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Do Vehicles Use More Coolant During Summer? Yes! During summer, there is so much heat that seems to take a toll on your car. More heat during summer exacts more pressure on your car’s electrical and cooling systems. It's also argued that heavier oils should be used during summer. But do vehicles use more coolant during summer? When it’s summertime, your car uses more coolant. The cooling systems need to perform the same tasks in more challenging weather conditions. Underhood temperatures place a lot of pressure on the batteries. Consequently, all excess pressure strains hoses and belts. Additionally, tires and brakes get a beating from high speeds as well as pavements. Aren’t these good reasons for your vehicle to require a good checkup when you plan a vacation road trip? Such checkups need to start with a thorough check on your car’s tire pressures, not forgetting all the fluids. However, there are excellent ways of preventing the vehicle from overheating. You may wonder whether you need to put antifreeze (Amazon link) in your radiator when summer comes knocking. For the cooling systems to ensure that the engine continues to work at the right temperature regardless of the prevailing weather conditions, too much is required. When it's freezing or very warm, your cooling system must ensure that the engine temperature remains balanced. Therefore, there is much more work for the coolant to do when it is too hot. Cooling systems dispense coolant to ensure the engine parts remain cool. When the weather is hot, the coolant circulating within the engine is at higher temperatures and is drained faster. This dictates failure to some engine parts, resulting from overheating. So, what can you do to reduce the use of more coolant? What Can Summer Do To Your Car? In most parts of the world, hotter and hotter summers are being experienced every year. The temperatures are going as high as 30°C. Undoubtedly, beach-lovers will take this as great news. The same reaction can be expected from children who want to enjoy their six-week summer break. However, this does not come without equal-cost implications on our cars. Our cars are negatively impacted by the heat. When it’s hot, there is a 25% in the roadside call out. Additionally, there is an increased risk of cars overheating. This can go up to a percentage of 50 higher. This is the leading cause of breakdowns in the US and UK roads. Modern cars are developed with advanced technology meant to arrest extreme temperature changes. Vehicles have an increased likelihood to have problems on the highways with prolonged exposure to sweltering and freezing conditions. The issues become more prevalent over summer since vehicles work in hot and dry conditions for weeks on end. The relevance of this on the safety and performance of the cars is crucial. Therefore, it's needful to ensure that the vehicles are kept on top of these challenging times. But what are the exact effects that are experienced by your car in hot weather? The Real Impact Of Heat On Your Car? During summer, it's easy to neglect the upkeep your car desperately needs at this time. Your default reasoning would be that winter is the most challenging time that drivers can ever go through. This is partially true. As long as you have a regular maintenance regime for your car during summer, there is no reason to worry. However, if you do not take care of your car during summer, you have everything to be concerned about. It has been established that there are so many punctures that bedevil summertime. Indeed, statistics place these at an increased rate of over 20%. It has also been proven by the use of statistics that clutch problems double during the summer. Extreme heat over this time is blamed for additional wear and tear. This comes as a shocker to many, but in reality, there are a couple of precautionary measures that you can take to steer away from these problems. You can lessen the heat on your car, thus making it perform well despite the soaring temperatures. Read on to know how various parts are affected by extreme heat and what you can do . Which Areas Should You Pay More Attention To In The Summer? Your car’s cooling system works harder in severe and extreme weather conditions. This happens regardless of which extreme the weather is in. it may be too cold or too hot. When the weather conditions are hot, the coolant(Amazon Link) must brave for the tough task of maintaining even cool temperatures in the engine. This is an uphill task. The work they have to do is doubled, and they must be up to the task. On the other hand, it's not easy for hot weather and car tires to get along well. When it is hot, the air inside the car tire expands. This causes over-inflation. In extreme instances, the tire walls will also bulge. There are many tire-related breakdowns every year. A greater number of these happen during summer. Unknown to them, many drivers will have their car tires set on the wrong tire pressure. Consequently, it's needful to check the tire pressure in your car to ensure that your car is running at the right pressure. It's good practice to have your tire pressure checked every fortnight. Failure to do this is tantamount to preparing for the undesired risk of a blowout. Modern cars come with standardized air conditioning. This is an advantage of technology to the car owner—however, failure to maintain your car’s air conditioning system year-round. Since the air conditioner is expected to cool down the car during summer, maintaining them over winter is a thing to look up to. Without this, they may be devoid of any power to cool when the temperatures climb. If air conditioners work at their best, they will need regular maintenance. With regular use, it is very easy to have air conditioners clogged, affecting their performance. Therefore, it's essential to ensure that your car’s air conditioning system is checked and repaired before summer. Although the demands placed on our cars over summer are daunting, they can be overcome with regular maintenance practices. You will also need the right products to ensure that your car is well maintained. What Must You Do During Summer to Protect Your Car? It's important to note that what keeps your engine cool is your coolant or antifreeze. This goes a long in protecting your engine from overly heating. Therefore, it will save you much pain and inconvenience if you pay close attention to your car over the summer. You will need to wait for your car to cool down and then open the radiator. Make sure that the radiator has enough coolant (topped to the fill). This will keep your engine from overheating. CLICK HERE to check current prices on Amazon Prime Ensure that you maintain the summer rule of thumb when it comes to the coolant mixture (50/50 mixture of water and antifreeze). Alternatively, to avoid any problems with the mixing, it's best to buy a pre-mixed coolant. This is the only way you will not need to bother about the measurements. Also, ensure that your coolant does not leak. Leaks are always a sure way to encounter overheating in your car’s engine. The moment you realize some drops of coolant beneath the vehicle after overnight parking, you are staring at a coolant leak. That is the time to act. Have your radiator checked and repaired? You can also replace it if it cannot be repaired effectively. Does Turning The Heat On Really Help Cool An Engine? Your car engine will always benefit when you turn on the heat over summer. The heater core, a small radiator, gets the excess heat. This pulls down the temperature of the engine. Although this will get more heat into the car, it's worth it. However, if this process becomes necessary every other time, there might be a problem with your cooling system. This needs to be checked. The other cause of this may be overloading your vehicle. During summer, your car runs hot. This makes the oil going around your engine too thin, howbeit in a little manner. Consequently, there will be some parts of the engine that may not be well lubricated constantly. The relevance of this is that some engine parts will lack the desired lubrication. Lack of enough lubrication means inadequate protection in your car engine. This will eventually result in overall increased friction and potential engine damage. When it comes to this, you will need to ensure that you change your vehicle’s oil as you enter summer. The replacement should be done with a summer-ready alternative. It is also good practice to ensure that your coolant is topped up. This will have your engine is protected properly regardless of how high the temperatures may get. Will You Need Thicker Oil In Your Vehicle Engine During Summer? During summertime, thicker oil is a necessity for your engine. However, you should not use oil that is too thick. From a general sense of view, most modern vehicles require 5W-20. This oil is very thin. Car manufacturers give a range of summertime oil from between 10W to 30W. This is the range they consider acceptable for the sustenance of summertime temperatures. With thinner oils, there is less friction inside the engine. This is handy as it relates to fuel economy. This thin stuff is expected to keep the engine running for several years. It's required that you always look at your owner's manual to know the viscosity recommended for your engine oil. For older cars, the requirement is a little different. These don’t require very thin oil. If you have thicker oil, it is okay for older cars. However, remember that the wider the oil, the more time it will take to start flowing efficiently. As a result, fuel economy is impacted. What Coolant Mix Is Appropriate For Summer? Using plain water during summer as your coolant is not appropriate. If you use plain water, your car is devoid of anti-wear or anti-corrosion additives in the radiator. The result of this will be problematic. As a rule of thumb, you will need to use a 50-50 mix of fresh coolant and water. This is a universal principle that can be used universally without any repercussions. No matter what your type of coolant or brand, this is a viable solution. However, you will always need to read the label since some of the coolant mixtures available are already pre-mixed at that ratio. Conclusion There is a lot of heat during summer. This heat finds its way into our cars. Our cars’ engines are not spared either. Indeed, it's during this time that more engines develop problems that can be traced back to the cooling system in the car. The cooling system depends on the coolant. This mixture needs to be kept at desirable temperatures to cool the engine as the mixture circulates the engine's interior. A slight deviation from the standard temperature can occasion significant damages with cost implications. Therefore, it's essential to ensure that the cooling system is kept at its best during summer. During summer, the heat in the environment permeates the car and affects the work that the cooling system does. Therefore, the cooling system has more to do over this period. Consequently, there are more demands on the coolant to ensure that the engine remains cool. This increased coolant demand dictates a drop in the coolant put in the radiator. This necessitates a top-up. The process will need to be repeated every other time during summer. Failure to regularly check the coolant levels in the radiator will spell doom for the car. Ultimately, you will find that there is more coolant that goes to the radiator over time during summer. Therefore, it's safe to say that car engines use more coolant during summer.