car overheating - please help

sunflower_2

hi

i have a 206 1.6 and noticed that whilst in traffic moving v slowly it would overheat and the "stop" light would flash.

had the oil and coolant checked and all is ok.

i have noticed however that if i turn the engine off when it overheats there is a dull-pitched sound coming from the grill.

there doesnt appear to be a "fan" working in there?
am no mechanic but with other cars u can hear a fan working its socks off when you leave the car?

is this the problem?
and is it expensive to fix?

the car is v reg so doesnt have any warranty

x

boogiemaster

It’s probably the thermostat that’s gone and it’s not making your fan come on, just replace the thermostat and the fan should come back on.

Don’t run the car like that for long, its not expensive and easy to fix.
It’s where the hose connects to the engine, you just take it out and replace it with the new one, any motorist shop will have one.

Or a garage can pop in a new one quite cheap, to test you fan is working just take the plug off where it connects to the thermostat and cross both terminals with a wire, it should start to spin.
If it spins it means your thermostat is naffed.

Vic_980

Agreed, the thermostat has most likely packed in, happened to me a few years back.

If you have no mechanical experience then get it done by a garage otherwise you'll end up in a mess.

I'm not familiar with the 206 but I remember on my old Escort it was a very easy job. However it is more difficult on certain cars as you have to remove other components to get to the thermostat.

sunflower_2

thank you both for your replies - thats good to know

does the thermostat hav anything to do with the temperature guage on the dash? as that seems to be working ok as goes up to red (then the stop sign flashes)?

or are these two totally different things? (fingers crossed)

i am trying to avoid traffic queues until its sorted, it has only happened twice both on hot days.

Vic_980

OK here goes...

The thermostat helps to regulate the temperature of the engine. It controls the cooling system and the fan. The temperature gauge is in turn linked to the cooling system, to monitor the engine temperature.

If the thermostat is faulty then the fan will not come on to help cool the engine down. This will in turn lead to a rising temperature gauge. Eventually you will get your blinking light which warns you that the engine is overheating and that you should stop it and let it cool.

So in a nutshell, yes, a faulty thermostat will cause the temperature gauge to rise. Getting the thermostat sorted will cure the temperature gauge as well.

The car will still be driveable, but when the engine overheats you will do it damage if you keep it running.

Hope this helps!

sunflower_2

it does - very much

i now feel as though i know what is going on (or at least have a good idea)

thanks so much

x

MORPH3US

WARNING - Make sure you get this fixed ASAP. If you don't, it could warp your cylinder head gasket and then you'll be looking at about £700 and a week or 2 in the garage rather than £15.

If you know someone who is even semi-mechanically minded, buy a Haynes manual (worth its weight in gold - £15 from Halfords) and get them to have a look if they could do the job. I seem to remember it was a "2 spanner" job on the gf's Cincquicento which was really a nightmare - such a small space for an engine meant removing loads of parts. I reality on a 206 it should be easier.

The thermostat should cost no more than £20 from a proper parts place, or about £50 from Halfords etc.

Good luck getting it sorted!

M

johno69

Sunflower

http://www.oily-rag.com/messageboard/

Here you can find all the answers you need, If not they will email you a response from an expert with great advice. I can recommend having used them in the past, hope this is of some use and the link works ok...

wazza

here is my piece. water flows through the engine and it gets hot. it then flows through a radiator where with the air flowing through it the water cools down before entering the engine block again. when driving along enough air passes through the radiator to cool the water down. when stationery no air passes through the radiator. the radiator fans then cuts in to force air through the radiator to cool the water down.

in winter when its very cold the engine will take a long time to warm up if the water going through it robs it of heat. there is a switch called themostat. it stops the water moving around letting the engine warm up. once warmed up the thermostat opens up allowing water to go through the radiator to cool down.

if your overheating only happens when stationery then since no air is flowing the engine would start to get hot. the fan should kick in but should prevent the temp gauge from reaching red. if it does reach the red then your fan needs checking.

if your thermostat was faulty then your engine would either be running hot even when driving or takes a long time to warm up.

have it checked ASAP. it is a lot cheaper than replacing the head.

if you know where the thermostat is then with the engine warm feel the pipes on either side of the thermostat. they both should be hot. if not then your thermo is gone.

keep an eye on temp gauge and wait to see if the engine fan kicks in

ohreally

I suspect the culprit is the fan motor thermoswitch. This is the device which senses the coolant temperature and where necessary signals the fan to start up thereby lowering the coolant temp.

wazza

although we strongly recommend to have it checked asap and not to drive the car, if you need to drive it then carry a large water bottle, 2Litre should do it, in case it overheats. LET THE ENGINE COOL DOWN before removing cap to refill the system otherwise you might sprayed with boiling water