My Car Keeps Overheating

[Jahee]

My car keeps overheating when its idling, its ok when im driving (at optimal temp of 88 degrees) but when its idling it starts overheating (at about 91 degrees) so the fan starts cutting in, the coolant level was a bit low but i topped it up with some antifreeze but still the same... any ideas?

 

[xcript]

Smash it with a hammer.

 

[CrackRabbit]

year, make and model.

 

[homercles337]

Check your muffler bearing. Them things can twirl so fast that they heat up red hot!

 

[AgaBoogaBoo]

blinker fluid

 

[radioouman]

You have air trapped at the top of your engine. You need to purge your cooling system.

 

[RichUK]

Could be an issue with the thermostat

 

[Eli]

What are you talking about?

A rise from 88º to 91ºC is not "overheating". If your fan kicks in, all is well.

 

[Jahee]

Originally posted by: Eli
What are you talking about?

A rise from 88º to 91ºC is not "overheating". If your fan kicks in, all is well.

i see what you're saying, but a car should be able to sit at idle for a few minutes without reaching a temperature high enough for the car to need the fan? i think i'll just book it in for a service, has one coming up anyway. its a 2004 vauxhall corsa sxi for the person who asked, i doubt america will have heard of it though.

 

[spidey07]

Think about it. There's no air moving over the radiator.

So the fan HAS to run to keep it in operating temp.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Jahee

Originally posted by: Eli
What are you talking about?

A rise from 88º to 91ºC is not "overheating". If your fan kicks in, all is well.

i see what you're saying, but a car should be able to sit at idle for a few minutes without reaching a temperature high enough for the car to need the fan? i think i'll just book it in for a service, has one coming up anyway. its a 2004 vauxhall corsa sxi for the person who asked, i doubt america will have heard of it though.

Uh, no.

The engine is creating a lot of heat, even while idling. Without airflow through the radiator, it will just build up... and up.. until your radiator cap blows.

Hence, the radiator fan has to come on and cool things off.

 

[bctbct]

A quick google on 2004 vauxhall corsa sxi shows this is a common problem and the car should be let idle for 2 hrs and if the raditor overflows you have a problem.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: bctbct
A quick google on 2004 vauxhall corsa sxi shows this is a common problem and the car should be let idle for 2 hrs and if the raditor overflows you have a problem.

I'm not sure exactly what the "problem" is.

 

[Jahee]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: Jahee

Originally posted by: Eli
What are you talking about?

A rise from 88º to 91ºC is not "overheating". If your fan kicks in, all is well.

i see what you're saying, but a car should be able to sit at idle for a few minutes without reaching a temperature high enough for the car to need the fan? i think i'll just book it in for a service, has one coming up anyway. its a 2004 vauxhall corsa sxi for the person who asked, i doubt america will have heard of it though.

Uh, no.

The engine is creating a lot of heat, even while idling. Without airflow through the radiator, it will just build up... and up.. until your radiator cap blows.

Hence, the radiator fan has to come on and cool things off.

true, but i'm not aware of this in any other cars, and we're not talking about a summers day here its about 8 degrees C here

 

[HardcoreRobot]

dust in the radiator, blast it with some compressed air

 

[Sukhoi]

I'm not quite getting this problem. You have a radiator fan for a reason. Do you think it's just there for show?

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: Jahee
true, but i'm not aware of this in any other cars, and we're not talking about a summers day here its about 8 degrees C here

I don't think you're listening. Air has to move over the radiator for effective cooling. Hence the fan blows air over it. This is completely normal for all cars.

 

[Jahee]

Originally posted by: bctbct
A quick google on 2004 vauxhall corsa sxi shows this is a common problem and the car should be let idle for 2 hrs and if the raditor overflows you have a problem.

sorry what did you type in to google just so i can read up on it

 

[chowmein]

Originally posted by: RichUK
Could be an issue with the thermostat

that would be my first guess. flush your fluids and check your hoses.

 

[Stunt]

How much do you have it overclocked?!

Your car ain't no Celley 300C

 

[sandorski]

Not overheating, just heating. It's normal.

 

[0roo0roo]

yup, fan = good. if your coolant heat meter thing goes into the red..well thats not normal then

 

[thomsbrain]

what the hell? pretty much all cars use the fan when sitting still. that's WHY you have the fan in the first place.

your car overheats when the temperature gauge goes into the red. if the gauge isn't climbing, your car is not overheating.

 

[funboy6942]

LMAO I think I wet myself reading the op comments. 3 degrees is the diff between normal and overheating and fan comming on when at an idle not moving is bad...........HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.......
...oh damn I now crapped my pants..........HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

This has GOT to be a joke thread. PLEASE OP tell me your JOKING RIGHT!?!?!?!

 

[herbiehancock]

Originally posted by: Jahee

Originally posted by: Eli
What are you talking about?

A rise from 88º to 91ºC is not "overheating". If your fan kicks in, all is well.

i see what you're saying, but a car should be able to sit at idle for a few minutes without reaching a temperature high enough for the car to need the fan? i think i'll just book it in for a service, has one coming up anyway. its a 2004 vauxhall corsa sxi for the person who asked, i doubt america will have heard of it though.

Actually, it's the way it's supposed to work when the car is at idle and motionless. The engine is still combusting generating a LOT of heat which is being drawn off by the flowing coolant, but there is no air flowing over the radiator because you're motionless, so there is no heat being drawn off from the coolant, which is passing through the radiator, by the air.

If you had a temperature gauge, you'd see the coolant temp climb within a minute of it sitting still at idle. It's common and no problem. A few minutes and the cooling fan clicking on is what is supposed to happen. How else is the heat going to be exchanged from the water to the air when you're not moving?

To me, it sounds like your car is operating just as it should. And yes, while I may be a Yank, I actually have heard of a Vauxhall Corsa....just not the SXI model variant.