We’re right in the middle of the hottest part of the year here in Arkansas. While you might love the heat and humidity of the summer months, your vehicle probably does not. You need to take certain steps to help your car continue to run cool even when the temperature hits some pretty high numbers during the summer—otherwise you risk damaging the engine and other components of the vehicle.
Here are a few tips from a foreign auto repair shop in Conway, AR to help keep your car running cool this summer:
- Park your car in the shade: This is a pretty simple tip that doesn’t even require you to perform any extra maintenance on your vehicle. There’s an obvious difference in temperature between the sun and the shade, so why not let your car reap the benefits? Parking in the shade will help keep your car cool and even prolong the life of the vehicle. But if you don’t find a shady spot, you can at least use a sunshade to reduce the heat inside the car for your personal comfort once you return to your vehicle.
- Turn on floor vents: Many people get into their vehicles and flip the upper vent settings to “high” to maximize the cold air flowing to their faces. However, you’re actually better off pushing air through the floor vents. You’ll push the hot air up and out through the blower this way. It’ll cool down your vehicle quicker.
- Tint your windows: If your vehicle doesn’t already have tinted windows, you can go to your local auto body shop or your car dealership to apply window tinting. This keeps your car cooler and protects your interior from damage caused by the sun.
- Watch your temperature gauge: Every vehicle has a gauge on the dashboard that indicates the engine temperature. If it’s running too hot, you need to pull over, turn off the vehicle and let the car cool down before continuing. Then, once you’re driving again, get to a mechanic as soon as you can to determine what the issue is if it keeps running hot.
- Keep your coolant at proper levels: Open the hood and find the coolant reservoir, and check how much coolant you have based on the indicator lines in the reservoir. If it’s too low, add in the proper amount of coolant, making sure to keep a 50/50 coolant/water mix, and then put the cap back on. Keep in mind that you should never add coolant to a hot engine—wait for the engine to cool down first before you add more coolant.
- Consider a battery replacement: If your battery is more than a few years old, it might be working harder than it used to just to provide the same level of power, causing your vehicle to overheat. Replacing your battery may be a worthwhile investment if this is the case.
For more information, contact our foreign auto repair shop in Conway, AR. Stay cool this summer!