89
votes
Accepted
Can salt water be used in place of antifreeze?
Uh ... absolutely not. Salt water will cause corrosion with in the engine block. Salt water is an electrolyte, so will pass electricity which will cause electrolysis. Also, it might be able to handle ...
- 153k
35
votes
Do mobile air conditioners exist for cars?
Can't believe no one has posted this yet, but:
Source: https://geekologie.com/2019/07/meanwhile-in-florida-a-car-with-a-window.php
- 1,197
33
votes
Accepted
Why are the blades of car radiator fans unevenly spaced?
It isn't something restricted to old vehicles; my Lumina has fans like this, though not as irregular as the picture shown in the question.
As far as I can recall, the chief reason cited for this by ...
- 39.1k
29
votes
Do mobile air conditioners exist for cars?
Practically no. An air conditioner is a heat pump: it takes heat from one location and pumps it to another location where it can be radiated. This takes a fair amount of power: a 12 volt auxiliary ...
- 16.2k
29
votes
Can salt water be used in place of antifreeze?
Terrible idea.
The salt will precipitate and block the radiator fins
Of course you know you can dissolve things like salt into water. You probably also know there's a limit to how much it can hold - ...
24
votes
Accepted
Is it Safe to Drive With Low Engine Coolant?
"Is it safe to continue driving with low coolant as long as I continue to watch the temperature gauge? "
No, the temp sensor reads coolant temperature, if the coolant gets low enough to be below the ...
- 8,010
23
votes
Do mobile air conditioners exist for cars?
Back in the 1940's and 1950's there used to be a product called a "Swamp Cooler". This was effectively an evaporative cooler that you sandwiched into your partially open car window. As you drove, ...
- 23.5k
16
votes
Why does my 2006 Chevy Equinox have no heat when all repairs for the heat has been made?
It sounds like the approach to solving your problem so far hasn't been very systematic or "evidence based" – at least the list of parts replaces suggests that the people working on it have been using ...
- 14.4k
15
votes
Do mobile air conditioners exist for cars?
The air conditioner in a car draws several kW of power. A cigarette lighter socket is limited to ~150 W, which is far too little to noticeably reduce the temperature in the car.
Things you can do to ...
- 4,422
14
votes
Accepted
How do I troubleshoot the source of oil in my coolant?
Number one answer is always Head Gasket. The reason is that there are oil and water passages in close proximity, being separated by a gasket (which might just be flimsy paper or rubber, but is often ...
- 1,935
13
votes
Accepted
50/50 Coolant Dilution after distilled water flush?
Yes what you presume is correct. Depending on total volume of coolant (different for each vehicle) how much pure AF I put in, anywhere from 1/2 to 1 gallon, then top off with 50/50 mix.
It is better ...
- 8,010
13
votes
Accepted
How long should I wait for engine to cool down before I can check coolant?
The exact time taken depends upon various factors:
The ambient temperature
The amount of heat insulation in the engine bay
Volume of coolant in the engine
How hot the engine got while driving
...
- 9,989
12
votes
Is it Safe to Drive With Low Engine Coolant?
If you do not have any leaks, then your coolant is most likely getting burned and/or going into your oil. My guess is going to be a problem with your head gasket or some crack or warping in the head. ...
11
votes
Should Multiple Coolant Hose Leaks in a Short Time Worry Me?
I believe (and this is a gut check) you can chalk this up to deteriorated hoses which all have gone bad in the same period of time (coincidence). Each has probably served a long fruitful life and now ...
- 153k
11
votes
Accepted
Should Multiple Coolant Hose Leaks in a Short Time Worry Me?
Remember that the reliability of any system of components will only be as strong as the weakest link.
Coolant lines are pressurized under regular operation and the walls of the hoses will weaken with ...
- 39.1k
11
votes
50/50 Coolant Dilution after distilled water flush?
The coolant capacity of the 2004 TOYOTA COROLLA 1.8L 4-cyl Engine Code [R] 1ZZ-FE is 6.9 quarts. To accurately ensure you have a 50/50 mix in your system after a flush (assuming you actually flush it ...
- 153k
11
votes
Do mobile air conditioners exist for cars?
I have used home made ac units that consists of a cooler, fan & ice (see video). It works GREAT for a hour or so depending on how hot the day is. You could get a 12V DC fan that plugs into your ...
- 3,790
10
votes
How can I test my thermostat?
Failure Modes
Mechanical thermostats fail in one of two ways:
Stuck-closed
The pintle/spring doesn't retract to permit flow at the set-point temperature that is usually stamped on the thermostat ...
- 39.1k
10
votes
Is it Safe to Drive With Low Engine Coolant?
First, you do need to find out where the coolant is going. There is UV dye that can help with this, and if your car is smoking, that could be a sign that the coolant is leaking into the engine rather ...
- 13.3k
10
votes
Oil Cooled vs Water Cooled
I am assuming that by cooling you are referring as to which Engine cooling systems are better in particular scenarios...
Oil-cooled:
Traditional Oil-cooled engines are most commonly found in passenger ...
- 101
10
votes
Should you change a thermostat when changing your water pump
You don't need to, but since your coolant system is already drained, it would be a good time to. Standard thermostats are only about $10 and a $2 gasket. Changing your thermostat is typically 2 ...
- 8,443
10
votes
Accepted
Rusty coloured coolant?
From your description it doesn't seem like oil.
As for why it continues to look brown, you probably haven't flushed it enough times. When I had an oil-in-coolant condition on one of my vehicles, it ...
- 39.1k
9
votes
Accepted
Why does my overheating car cool off on declines?
You may have developed an air bubble in the system, probably from the reservoir falling off, or from the mechanics not bleeding the cooling system after emptying it. There'll be a pocket of air in the ...
- 1,586
9
votes
Is it Safe to Drive With Low Engine Coolant?
Its not good to run with low coolant, even worse to run with no coolant. Actually it can be quite disastrous (possibilities include blown head gaskets, seized pistons and a number of expensive ...
- 191
9
votes
Accepted
Evans Waterless Coolant
Hmmm, about the benefits/drawbacks, I first wanted to complain that this stuff only has a heat capacity of 2.6J/(g * K), while water has 4.2J/(g * K). Water has an exceptionally high value, which ...
- 7,047
8
votes
Accepted
Oil Cooled vs Water Cooled
Oil Cooled and Water Cooled are terms used by Manufacturer's to differentiate the slight difference between the cooling systems.
Note that this is specific to only motorcycles as almost all of the
...
- 8,956
8
votes
Should I get 2nd Opinion on head gasket issue?
It is ALWAYS good to get a second opinion. I would highly recommend taking it to another shop and have them tell you what they think it is even if you believe the first shop to be right.
That being ...
- 1,958
8
votes
Will driving car without coolant cap do long term damage to car?
If you didn't overheat the car, then you've done no damage. The radiator cap seals the system and allows pressure to build (to a point), which raises the boiling point of the coolant. This allows it ...
- 153k
7
votes
How does the thermostat work?
I had no idea it would be called this, but the article in Wikipedia describes the "low level" detail of how the device works.
Wax thermostatic element
Basic operation
There is an optimum ...
- 13.3k
7
votes
Accepted
How does the thermostat work?
Basically, the thermostat regulates the temperature of water/coolant in an engine. When you first start the car it should be closed, essentially blocking the water/coolant from traversing the radiator ...
- 366
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible