Vehicle overheating is a serious concern that should not be overlooked. If your vehicle overheats while driving, it's important for you to safely pull over to the side of the road. Here are some helpful tips on what you should do next.

Turn Off The Vehicle

Pull over to the side of the road and turn off your vehicle. Don't try to keep driving. Keeping the engine running will only cause the vehicle temperature to further increase. The warmer the temperature gets, the greater the level of damage to the engine and other parts of your vehicle.

Turning the engine off allows the engine to start cooling off immediately so that you can start trying to diagnose the problem.

Call A Tow Professional

It's best to contact a tow professional at this point. Even if your vehicle cools down, it's still not safe to drive. Without being able to offer a solution for the overheating, the car can easily overheat again while you're on the road, which doesn't just increase the risk of extensive damage to your vehicle, but also puts your safety at risk.

Depending on the cause of the overheating, a tow professional might be able to help offer a temporary fix to the problem so that you can drive the vehicle to a repair shop on your own or it may need to be towed.

Inspect Hoses

While waiting for the tow driver, if you can safely access your vehicle, take a few moments to look at the hoses under the hood. In many instances, the reason for overheating is some kind of a problem with the hoses, such as a burst or leak.

This issue is particularly common if you are driving an older vehicle as the hoses can start to deteriorate due to wear and tear, over time. If you see any signs of leaking fluid, the tow driver will need to transport your vehicle to a repair shop as it is unsafe to drive.

Don't Remove The Radiator Cap

Whatever you do, make sure you don't remove the radiator cap as this can be a highly dangerous step. When a vehicle is operating, the pressure within the radiator system is already elevated. However, when your car is overheating, this causes the pressure within the radiator system to further increase.

In this high pressure state, should you simply remove the radiator cap, the contents can blow and even burn you. It's also important to make sure you avoid opening any cap for the water system as well as the same thing can happen.

Should you be faced with this scenario, make sure you are keeping the protection of your vehicle and your personal safety at the top of your priority list. For more information, talk to a company like Country City Towing.

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