I have a small coolant leak that I don't have the money to fix quite yet, but recently my temperature gauge keeps fluctuating from a little under half - just above the last line.
Asked by Jmmiller0204 Dec 11, 2014 at 05:08 PM about the 2002 Chrysler Town & Country Limited LWB FWD
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
I'm a woman in my early 20's so I
don't know anything about cars. I
usually fill my coolant tank as
needed to make sure I don't run out.
The reserve tank is a little over the
maximum line so I don't understand
how my car could be overheating..I
took the cap off of the radiator and
put coolant into it to make sure I'd
make it home! Is it possible that it
could actually be overheating? Or
maybe I have a bad thermostat??
5 Answers
Jmmiller0204 answered 10 years ago
Also- it went into the red once & when I pulled over the radiator cap was still cold. Turning the heat on full blast seemed to help...I just want to make sure I don't blow the engine!
If the temp starts reaching the critical point ... turn on your defrost because this will force the radiator fan to come on thus pull more air through the radiator ( Defrost uses the AC to condensate the moisture) If this has a dramatic effect on your over-heating then your problem could be related to the fan not working during normal driving
I believe the problem would be with the radiator cap. Either it's bad or not properly on. If the cap is properly on, when the car gets warm coolant will go from the radiator to the coolant bottle. When the car cools down the vacuum in the radiator will draw the coolant from the bottle back into the radiator. When your car is stone cold, when you open your radiator cap the coolant should be all the way up to the cap.
You need to check your radiator fan,and make sure it is operating,should cut on when temp get,s about half way on your guage,you said car was hot ,and radiator cap was not,this is sign of thermostat stuck.
