Temperature Gauge Reads Hot in Prolonged Traffic

The temperature gauge of the car will reads hot when stuck on traffic. The possible cause of the problem  is a faulty fan motor, sensor or switch. Other reason is a slipping fan belt.

Temperature Gauge that Reads Hot Possible Causes

Faulty Fan Motor, Sensor or Switch
If the car is equipped with an electric fan then the possible cause is that the motor, sensor, or the switch is faulty.

The purpose of the fan is cool down the engine when the car is stopped or moving at low speed such as during traffic. Since your car is equipped with an electric fan those three parts mentioned above is possible cause of the problem. When the fan motor is faulty the fan will not function to cool the engine.

The purpose of the coolant sensor is to measure the temperature of the coolant, when the temperature is high the fan will be triggered to cool down the engine, now if the sensor is faulty the fan will not be triggered and the engine won’t cool.

The purpose of the fan switch is turn on the fan, if the switch is faulty the fan will also not triggered.

Bring the car to a reputable car shop and ask the mechanic to inspect the electric fan, explain to the mechanic about your diagnosis and repair or replace the faulty parts if necessary.

Slipping Fan Belt or Faulty Fan Clutch

This is possible only when your car uses a belt driven fan. When the fan is belt driven, the belt might be slipping. If this is the case the fan will not turn as fast as it should be, this will cause the engine to become too hot and the temperature gauge will reads hot. Same as when the fan clutch is faulty, fan clutch is a mechanical device that causes the fan to engage when the engine temperature is getting hot and also disengaged when engine temperature becomes low or within the engine operating temperature. If the fan clutch is faulty the fan will not spin thus making the engine not to cool down when the engine temperature is hot.

Turn off the engine, and then open the hood of your car. Inspect the fan belt if indeed it is loose use your finger to press down the middle of the belt. If the belt is tight the belt will not go down more than a half inch. If the belt goes down half inch then the belt is loose. Tighten the belt to correct the problem.

If the belt is tight then the problem is the fan clutch, in this case bring the car to a reputable car shop and ask the mechanic to check the fan clutch and replace if necessary.

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