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Why does my car overheat when idling?
The past few days I’ve noticed that my engine starts overheating whenever I’m idling. I don’t know if it’s just my car’s thermostat being weird because the temperature goes back down when I accelerate. What would cause my car to overheat only when it’s idling?
Patrick Price · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
Oh no! I’m sorry to hear you’re dealing with an engine that overheats while idling. Based on the symptoms you’ve described, it sounds like you have a broken radiator fan, which would cause your engine to overheat while idling.
The radiator fan mostly functions to cool your coolant down after it absorbs heat from the engine. After the fan cools down the coolant fluid, the fluid can continue keeping the engine temperature in check.
When you’re driving, the air currents created from your momentum are sufficient to cool down the coolant fluid. The radiator fan only becomes critical when you’re idling.
You’ll need a professional mechanic to repair your radiator fan, which should fix the issue.
While the mechanic is working on your radiator fan, take advantage of the downtime to review your
car insurance
. It’s important to evaluate your insurance coverage at least once a year. Otherwise, you could end up way overpaying for your policy. Jerry
—the world’s #1 rated insurance app—is an expert at making your insurance review fast and easy. Jerry will pull customized quotes from the nation’s top insurance providers in as little as 45 seconds to find you the best possible deals. Then, you just need to pick the policy you like the best, and Jerry will handle the hassle of getting you switched over. You could have a new policy in place by the time your radiator fan is working again!
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- Gregory R.
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