Cooling system components
noreply • September 19, 2019
Today we want to talk about a system in our vehicles – the cooling system. It's one of those things that Riverton auto owners don't give much thought to until it fails and then they're stranded by the side of a road in Utah.
Cooling systems fail more often than any other mechanical system – usually because of neglect. Don't you hate it when something breaks and you could have done something to prevent it?
The good news is that if Riverton drivers take care of their cooling systems, they can keep working for the life of their car.
Here at Riverton Tunex in Riverton, we emphasize preventive maintenance services like replacing your coolant according to the factory schedule. But the various parts that make up the cooling system need attention too. The major components of the cooling system are the water pump, freeze plugs, the thermostat, radiator, cooling fans, the heater core, the pressure cap, the overflow tank and the hoses.
It sounds complicated, but we Riverton residents don't have to be experts – we can leave that to our friendly and knowledgeable service advisor at Riverton Tunex. But, having an overview will help us remember how to take care of your car's cooling system.
Most Riverton folks would be surprised to know that burning fuel in your engine produces up to 4,500 degrees F/2,500 degrees C of heat. And all that heat has to be dealt with. If the heat can't be drawn off the engine, the pistons will literally weld themselves to the inside of the cylinders – then you just have to throw the engine away and get a new one. That would cost thousands of dollars.
Now the water pump is what forces the coolant through passages in the vehicle engine to absorb heat. The pump is driven by a belt that needs replacement from time to time. And the water pump will eventually wear out and need to be replaced. Spending some cash on replacing the belts and water pump is much less than the cost of repairing the extremely massive damage that can be done when an engine seizes.
There's another little known but important part of the coolant system that protects the engine. It's called a freeze plug. If you remember from high school chemistry, water expands when it freezes. In very cold areas, the coolant can actually freeze when the vehicle is left sitting.
It is hard to believe, but the expanding frozen coolant is enough to actually crack the engine block. The freeze plugs fit into the engine block. They fit tight enough to withstand the pressure of a running engine, but can expand or pop out if the coolant freezes. These little things save a lot of engine blocks.
The team at Riverton Tunex can check your cooling system and make any necessary adjustments or repairs. Give us a call.
Riverton Tunex
3901 W Innovation Dr
Riverton, Utah 84065
801-446-4465
http://www.rivertontunex.com
Cooling systems fail more often than any other mechanical system – usually because of neglect. Don't you hate it when something breaks and you could have done something to prevent it?
The good news is that if Riverton drivers take care of their cooling systems, they can keep working for the life of their car.
Here at Riverton Tunex in Riverton, we emphasize preventive maintenance services like replacing your coolant according to the factory schedule. But the various parts that make up the cooling system need attention too. The major components of the cooling system are the water pump, freeze plugs, the thermostat, radiator, cooling fans, the heater core, the pressure cap, the overflow tank and the hoses.
It sounds complicated, but we Riverton residents don't have to be experts – we can leave that to our friendly and knowledgeable service advisor at Riverton Tunex. But, having an overview will help us remember how to take care of your car's cooling system.
Most Riverton folks would be surprised to know that burning fuel in your engine produces up to 4,500 degrees F/2,500 degrees C of heat. And all that heat has to be dealt with. If the heat can't be drawn off the engine, the pistons will literally weld themselves to the inside of the cylinders – then you just have to throw the engine away and get a new one. That would cost thousands of dollars.
Now the water pump is what forces the coolant through passages in the vehicle engine to absorb heat. The pump is driven by a belt that needs replacement from time to time. And the water pump will eventually wear out and need to be replaced. Spending some cash on replacing the belts and water pump is much less than the cost of repairing the extremely massive damage that can be done when an engine seizes.
There's another little known but important part of the coolant system that protects the engine. It's called a freeze plug. If you remember from high school chemistry, water expands when it freezes. In very cold areas, the coolant can actually freeze when the vehicle is left sitting.
It is hard to believe, but the expanding frozen coolant is enough to actually crack the engine block. The freeze plugs fit into the engine block. They fit tight enough to withstand the pressure of a running engine, but can expand or pop out if the coolant freezes. These little things save a lot of engine blocks.
The team at Riverton Tunex can check your cooling system and make any necessary adjustments or repairs. Give us a call.
Riverton Tunex
3901 W Innovation Dr
Riverton, Utah 84065
801-446-4465
http://www.rivertontunex.com
Get you vehicle inspected for the holidays for a safer trip.
Hello, welcome to Riverton Tunex. Today's focus is batteries. It seems like everything in Riverton runs on batteries. Of course, the batteries we're most concerned with here at Riverton Tunex are those in our customer's vehicles. Just like the batteries in our smoke detectors or TV remote, they wear out and need to be replaced . This can be thought of as the power output used to start a cold vehicle engine. The number of cold cranking amps you need depends on your vehicle and where you live in Utah, specifically how cold it is. (Many Riverton drivers have first-hand experience trying to start their car on a cold winter morning.) The two factors are that the colder your vehicle's engine is, the more power it takes to turn the engine over to get it started. It has all that cold, sluggish oil to contend with.The other factor is that the chemical reaction in the battery that creates electrical energy is less efficient when the temperature dips. Let's say it's 80 degrees Fahrenheit (27 degrees C) in Riverton. At that temperature, 100% of the battery's power is available. At freezing, only 65% of battery power is available, but it requires 155% as much power to start the engine as it did at 80 degrees F (27 degrees C).As you can see, the colder it gets, more power is needed, but the available power drops.So if you live where it's cold in Utah, you need a battery with more cold cranking amps than you do where it's moderate or hot. The battery that originally came with your vehicle was based on averages. At Riverton Tunex, we like to remind Riverton drivers that they should always get at least as many cold cranking amps as their vehicle manufacturer recommends but may want to upgrade if they live where it gets real cold.Riverton Tunex3901 W Innovation DrRiverton, Utah 84065801-446-4465http://www.rivertontunex.com