Overheating engine

MARK ROVET

MEMBER
2012 DODGE JOURNEY
2.4L
2WD
AUTOMATIC
54,000 MILES

My vehicle overheated yesterday just as I was getting close to home. I had topped off the coolant earlier in the day as I knew I had a minor leak and the temperature gauge was getting high. The car was driving fine for thirty minutes after that and then got hot pretty quickly.

This morning I opened my radiator cap and did a cold start. I let the car heat up. I did not see any bubbling in the radiator. There is no milky substance on the oil cap or dipstick and no white smoke coming out of the exhaust.

What is happening is that the engine light is on and the car is not blowing hot air even with the heat on.

Coolant levels look okay.

Just wondering if my problem might be the leak getting worse than I thought, a faulty radiator cap or is it something else?

Thank you

3 Replies

HARRY P

MECHANIC
2,292 POSTS

The thing about leaks like that is that they always get worse when left alone. So, honestly, you need to address it. If you cannot locate the leak by simply letting it idle and searching around with a flashlight, then the next thing to do is to go to the parts store and borrow a cooling system pressure tester. This is basically an air pump that you hook up to the radiator. You pump up the pressure to whatever rating is on the radiator cap (probably around 15 psi) and then look and listen for a leak. Once the leak is identified, go from there. Also, go ahead and put a new thermostat in.

Hopefully there is no serious damage to the engine. The fact that there is no milkiness is a great sign.

Here is a guide on pressure testing the cooling system: https://www.2carpros.com/articles/radiator-pressure-test

Good luck and let us know what you find.