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A puff of white smoke, the temperature needle begins to creep toward the red, and a distinctive acrid smell of what can only be boiling coolant. Then, the needle races faster and faster toward the red and that small puff of smoke turns into an impenetrable cloud. Yep, your car is overheating.  

Don’t panic, you’re not the first person who’s had to deal with an overheating car and you won’t be the last. To prepare for the event of your car overheating, we are here to answer all your burning questions. Now, let’s stay cool and learn! 

Signs your engine is overheating 

• Steam coming from under the car hood. 

• The engine temperature gauge on your dashboard has spiked to “H” or into the red. 

• No gauge? A red thermometer dash light will turn on. 

• A strange smell coming from the engine. Leaking coolant can smell sweet, while leaking oil can smell burnt. 

What to do when your engine overheats 

1. Kill the A/C and crank the heat  

1. This will help to pull heat away from the engine in order to keep it from overheating until you can pull over in a safe spot. 

2. Find a safe place to pull over 

1. Pull over and turn the car off and allow the engine to cool for at least 15 minutes, keeping an eye on the temperature gauge. 

3. Check and add coolant (if you have it) 

1. A quick top-off could help to protect your engine and prevent overheating until you can get things looked at and fixed.  

4. Restart the engine 

1. If you are not having your car towed, you can now carefully restart the car engine and drive but keep an eye on that temperature gauge.  

What not to do when your engine overheats 

1. Don’t panic 

2. Don’t keep driving 

3. Don’t open a radiator cap when the engine is hot 

4. Don’t let the issue linger  

How to prevent an overheated car engine 

The best way to prevent an overheating car engine is to have regular coolant flushes and exchanges performed on your car and stay up to date with radiator maintenance as recommended by your vehicles manufacturer. Check and replace worn, cracked, or hardened coolant hoses – anything going into or out of your radiator. This routine inspection can also help fix any potential radiator or engine issues before they become worse. 

Your engine overheating is not the end of the world! Take it easy and don’t try to soldier through it – driving your car with low or no coolant can cause major damage to your engine. Just pull over to a safe place and keep your cool!