Your car and car engine can get hot. To combat this, radiators were installed in car engines to help keep vehicles cool and functioning properly. Have you ever been driving and seen a car pulled to the side of the road with white smoke or steam billowing out from the hood of the engine? That’s what can happen if your car overheats. Radiator pressure caps play a key role in your car’s pressurized cooling system.
How Does Your Car Keep Cool?
All car engines are designed to function within a range of heats, but outside of this range can be tough on engine function. The car’s cooling system helps the engine to stay within its ideal functioning range, which improves performance and fuel efficiency. The radiator does this by circulating a coolant fluid through the engine. Coolant is often made from a mix of water and antifreeze. In warm weather, coolant alone may not be enough to maintain the engine temperature, but your radiator is designed to deal with this too. When pressure is applied to the coolant, it is better able to function even in higher temperatures and warm weather.
How Does a Pressure Cap Help Your Car Keep Cool?
The pressure in the cooling system helps improve the effective temperature range of the coolant, but, as with anything that is pressurized, the pressure needs to be regulated. That regulation is a job for radiator pressure caps. When the pressure inside your car’s cooling system gets too high, the pressure cap releases some of the coolants into an overflow tank by using a spring-loaded valve. By letting out some of the pressure and excess coolant, the radiator can cool the car engine to an optimal functioning temperature. But what happens when the car cools down or is shut off? In lower temperatures, the pressure cap allows coolant in the overflow tank to return to the system by a second valve.
How Can You Make Your Car Cooler?
Whether your system is running hot, you are using a special high-performance coolant, or you noticed your overflow tank doesn’t have the right amount of coolant after running the car for a while, your car might benefit from checking the pressure cap is up to date and functioning. Checking for leaks is another good measure to make sure your radiator system is fully operational.
Your car engine is a complicated piece of machinery, and the radiator helps keep that machinery running smooth. Something as small as a pressure cap can effect the fuel efficiency and performance of your car engine. Keep your car cool, by making sure you have the right cap on your radiator. Visit the website for more information.
