Imagine what it would be like if you drove this winter and your car's heating system wasn't keeping you warm. In McHenry, it gets darn cold in winter. You could wind up looking like a popsicle if your heating system fails.

Last week, we discussed how the defrosters will help thaw ice on your windshield as the coming McHenry winter approaches. The good news is that, if the defrosters work, there’s a good chance you’ll have heat for your own comfort in the car, too.

If the defrosters provide heat blowing up into the windshield, it indicates that your vehicle is producing the heat you also want for personal comfort. If the defrosters provide heat but you can’t get the heat to blow out of the vents in the front of the dash, or onto the floor, it’s almost certain that you have a problem with controlling the vents; the heat’s there you just can’t get it to go where you want it to go.

The problem described above is something to bring to a trusted auto repair shop in the McHenry area. But there could be other problems with ensuring that your car will give you the heartwarming, and finger warming, heat you count on in winter.

Your car has a radiator in front of the engine and a fan that pulls air through the radiator. The heating and cooling system in your car involves passageways in the engine where antifreeze/coolant collects heat caused by the friction of parts moving against parts in the engine.

Hoses connect to the engine and a pump drives the fluid through the system – and through the radiator. The fan behind the radiator pulls air through the radiator where, with the help of fins attached to the radiator tubes, the heat is dispersed into the passing air. The antifreeze/coolant is now cooler again and ready to go back into the engine to collect more heat.

For our story about providing heat inside the interior cabin, there are a couple other critical parts we need to introduce. One of these is a thermostat. The thermostat closes the antifreeze/coolant into the engine until it is warm enough to go through the radiator to disperse its heat. The thermostat is generally closed when you first start the car.

If the thermostat is stuck, however, either opened or closed, it will fail to do its job. If it takes too long to open, or opens too quickly, it won’t do its job efficiently. These are questions that an auto repair technician can help you answer.

The other critical part needed to bring heat into the cabin of your car is the heater core. This is a small radiator behind the dashboard. When you turn on the fan to blow air out of the defrosters or other vents, if you want heat to come with that air, it  gets the heat from the heater core.

If the heater core is old and clogged, it won’t allow enough heated fluid through the fin-encased tubes to provide the heat you’re requested. On the other hand, if the heater core is leaking, you’ve got a bigger problem because, now, the engine is losing coolant (which may accumulate on the floor inside your car).

If the antifreeze/coolant is old, it may not work properly. If the heating/cooling system is low on antifreeze/coolant, you may have moments when no heated air is coming out of the vents.

All of these questions can be answered by asking that trusted auto repair shop to check out your heating and cooling system. If you do that now, you won’t find yourself feeling unnecessarily chilly when the next McHenry winter arrives.