Team-BHP - What to do if your Engine Overheats on the road
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The low oil pressure could be a cause or an effect. And the coolant being empty is probably not a major worry at this point.

All these could also be a simple faulty sensor, sensor wires bit by rats as these sensors work on voltage it receives.

If the RPM was not erratic and the low oil pressure warning was there, it could indicate a lot of things including throttle body being very dirty.

The engine stopped because of lack of coolant and not because of oil pressure for post coolant top up it worked.

Always check for coolant when AC conks off and its just water that you need to continue to drive.

It could be as simple as sensor being faulty to oil pump actually being kaput.

I used to drive an Impala long time back. And this was one of the famous things to go wrong. In fact in the states you had some like minded guys who could help you fix this atleast with sensor replacement before going to the service station.

Good luck and hope its a simple sensor error.

There is a chance of engine failure (in the near future)as the vehicle have been driven without coolant for some time.Mainly the problem can be for the engine head .As per my experience when the instrument cluster light glows we must not drive the vehicle ,it must be towed to the nearest workshop.The topping up of the coolant was also done in an absurd way IMO.

Quote:

Originally Posted by saket77 (Post 3407314)

AFAIK, engine oil also 'helps' in keeping the engine cool by flowing the heat away. OF course, it is primarily job of the coolant system, but I think it is aided by engine oil too. Other knowledgeable members may also please comment on it.

I agree, my bad, but yes, the cooling is a bit dependant on the engine oil but NOT totally. Since there is movement of the oil heat exchange will be a bit more better along with the coolant system. The engine oil circulation would help 10-20% cooling of the engine.

Anurag.

Firstly, the first workshop is right about the Oil Pressure Switch or the Wiring for it being the problem as your car's engine would not survive without the engine oil. So Engine oil or oil pressure was not your issue when you went to them. In some minutes the engine would seize without oil pressure, yours did not, so it was a false alarm.

You had another issue which was showing its ugly head then. There was a coolant leak somewhere and hence the cooling system was not at its best.

The AC stopped working because whenever the Engine detects an overheating in the Engine, it stops the Air conditioning. Standard Engine operating procedure.

At this stage, you would have started losing power too with very laggy throttle responses. Normally the 'high engine temperature' indicator should have shown its ugly head this time or was it something you never noticed ? Maybe at this high temperature all the coolant turned into gaseous state and slowly started escaping from the leaked hose pipe, coolant reservoir or the radiator cap.

This was your Que to stop the car immediately on the side of the road and carry out an inspection. In most cases, you can shut down the engine and keep the key in a position just before the starter motor engages, this keeps the cooling fans running in-spite the engine being off. Since it had overheated and there was no coolant in the system, I would have not advised you to keep the engine running too as without any coolant in the system, what is going to circulate inside anyway in the water jackets ?

Next que would be to slowly using your judgement ( if its safe or not ) open the coolant reservoir ( NOT THE RADIATOR) and pour normal temperature water inside it. Slowly things would have cooled down.

Well to answer some of your questions, yes u did make a mistake by driving around with an over heated engine.

One more anomaly is, the engine temperature that you read is basically what the 'coolant temperature sensor' tells the ECU what the temperature of the coolant is. If there is no coolant/water in the system, what will the sensor tell ? Nothing. Maybe if you did not see any over heating warnings on the dash ( If u did not see it) is also because there was absolutely no water/coolant in the system. Its a flaw, but hey the other tele tel signs are a dead give away too.

At the least you can expect is just a busted hose somewhere or a clogged radiator and you will be back on the road with a minimum pocket pinch.

Mid level pocket pinch will be a warped head, this can be resurfaced ( if within tolerances) or u ll have to get a new one. I don't know if your warranty honors all this or not. It should because u were advised by the other folks of the same service station to go ahead to the well equipped service station.

Major level pocket pinch. Well, lets not get here. I can't contemplate this even as your car went into the workshop just fine when the coolant was filled, get back with what the service station guys say and we'll think about this part being applicable or not.

EDIT: I forgot to mention about the Kit kit sound that you were hearing. That was the engine knocking due to it being overheated.

Quote:

Originally Posted by extreme_torque (Post 3407199)
You may have damaged the engine by driving while it was overheating. Keep your fingers crossed.

I hope its not that major. Spoke with the workshop a while back, they are still investigating ... will inform by tomorrow about
the damage done and possible causes for engine overheating.

Quote:

Originally Posted by a4anurag (Post 3407241)
The indicators in the instrumentation console are NEVER to be taken lightly and never should be worsened by driving around with them ON. You should have stopped driving and called for a tow rich or some such thing.

What was the Temperature Gauge reading when you were driving around from the time the first warning light that came up?

1. It's got something to do with the cooling system that was running dry. Engine oil is to lubricate the moving parts and not cool the engine. That job is done by the coolant such was not there in your car.

2. The engine oil pump is not getting enough pressure I guess and not circulation the oil properly.

3. Any leaks on ground where you Park or did you notice any liquid while driving around through you ORVN/IRVM? Check the engine oil once and see if there is any mix of coolant in it.

4. There could be a cut-off system by the ECU when there is an overheating issue happening. Hence no A/C.

Anurag.

Unfortunately, there is no temperature gauge on Chevy beat. It only shows the warning indicator light when car gets overheated.
Just don't understand how I missed it. Generally I always keep a check while driving. I noticed a leak 10-12 days back, while I was checking the dip stick for oil level. The leak was exactly on the ground beneath the dip stick area (Picture Attached). But after that I never noticed it again. I did check the ground on the day I was taking the car to workshop. There were no sign of leakage on the ground.

Quote:

Originally Posted by VW2010 (Post 3407336)
The low oil pressure could be a cause or an effect. And the coolant being empty is probably not a major worry at this point.

All these could also be a simple faulty sensor, sensor wires bit by rats as these sensors work on voltage it receives.

If the RPM was not erratic and the low oil pressure warning was there, it could indicate a lot of things including throttle body being very dirty.

The engine stopped because of lack of coolant and not because of oil pressure for post coolant top up it worked.

Always check for coolant when AC conks off and its just water that you need to continue to drive.

It could be as simple as sensor being faulty to oil pump actually being kaput.

I used to drive an Impala long time back. And this was one of the famous things to go wrong. In fact in the states you had some like minded guys who could help you fix this atleast with sensor replacement before going to the service station.

Good luck and hope its a simple sensor error.

Yes ... fingers crossed.


Quote:

Originally Posted by commonman (Post 3407397)
There is a chance of engine failure (in the near future)as the vehicle have been driven without coolant for some time.Mainly the problem can be for the engine head .As per my experience when the instrument cluster light glows we must not drive the vehicle ,it must be towed to the nearest workshop.The topping up of the coolant was also done in an absurd way IMO.

Absurd way ? Could you please explain how and what should be the correct way ? The mechanic kept the car idle for about 10-15 mins before filling water into the Coolant Reservoir. It was the normal water, and he didn't filled it in one go. Instead he filled in small amount in intervals, as hot bubbles were coming out with steam while putting in water. It took him about 10 mins more to fill the reservoir. After which again waiting for 5 mins he started the car and drove about 500 meters to take it inside the garage.

Quote:

Originally Posted by humyum (Post 3407534)
Firstly, the first workshop is right about the Oil Pressure Switch or the Wiring for it being the problem as your car's engine would not survive without the engine oil. So Engine oil or oil pressure was not your issue when you went to them. In some minutes the engine would seize without oil pressure, yours did not, so it was a false alarm.

You had another issue which was showing its ugly head then. There was a coolant leak somewhere and hence the cooling system was not at its best.

The AC stopped working because whenever the Engine detects an overheating in the Engine, it stops the Air conditioning. Standard Engine operating procedure.

At this stage, you would have started losing power too with very laggy throttle responses. Normally the 'high engine temperature' indicator should have shown its ugly head this time or was it something you never noticed ? Maybe at this high temperature all the coolant turned into gaseous state and slowly started escaping from the leaked hose pipe, coolant reservoir or the radiator cap.

This was your Que to stop the car immediately on the side of the road and carry out an inspection. In most cases, you can shut down the engine and keep the key in a position just before the starter motor engages, this keeps the cooling fans running in-spite the engine being off. Since it had overheated and there was no coolant in the system, I would have not advised you to keep the engine running too as without any coolant in the system, what is going to circulate inside anyway in the water jackets ?

Next que would be to slowly using your judgement ( if its safe or not ) open the coolant reservoir ( NOT THE RADIATOR) and pour normal temperature water inside it. Slowly things would have cooled down.

Well to answer some of your questions, yes u did make a mistake by driving around with an over heated engine.

One more anomaly is, the engine temperature that you read is basically what the 'coolant temperature sensor' tells the ECU what the temperature of the coolant is. If there is no coolant/water in the system, what will the sensor tell ? Nothing. Maybe if you did not see any over heating warnings on the dash ( If u did not see it) is also because there was absolutely no water/coolant in the system. Its a flaw, but hey the other tele tel signs are a dead give away too.

At the least you can expect is just a busted hose somewhere or a clogged radiator and you will be back on the road with a minimum pocket pinch.

Mid level pocket pinch will be a warped head, this can be resurfaced ( if within tolerances) or u ll have to get a new one. I don't know if your warranty honors all this or not. It should because u were advised by the other folks of the same service station to go ahead to the well equipped service station.

Major level pocket pinch. Well, lets not get here. I can't contemplate this even as your car went into the workshop just fine when the coolant was filled, get back with what the service station guys say and we'll think about this part being applicable or not.

EDIT: I forgot to mention about the Kit kit sound that you were hearing. That was the engine knocking due to it being overheated.

Thanks very much for sharing some valuable info I never knew. I thought something went wrong with the AC too, but now that you clarified that on overheating ECU automatically cuts off the cooling. So with AC its not an issue I guess.

You are right, Oil Pressure warning indicator is not a major concern for me now. Because I drove about 40 kms since that light came on the dashboard & oil level on dip stick is showing FULL mark.

My major concern is about the engine damage I may have done, by driving those last 3 kms. I am still clueless how I missed the warning indicator for overheating. I still think that indicator turned up when the car completely stopped ... may be I am wrong.
But honestly I never saw any light flashing when the car halted.

One more thing I got to know from the workshop person whom I called up few mins back. He says the Oil Pressure Warning is no longer visible as they filled up the coolant reservoir. How is it possible ? Any connection betweek the oil pressure and coolant tank ?

Since this was a used car, I paid additional Rs. 6500 for 1 year comprehensive warranty for peace of mind. It covers everything from - Engine (All internal components), Manual Gearbox (All internal components), Suspension & Steering, Braking System, Fuel System, Air Conditioning, Electrical system.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hitman1980 (Post 3407872)


Thanks very much for sharing some valuable info I never knew. I thought something went wrong with the AC too, but now that you clarified that on overheating ECU automatically cuts off the cooling. So with AC its not an issue I guess.

You are right, Oil Pressure warning indicator is not a major concern for me now. Because I drove about 40 kms since that light came on the dashboard & oil level on dip stick is showing FULL mark.

My major concern is about the engine damage I may have done, by driving those last 3 kms. I am still clueless how I missed the warning indicator for overheating. I still think that indicator turned up when the car completely stopped ... may be I am wrong.
But honestly I never saw any light flashing when the car halted.

One more thing I got to know from the workshop person whom I called up few mins back. He says the Oil Pressure Warning is no longer visible as they filled up the coolant reservoir. How is it possible ? Any connection betweek the oil pressure and coolant tank ?

Since this was a used car, I paid additional Rs. 6500 for 1 year comprehensive warranty for peace of mind. It covers everything from - Engine (All internal components), Manual Gearbox (All internal components), Suspension & Steering, Braking System, Fuel System, Air Conditioning, Electrical system.

Your AC is fine, don't worry, just a safety feature our cars have of disconnecting the AC when the engine over heats.

You are welcome, but bhai, this might be a false warning, but don't assume its always one. Whenever an oil pressure light shows up on the dashboard, stop the car and shut the engine off asap. NO DRIVING at all until the vehicle is towed to the workshop and checked by the technicians. The engine oil being full is not a sign of everything being fine as engine oil being present and oil pressure in the system are two different thing. A non functional oil pump or a clogged oil strainer, an ill fitted oil filter etc etc can make the system have very less oil pressure and the oil pressure warning light up on the dashboard even though the oil levels are perfect on the dipstick.

Its okay, maybe you missed the high temperature light, maybe it did not show up before Don't worry, what is done is done.

No connection between the oil pressure light and coolant reservoir. Absolutely none, either one of the mechanics fixed the damaged oil pressure switch wire or somehow miraculously the oil pressure switch started function, either way there is no connection. Maybe since they removed the battery terminals while fixing some of this, the ECU reset and the sensor is working again, I would replace the oil pressure switch anyway.

Post what the workshop guys say when you talk to him tomorrow.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hitman1980 (Post 3407176)
He immediately noticed the 'Car Overheating' indicator ON.

Didn't you notice this indicator at all? It was rather careless of you to continue driving despite all these warnings, signs & sounds.

Modern cars are usually very reliable. However, they are also very delicate & complex. If things go wrong, it's best to err on the side of caution (in this case, you should've stopped driving the moment you saw / heard symptoms).

I think your cooling fan conked off & that's why the coolant ran dry.

Even if the workshop somehow gets your car up & running for now, I'm afraid that your engine could have suffered permanent long-term damage.

Do change the oil filter, and check the oil pump. If oil change is due anytime around 1000-1500 kms, nothing better than changing the oil a little sooner than the specified interval.

Once the car is back on roads, look for FE and the emissions. The FE is one of the best tell-tale indicator of the engine's health.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hitman1980 (Post 3407176)
Dear friends,

I have this Chevrolet Beat LS 2010 model, purchased a month back from pre-owned car dealer.

Hi Bob, I faced exactly the same issue around 8 years ago. The only difference is that the car was used M800 and I noticed the overheating engine in time. However that was of no help as i was on a lonely road at 9:00 PM with my wife and all on road help services refused to come there. I managed to deive 20 kms to nearest parking lot near my house in three hours (start -stop situation) and towed the car to work shop the next morning. The engine was damaged and I had to sell it next month for throw away prices.

I don't want to scare you but I got a lemon from the dealer and the major problem with the car was overheating while using AC.:Frustrati

Quote:

Originally Posted by hitman1980 (Post 3407176)
1)Does that 'TICK TICK' sound came from engine only ? If so, then why the engine makes this sound on over-heating even though the oil level was checked to be at perfect level ?
2) Any idea on 'Oil pressure Indicator' ? What can be the other possible causes if the oil level is found satisfactory ?
3) How come the Coolant Reservoir went dry as it was checked to be at perfect level a week back by their other workshop ?
4) Does AC cease to work if the car engine gets over-heated ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by hitman1980 (Post 3407872)
You are right, Oil Pressure warning indicator is not a major concern for me now.
But honestly I never saw any light flashing when the car halted.
One more thing I got to know from the workshop person whom I called up few mins back. He says the Oil Pressure Warning is no longer visible as they filled up the coolant reservoir. How is it possible ? Any connection betweek the oil pressure and coolant tank ?

Your problems probably began with oil pressure loss.

Please ask the workshop to attach an oil pressure meter to the engine and check the actual oil pressure while the engine is running in fully warmed up condition. You have partial oil pressure failure in all likelihood - may be due to oil pump failure, or due to choking of the suction filter, or due to accidental damage.

Cold engine = viscous (thicker) oil = no oil pressure warning light.

Verify carefully if your car has a brand new/repaired/welded sump - Beats are notorious for underbody hits on the sump, which damage the oil pump at the same time. Once repaired (hopefully under warranty), Chevy should also retrofit a sump guard to your car free of cost - this was something the dealers simply ignored about doing, though I believe there was a technical service bulletin issued by Chevrolet regarding this.

The overheat indicator light may have come on later due to a phenomenon called 'heat soak', so don't curse yourself about not noticing the light on the dashboard. Ask the workshop to check at what temperature the overheat warning light comes on - yours is probably activating at a higher temperature than recommended, and may need a change of sensor.

You lost your coolant because it boiled out.

All cars have an overheat protection mechanism built into the AC system, where the compressor refuses to come on once the engine goes a few degrees above normal operating temperature. Even the M800 had it. No rocket science. But the AC not cooling should be assumed to be your (as well as for anybody reading this) first sign of engine overheating, with or without temperature gauges rising or overheat warning lamp coming on.

Quote:

Originally Posted by GTO (Post 3408379)
Didn't you notice this indicator at all? It was rather careless of you to continue driving despite all these warnings, signs & sounds.

Modern cars are usually very reliable. However, they are also very delicate & complex. If things go wrong, it's best to err on the side of caution (in this case, you should've stopped driving the moment you saw / heard symptoms).

I think your cooling fan conked off & that's why the coolant ran dry.

Even if the workshop somehow gets your car up & running for now, I'm afraid that your engine could have suffered permanent long-term damage.

Yes, my bad ... but I am really not sure if the warning light ever turned up or not. But I am sure about 30kms that I drove out of total 32kms, that there was no light. So I guess it may have turned on somewhere during the last 2 kms ... but that too I can't confirm. I never knew that the first sign of over-heating is the AC going off. Now that I know, will keep this in mind ... thanks to TeamBHP.

You said that even if the workshop gets the car up and running, the engine could have suffered permanent long-term damage ? How do I know ... any symptoms I should look for in near future ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by humyum (Post 3408099)
Your AC is fine, don't worry, just a safety feature our cars have of disconnecting the AC when the engine over heats.

You are welcome, but bhai, this might be a false warning, but don't assume its always one. Whenever an oil pressure light shows up on the dashboard, stop the car and shut the engine off asap. NO DRIVING at all until the vehicle is towed to the workshop and checked by the technicians. The engine oil being full is not a sign of everything being fine as engine oil being present and oil pressure in the system are two different thing. A non functional oil pump or a clogged oil strainer, an ill fitted oil filter etc etc can make the system have very less oil pressure and the oil pressure warning light up on the dashboard even though the oil levels are perfect on the dipstick.

Its okay, maybe you missed the high temperature light, maybe it did not show up before Don't worry, what is done is done.

No connection between the oil pressure light and coolant reservoir. Absolutely none, either one of the mechanics fixed the damaged oil pressure switch wire or somehow miraculously the oil pressure switch started function, either way there is no connection. Maybe since they removed the battery terminals while fixing some of this, the ECU reset and the sensor is working again, I would replace the oil pressure switch anyway.

Post what the workshop guys say when you talk to him tomorrow.

I just got call from the workshop, they located problem to be the damaged 'water pipe'. What is this water pipe & where is it located on the car ?

They have checked everything on the car related to cooling system, no other fault found. Also, checked the engine ... everything looks OK including head gasket. They are also replacing the engine oil, because the current one has become too thin due to overheating.

I asked them about the false 'oil pressure warning' issue ... they say its related to 'water pipe'. How come ?

For now I trust what they say ... no other choice. They will deliver the car by saturday. Won't charge me anything, as the car is covered under Comprehensive warranty.

Can you tell me what should I look for ... any indicators that suggest something is still wrong with car engine ? Because I'm afraid :confused: what GTO said above that 'even if the car is up and running ... there are chances that engine could have suffered permanent long-term damage'. I can't trust the workshop blindly about engine perfectly alright.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hitman1980 (Post 3409712)
How do I know ... any symptoms I should look for in near future ?

Check for what is known as 'back compression'.

Quote:

I asked them about the false 'oil pressure warning' issue ... they say its related to 'water pipe'. How come ?
Don't understand what 'water pipe' they're referring to. Post pics, if possible.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hitman1980 (Post 3409712)


I just got call from the workshop, they located problem to be the damaged 'water pipe'. What is this water pipe & where is it located on the car ?

They have checked everything on the car related to cooling system, no other fault found. Also, checked the engine ... everything looks OK including head gasket. They are also replacing the engine oil, because the current one has become too thin due to overheating.

I asked them about the false 'oil pressure warning' issue ... they say its related to 'water pipe'. How come ?

For now I trust what they say ... no other choice. They will deliver the car by saturday. Won't charge me anything, as the car is covered under Comprehensive warranty.

Can you tell me what should I look for ... any indicators that suggest something is still wrong with car engine ? Because I'm afraid :confused: what GTO said above that 'even if the car is up and running ... there are chances that engine could have suffered permanent long-term damage'. I can't trust the workshop blindly about engine perfectly alright.

A leaking hose pipe is what they mean. Happens, not to worry. You already had signs of a leak in the system when you saw a pool of water below your car once, should not have ignored it the, but never mind, what's done is done, be careful next time.

The engine oil replacement part is a good initiative by the service station:thumbs up

Oil pressure has got nothing to do with the cooling system, nothing at all.

Ask them to do a compression test and give you the results, that will be a 100% sign of if anything has been damaged or not. A good compression in all cylinders = nothing to worry at all.

Do post the compression results too here, we can look if anything is wrong or not.

Don't worry too much, I am 99% sure, nothing has taken a hit in you car, the 1% doubt will be cleared by the compression test result.

Quote:

Originally Posted by humyum (Post 3409824)
Ask them to do a compression test and give you the results.

Do post the compression results too here, we can look if anything is wrong or not.

+1

Quote:

Originally Posted by hitman1980 (Post 3409712)
l
Can you tell me what should I look for

As suggested get it done and be there when the test happens. It will be better for your understanding too.

Do keep us posted.

Anurag.

Actually if the engine over heats, the oil becomes thinner and the pressure may drop. Have noticed this happening a number of times in my older cars. The modern cars are engineered just right with very little margin (unlike older cars which were generally over engineered), hence any variation from normal running conditions can trigger a host of subsidiary problems. Though this has made the vehicles much cheaper to manufacture, it ensures that unless every thing is perfect it may break down.


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