Overheated Help!

[stkline81]

Yesterday I drove through some fairly deep puddles & my EX overheated. I did hear some squealing after going through the water - maybe the water splashed up underneath & hit the serpentine belt? I had to tow it home & it sat all night. I started it up today after work & it seemed to idle ok but I noticed the antifreeze reservoir reservoir is full almost to overflowing. Any ideas what might have caused this & if it's going to be safe to drive? Will the fluid drain back down into the radiator?

 

[keleko17]

I generally just come here to get help, not give it, as my help is limited. I have a similar issue with my 99 OHV. If I drive through a deep puddle or take it through an automatic car wash with the under carriage wash. It will idle rough, and act like it wants to die, then all is good.

To put in my two cents...

If you have extra coolant that wasn't there before, you need to find out if it where the extra came from. I have heard when a vehicle overheats, you can crack the head, mixing the oil and coolant. I would think this would flood the oil levels, not the coolant though. So start by checking the oil.

Hopefully someone with more knowledge chimes in soon.

 

[AP9]

Likewise I'd hate to give you bad advice, but if I had to take a guess as to what happened I'd say the water may have caused the serpentine belt to slip, thus not driving the water pump and causing the overheating. Perhaps a faulty radiator cap then did not let out the pressure, and the excess coolant under pressure in the radiator had nowhere to go but into the overflow tank.

 

[deweyville65]

Remove the radiator cap when cool, remove the hose to the reservoir and blow it out. Dirt in the reservoir can keep the coolant from returning to the radiator. Be sure the radiator is full before you put the cap back on. Drive it a few miles being sure it does not overheat, let it cool and see if the reservoir level goes back down to normal. When refilling the radiator, it is a good idea to have the front of the truck pointed uphill. I cleaned my reservoir a few weeks ago, and while refilling the radiator, I shook the truck sideways. The idea is to release any trapped air. If you didn't get it too hot for too long, you should be fine.

 

[pbnj22]

i would agree with most others here. also one thing to add is you might want to test your coolant for ratio of water to coolant..
http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-test-the-quality-of-your-engine-coolantanti.html

real easy test and a cheap tool to buy which basically just tells you ratio of water to coolant and what outside temperature your good for.. perhaps you have too much water? or vice versa?

 

[radman]

One thing you stated was the coolant recovery tank was still over full after the system cooled off. A properly operating radiator cap for your car has a dual function. First it should be able to contain the system pressure up to 13 psi and second it will have a syphon capability to allow coolant to be drawn back into the radiator as the coolant cools. this would return the recovery tank level to normal. Check your radiator cap, if it is OK then look for a leak, any opening in thhe system will prevent the return of coolant fron the recovery tank.

Mike

 

[bill06447]

I'll second the clearing of the reservoir hose. Some folks will erroneously pour stop leak into the reservoir tank, plugging it up. I've seen hoses burst and gaskets fail due to over-pressurization because the return hose/tank nipple was plugged and there was no place for the expanding coolant to go.

Bill

 

[Auto2510]

overheating of Explorer 1992 XLT 4 wheel drive

Hello,
my Explorer tends to overheat. I am located in southern Utah and the current temperatures are hitting 100 to 109 degree F.
I replaced already the radiator the clutch and the thermostat. Nevertheless, it is heating up. After having installed the thermostat the needle of the gauge get t the middle position and stays there. So far it seems to be OK. As soon as I am in idle mode the needle gets to the "L" of Normal. It doesn't stay at the "or" position. It seems that there s no supply of cold water to keep the engine temperature in the normal range. What could be the reason? My assumption is that the water pump isn't running correctly