMAC300
  • MECHANIC
  • 48,601 POSTS
The fan you have to start by hand is bad for one thing, have coolant system pressure checked for coolant leaks and when hot check radiator for cold spots if you feel any cold spots rad is bad.
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:24 AM (Merged)
Tiny
RICKYSH11
  • MEMBER
  • 74 POSTS
Thanks, the fan was definitely the culprit. I've replaced it and now no more overheating.
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:24 AM (Merged)
Tiny
SOLEP
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 2006 NISSAN ALTIMA
  • 200,000 MILES
My car about a month ago started to overheat. Funny part is the temp goes up and comes back down. We have replaced both thermostat, water pump, and my starter.

The car over heats when it wants to at any particular time. We have done flushes, oil change, pressure test and all and still the same thing. The service engine shows me the oh2. There is no leaks at the bottom of my car, the radiator seems to have coolant. The odd thing is that I did have to add antifreeze to it since it would run low every 3 to 4 days.

Is the head gasket the next step?
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:24 AM (Merged)
Tiny
WRENCHTECH
  • MECHANIC
  • 20,761 POSTS
The temp gauge is probably bouncing around because the cooling system is full of air pockets. Your first step is to fill and pressure test the cooling system to see if it holds pressure.
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:24 AM (Merged)
Tiny
ARMANDO48
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 2006 NISSAN ALTIMA
Engine Cooling problem 4 cyl Two Wheel Drive Automatic 113500 miles

My automobile recently started overheating when I travel at 60 to 70 mph. When this happens the air conditioner stops working. I had the freon checked and the cooling system has no leaks and has coolant. As long as the temp guage is normal the air conditioner works fine, the problem starts when I'm on the freeway at a high speeds.
What could be causing the problem?
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:24 AM (Merged)
Tiny
KEN L
  • MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
  • 48,363 POSTS
When the computer sees the engine starting to get to hot it will turn off the air conditioner. This is most likely caused by a plugged radiator either internally or externally. Here are some guides that will help you see what the problem is so you can fix it.

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

and

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-replace-a-car-radiator

Please let us know what you find.

Cheers, Ken
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:24 AM (Merged)
Tiny
AK_ALTIMA05
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
  • 2005 NISSAN ALTIMA
Engine Cooling problem
2005 Nissan Altima 4 cyl Manual 64000 miles

Dear Mr. Expert!
I drive a Nissan Altima 2005 and the engine has overheated twice in the last 6 months with no apparent reason (i.E. Normal temperature gauge reading), leading to oil/water contamination in both casesà  à   Â
The first was at 97,000Km mileage. The head gasket was blown and the cylinder head surface was affected. The overheating was due to the failed lower cooling thermostat/valve, and the temperature gauge didnà  à   à   t go up since there was almost no coolant in the radiator as the mechanic explained (due to internal leak). The repair job included replacing the gasket and straightening to the cylinder head surface. The 2 thermostats were replaced along with the water pump.
The second failure was at 102,000Km (5 months later). One week earlier I started to notice little coolant decrease which went large within a week (almost empty overnight). The temperature gauge didnà  à   à   t go up this time either and the engine didnà  à   à   t run on an empty radiator, since I was checking and adding coolant consistently. Upon engine disassembly, there was almost minimal to no damage to the cylinder head and its surface, but the engine block was affected and its surface needs to be straightenedà  à   Â
The concern is that there is no apparent reason for overheating, especially with the second failure. Could the temp gauge be broken, or ità  à   à   s all because the repair job wasnà  à   à   t done properly the first time? For the record, the engine block was NOT checked for straightness the first time.
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:25 AM (Merged)
Tiny
2CARPRO JACK
  • MECHANIC
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It I spossible the head was damaged the first time and it wasnt caught. Cylinder heads should always be pressure tested as well as surfaced before reinstallation to ensure there are no cracks. For a block to warp is pretty difficult compared to a cracked head.
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:25 AM (Merged)
Tiny
AK_ALTIMA05
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
Thanks for the swift reply. Really appreciated.

Do you mean there has been a subtle crack/damage in the head, which wasn't caught the 1st time and has led to the second failure?

My mechanic is contending that if this was true, then the engine would have failed immediately in less than 24 hours after repairing it the first time, not to mention that the car has made 5000km between the two failures.

Does he have a point here!

Just to confirm, with the 2nd engine disassembly and upon visual inspection, there's no apparent crack in the head (only surface was slightly affected), but the block surface is affected this time (slightly warped).
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:25 AM (Merged)
Tiny
2CARPRO JACK
  • MECHANIC
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Sometimes the cracks can be so slight they dont create problems for awhile. Was the head pressure tested the first time? What is the amount of warp in the block? It is very difficult to warp a cast iron block, vs an aluminum cylinder head.
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:25 AM (Merged)
Tiny
AK_ALTIMA05
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
Hello

No, the cylinder head was NOT pressure tested the first time.

Something to notice is that the engine block for this car model is Aluminum too.

For the amount of warp occured in the block, I'm not exactly familiar with the measures here, but when the block's surface was tested for flatness, there was a clearance of about 0.5mm at the center, where you can move a piece of paper almost freely within it.
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:25 AM (Merged)
Tiny
2CARPRO JACK
  • MECHANIC
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Looks like the limit for that is.1 The block will have to be removed, taken apart and decked
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:25 AM (Merged)
Tiny
AK_ALTIMA05
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
Buying a whole engine (used one) would cost the same as replacing the head and decking the block. This is where the case is actually going now

Actually what i'm really concerend about is the CAUSE of the SECOND FAILURE. Was it because:

1) A bad 1st repair job. OR
2) Overheating again

I attaching 2 photos of the cylinder head after the two failures. From the comparison you may notice the head was muh less damaged the 2nd time (the red circles only) whcih makes me more convinced it didn't overheat

the issue seems complicated to me. If u need more details and clarifications then I'm ready
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:25 AM (Merged)
Tiny
2CARPRO JACK
  • MECHANIC
  • 11,533 POSTS
Hard to say. The warped deck (block) may have contributed to the second failure.A warped block is much stronger than awarped head and it will force the head to bend to conform
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Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 AT 10:25 AM (Merged)

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