Overheating problem

"Viel Spass" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:1d70e254-5e63-4bfd-
> All cooling fans working, new thermostat, temp sensor, and new cap as
> well.
>
> Outside temp was about 93 degrees and I was stuck in stop n go traffic
> for about 30 minutes.
>
> Temp went back to normal once I got out of the traffic.
>
> Any ideas as to why the temp gauge went so high?
>
> Thanks.

If you are stuck in traffic, then the main difference is that there is
little or no air flowing
across the radiator EXCEPT for whatever the fan delivers.

Be damn sure your fans are working, be sure that your radiator is not scaled
up nor
is there material blocking the air flow, and be sure that your shrouds are
in place an
functioning as designed.

Sometimes idling motors do not pump coolant as well as they should.. Obvious
reasons are water pump issues (bad, or not turning as required), defective
water pump,
dirty system.

Cooling system stymie lots of people. There are but a few reasons why a car
overheats.
Remove all the innocence, and whatever remains has to be the problem.

On Jun 5, 8:07 pm, "HLS" <[email protected]> wrote:
> "Viel Spass" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:1d70e254-5e63-4bfd-
> > All cooling fans working, new thermostat, temp sensor, and new cap as
> > well.
>
> > Outside temp was about 93 degrees and I was stuck in stop n go traffic
> > for about 30 minutes.
>
> > Temp went back to normal once I got out of the traffic.
>
> > Any ideas as to why the temp gauge went so high?
>
> > Thanks.
>
> If you are stuck in traffic, then the main difference is that there is
> little or no air flowing
> across the radiator EXCEPT for whatever the fan delivers.
>
> Be damn sure your fans are working, be sure that your radiator is not scaled
> up nor
> is there material blocking the air flow, and be sure that your shrouds are
> in place an
> functioning as designed.
>
> Sometimes idling motors do not pump coolant as well as they should.. Obvious
> reasons are water pump issues (bad, or not turning as required), defective
> water pump,
> dirty system.
>
> Cooling system stymie lots of people. There are but a few reasons why a car
> overheats.
> Remove all the innocence, and whatever remains has to be the problem.

Sitting still, the hot air off the rad piles up under the
hood. Forward speed tends to keep the air moving on through the engine
compartment. There's usually baffling and sealing strips that are
supposed to prevent hot air in the compartment from finding its way
back around to the front of the rad, and if they're busted or missing
then you'll recirculate that heated air. Hard to cool the engine that
way.

Dan

"Viel Spass" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:1d70e254-5e63-4bfd-b0ba-16faae2d6a6e@c58g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...

> I have a 1994 Mazda Protege with 234,000 miles.
> It appeared to overheat today because temp gauge was close to the top
> of the heat range.
> . . .
> Outside temp was about 93 degrees and I was stuck in stop n go traffic
> for about 30 minutes.
>
> Temp went back to normal once I got out of the traffic.

This is normal in hot weather. Your engine cooling system
is supposed to remove heat from the engine block faster than
it builds up. The car's movement at highway speed assures
this, because the radiator is moving forward into air much
cooler than the engine block. If slow or stopped, you are
wholly dependent on the efficiency (speed) of the radiator
fan, and in extreme weather this may be insufficient.

The standard cure 30 years ago was to (1) operate the
vehicle's internal heater and fans, (2) rev the motor at
medium or high speeds even while not moving. Both
increase the rate of removal of heat from the engine block.

--
Don Phillipson
Carlsbad Springs
(Ottawa, Canada)

On Jun 6, 5:57 am, "Don Phillipson" <[email protected]> wrote:
> "Viel Spass" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>
> news:1d70e254-5e63-4bfd-b0ba-16faae2d6a6e@c58g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
>
> > I have a 1994 Mazda Protege with 234,000 miles.
> > It appeared to overheat today because temp gauge was close to the top
> > of the heat range.
> > . . .
> > Outside temp was about 93 degrees and I was stuck in stop n go traffic
> > for about 30 minutes.
>
> > Temp went back to normal once I got out of the traffic.
>
> This is normal in hot weather. Your engine cooling system
> is supposed to remove heat from the engine block faster than
> it builds up. The car's movement at highway speed assures
> this, because the radiator is moving forward into air much
> cooler than the engine block. If slow or stopped, you are
> wholly dependent on the efficiency (speed) of the radiator
> fan, and in extreme weather this may be insufficient.
>
> The standard cure 30 years ago was to (1) operate the
> vehicle's internal heater and fans, (2) rev the motor at
> medium or high speeds even while not moving. Both
> increase the rate of removal of heat from the engine block.
>
> --
> Don Phillipson
> Carlsbad Springs
> (Ottawa, Canada)

Thanks for the feedback.

I did turn on the heater full blast and often turned the engine off
when not moving and it would reduce the temp for awhile.

I checked and found no coolant loss after the "event."

I wanted to pull off the road for a while, but had no opportunity.

I recall the older cars always had the cooling fan running
continually, but I guess in the interest of fuel economy, that design
went bye-bye. :-)

On Thu, 5 Jun 2008 17:00:24 -0700 (PDT), Viel Spass
<[email protected]> wrote:

>I have a 1994 Mazda Protege with 234,000 miles.
>
>It appeared to overheat today because temp gauge was close to the top
>of the heat range.
>
>Details:
>
>All cooling fans working, new thermostat, temp sensor, and new cap as
>well.
>
>Outside temp was about 93 degrees and I was stuck in stop n go traffic
>for about 30 minutes.
>
>Temp went back to normal once I got out of the traffic.
>
>Any ideas as to why the temp gauge went so high?
>
>Thanks.


There may or may not be a problem with your car. The engine
cooling fans are generally setup to operate at speeds below
about 40 mph. Above this, the speed of the vehicle is great
enough to cool the engine. In the event the engine temp
rises to temps usually above 200 deg/f or even more on some,
the fan is activated. Usually this temp is fairly high in
the temp guage range. If the cooling system is in good
condition and holding proper pressure, this is not harmful
to the engine. If you have the a/c operating - assuming you
have a/c - the engine cooling fans(s) will operate all the
time the a/c is operating. This tends to stabilize
indicated engine temperatures to the "normal" range on the
guage because the engine is sufficiently cooled to keep it
below the upper end of the range. The engine may actually
run cooler if you have the a/c on in traffic at low speeds.
If you do not have the a/c on, you can expect the engine
temp to run fairly high before the fan starts. As long as
it is in the "normal" range, it should be fine. If it does
not cool when the a/c is on or the vehicle speed goes back
to cruise speeds, you may need to get it checked out.

Lugnut