Symptoms of defective thermostat, blocked closed / open tuby.me

Thermostats are the guardians of the cooling system. They constantly monitor the temperature of the cooling liquid and accurately regulate the flow to the radiator. This phenomenon guarantees and maintains an optimal engine operating temperature. Thermostats, like other parts of the car, cannot resist infinity. There are two types of known defects in the thermostat, that is to say:

• When the thermostat is blocked on the «open», the cooling liquid flows continuously through the radiator, preventing the engine from reaching the optimal operating temperature. A permanent cold engine does not work efficiently, which increases fuel consumption and emissions, as well as increasing the wear of the engine components. We are not talking about the environment inside the car, which will be permanently cold.
• When the thermostat is blocked on «closed», the cooling liquid is blocked, it cannot enter the radiator and the engine overheats. The effects of a thermostat blocked on «open» can be less devastating than the effects of a thermostat blocked on «closed», but are still unwanted for the owner of the vehicle. Not in all cases, the usury of the thermostat can be clearly identified by evident signs, which is why tuby.me recommends the preventive maintenance of the thermostat.

2. What happens when a thermostat is stuck closed and what to do?

The block of the thermostat on «closed» leads to the overheating of the engine. Normally, during travel, and especially when it is empty with the engine started in the summer blocks, the driver must monitor the temperature arrow on the dashboard. In normal conditions the temperature should be 75-90 ° C; An increase in temperature of 5-10 ° C above, is already considered potentially dangerous and the cause must be detected, which is often the blockage of the thermostat closed.

How do you check?

It is necessary to heat the engine so that it does not touch the red area on the on -board sensor. Then turn off the contact, open the hood, find the upper radiator tube. Find the lower tube of the radiator, which resembles the upper one, touches the pipes, but be careful can be hot. If the engine temperature sensor looks hot, but one tube is hot and the other is cold, the valve is most likely closed and the cooling liquid does not pass through the radiator. Change the thermostat to a new one.

How do you act if the car has overheated?

There are two scenarios, that is to say:

• The engine has overheated, but it is not yet boiled. The first thing to do in such a situation is parking in a safe place, do not stop the engine but leave it to the spear. Otherwise, the cooling liquid does not move through the system and the boiled antifreeze can damage the parts of the engine.
• The engine has overheated and boiled (the steam comes under the hood). If the steam flows under the hood, this means that the refrigerant enters the block of hot cylinders. In this case the car should be stopped as soon as possible.

Careful!

Do not open the coverage of the expansion tank or radiator: this leads to serious burns.

The car should be taken on the ramp and brought to a specialized service, to identify exactly the cause and remedy the problem.

3. What happens when a thermostat is blocked outdoors and what to do?

Usually the thermostat will handle gradually. This summer it is more difficult to see, but in winter it will influence the heating of the car. When the car warmed quickly and was hot inside, then everything was in order, but if the arrow of the temperature indicator did not reach the operational field for a long time, the thermostat blocked in the «open» position and the cooling liquid circulates permanently without stopping. In the case of an incomplete opening, the temperature will not increase above 70 ° C.

There is an empirical and popular verification method. Insert the hot water thermostat (100 ° C). Normally the valve should open, otherwise the method indicates a blocked thermostat.

In the situation in which you have no knowledge of the resolution of the problems or the necessary time, use an authorized service that will quickly solve the problem.