Elantra Temp Gage: Lack Of

Hi,

For a 2010 Elantra.

Son's Elantra apparfently doesn't have a temp gage, just an idiot light.

Incredibly dumb any car without an actual analog temp. gage.

Anyway, if it ever does go off, obviously you want to pull over.

But, realistically, could you (safely) go, e.g., another 50 miles, or...?

What actually happens if you go "too far" after becoming lit ?

etc. ?

Much thanks,
Bob

 

No one can say for certain how far you can go. It depends on the reason for
the overheating. It the thermostat is stuck partly open causing extremely
hot running, you may very well be able to travel a good distance with no
damage. If a hose breaks and you lose all coolant, you'd trash the engine
in just a few miles.

I agree that a gauge is better, but 80% (maybe more) of drivers have no idea
what is safe and what is not safe looking at the actual temperature of the
coolant.

Old story, I don't know if it is true, but certainly possible. Back in the
50's a woman was complaining fuel mileage on her car was terrible. She went
back to the dealer and everything checked OK. The mechanic suggested he
rake a ride with her to assess driving habits. Woman got into the car,
pulled out the choke (remember them?) and hung her pocket book on it.
Started the car and proceeded to drive away.

 

From what I hear, most of the ones with dials are, for all intents and
purposes, "Dummy Dials" - they'll automatically rise to a preset
"all's OK" position once the thermostat opens, sit there (regardless
of minor variations), and rise straight to the top once it passes an
overheating threshold. It might as well be a dummy light, at that
point.

 

Would have to agree with this assessment. In fact, if I had my
choice, I would turn the coolant gauge into a (idiot) light, and add a
gauge back for the charging system, like there used to be. Okay, the
current charging system light is supposed to come on if the alternator
fails or you lose the alternator belt (in the rare vehicle where it
isn't a composite serpentine belt), and usually does.

But I have trashed two batteries on vehicles where the voltage
regulator (usually built into the alternator) failed, and gave me a
full, full charge. A gauge would have shown that instantly. I was
only lucky I started smelling something really foul inside the car,
and pulled it off to the side of the road to check. It was cooking
battery acid, and it was close to blowing the top off the battery. I
had to get both a battery and an alternator each time.

BTW, another good idiot light is an oil level light, that checks your
oil level, especially when you start the car. The light in the
vehicles I've had it in shines yellow, like the check engine light.
But it kept me on my toes every bit as much as the red oil pressure
light does (and should).

BTW #2, good to be back in the group, after my phone company, sold for
about the seventeenth time, shut down the usenet subscriptions. I had
to access this via Google groups.

Rev. Thomas Wenndt

 

BTW #2, good to be back in the group, after my phone company, sold for
about the seventeenth time, shut down the usenet subscriptions. I had
to access this via Google groups.

++++++++++++++++

Since your ISP dropped Usenet, you can use one or both of these free news
servers:

news://news.aioe.org

news://news.eternal-september.org

I forget the details about how you set them up, but I think both require
that you pick a user ID and password. And, I think information about doing
the registration for eternal-september is located at
http://www.eternal-september.org -- clcik on"register".

 

Incredibly dumb any car without an actual analog temp. gage.

Agreed. Stupid, and cheap. I'd never buy a car without a real actual
temp gauge. It's bad enough most cars now have idiot lights for oil
pressure as well. If the OP lamp comes on you're going to be in even
more trouble than the light for temperature. And you get no warning of
impending trouble with either system if all you have is a
light.....either the light is on, or off.

Idiot lights are like bleeding wounds. By the time that light comes
on, you're already up the creek without a paddle. Best bet is to pull
over immediately lest you blow the head gasket. Go another 50
miles...you're kidding, right?

It's been my experience that your engine should warm up to the same
point on the temp gauge every single time and never, ever deviate from
that point. If it does, you likely have a problem. But having the temp
needle slowly rise gives you a little more time to assess what is
happening and look for symptoms(do I smell coolant? Does it get better
if I switch off the AC and turn on the heat?, etc.) All of that is for
bunk if all you get is a warning lamp. It's too late once that comes
on. Just pull over and stop.

Chris

 

My advice-- just don't do it. The number one engine repair I do to
the 2.0 Beta engine is cylinder head replacement due to excessive
warpage from severe overheating. This is a very good engine under
normal use, but the head doesn't take overheating well at all.