The process of heating your cars is simple. Hot water is routed from the engine to a small radiator that is buried under the bumper. The water circulates through this small radiator and returns to the engine. But the story does not end here. A small radiator is placed in the box and surrounded by other components, which allows you to direct the hot air where it is needed. Be it on the windshield, the vents or the floor area. Cold air is drawn in by the fan motor, passes through the radiator and removes heat. After this is done there are doors that open and close in your direction and so the air travels where you want it.
But imagine you have no heat one day… what to do? Check whether the engine coolant is at an adequate level. If that’s ok, determine if the temp gauge reads below the ideal temp. If it is..or if it always seems to get up to running temp, the thermostat is to blame.
Thermostats can be tricky beasts. Times are running out, and yours may have just expired. They are designed to open or close in response to different levels of heat. When the engine’s hot thermostat increases, it will open allowing water to pass to the radiator to cool it. The thermostat is constantly adjusting to the heat and eventually grinds… usually in the open position… thus allowing water to pass through all the time… and your engine will have a hard time reaching full operating temperature without this “water break” job. And this is due to several evils, not only do you have a low temperature entering the interior of the vehicle, but the engine itself does not run at full efficiency unless it reaches the proper operating temperature. This can result in fuel mileage. And let’s not forget another primary reason, it is necessary that the heat in the vehicle is visible. That defroster can break the ice in the winter and clear the fog from the glass surfaces in your car.
The thermostat is cheap, usually simple to replace and on most vehicles the job can be done in about 30 minutes with common tools. In preparing for winter driving… maybe you need to pop in a new thermostat. You may know that your car is a rather hot place.
