The answer to the question, ‘Will your engine keep its cool in the hot days of another McHenry summer?’ the answer is up to you. Oh, sure, something unexpected could happen. But, with a little attention to detail, a little Tender Loving Maintenance, your car, truck or SUV’s engine will take the heat in stride.

If you do prepare for summer, we could have a record-setting heatwave and your car, truck or SUV will shrug it off as though it were a warm day in Spring. But, if you don’t take a proactive approach, your engine may throw an unpleasant surprise your way.

It could happen something like this: You and the kids are driving down Route 120 heading out of McHenry for a day watching the Cubs at Wrigley Field (or the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field, if you’re a Sox fan) and, as you approach the red light where Route 31 continues North, you notice that the engine seems to hesitate. When the light turns green, you may make it through the intersection, or maybe not.

With the car, truck or SUV no longer moving, you try starting the car again, but the engine doesn’t cooperate. You cast a tentative smile to your children hoping to reassure them. Their eager faces haven’t registered the full effect of the potential problem.

At least you’re sitting in a cool car as you dial your motor club for roadside service. But, now you notice that, rather than cool air, there is hot air pouring from the vents. It dawns on you that, when the engine stopped running, the AC stopped working, too. And then you see slight curtains of steam rising up from the edges of your car, truck or SUV’s hood.

The reality sinks in; you’re stuck and, unless you have another way to get down to the ballpark, you and the children will not see a professional baseball game today.

So, why did your car, truck or SUV overheat? 

You may have lost your serpentine belt. If this is the case, you may also have noticed the dash lights dimming even before the engine stopped. In the meantime, the water pump isn’t moving the cooling through the radiator and engine. Overheating is all but inevitable.

Your car, truck or SUV’s coolant may be low or is old. If your coolant is appreciably low, you may have a leak. If it’s old, it may no longer provide the cooling effect your engine needs to the level the coolant once did.

If your coolant is low, you could have a leak in the radiator, the heating coil, one of the hoses or somewhere in the engine (hope it’s not the latter). You’ll need to fix the leak before your car, truck or SUV can operate on a hot day without overheating. Even on a frigid day in January, if you have a leak, your engine can overheat.

You may need a new thermostat. A thermostat opens and closes, based on the temperature of the coolant, to allow the coolant to flow through the engine. When the engine is cooler, the thermostat is closed until the coolant heats to operating temperature. Then it opens so the coolant can run through the radiator where air, pulled through by the fan, carries extra heat away. But, if the thermostat is stuck closed, or open, or simply doesn’t open and close when it should, overheating will likely occur.

Your car, truck or SUV’s engine may need oil. Oil is essential to protecting your engine, both from the friction caused between parts and from the heat that friction would create.

If you haven’t done so yet, have your car, truck or SUV checked out at a trusted auto repair shop in the McHenry area. Do that, and you’ll have smiley faces all the way down to the Cubs, or Sox game and back.