What happens when engine overheats?

This will teach you to let a youngster have a vehicle that is not in good repair!

Earle

Depends on the severity of the overheat. You will see nothing till the damage makes itself known.

At any rate, it's time to change the oil since it's gotten way too hot for its own good.

Take the oil out of juniors allowance. Having to spend $ on something that isn't fun has a way of making kids pay attention.

Amazing the smaller tire still has rubber or the locker didn't grenade.

Sounds like junior needs to be restricted to having an adult with him/her at all times when driving.

I disagree. Just don't give the little fellow broken cars to play with. Known tendency to overheat = broken. Wrong sized spare = broken. About the lockers though. I would give him a lecture about that, and an explanation that they are "off road only" equipment.

Earle

as far as i know it can cause the head gasket to crack and the engine head to warp-especially on the long 6-cylinder heads we have in the 4.2 and 4.0l engines. excessive heat also causes the oil to breakdown faster, decreasing its usefulness as a lubricant. i'd give the kid a stern talk about responsability....

Why was it overheating in the first place?

Overheating can cause some nasty damage.

The valve seals for one bake hard and then you start having blue puffs of smoke when you first start it up in the mornings and it will forever burn oil until fixed.

The head gaskets on the 4.2 engine for one will usually let go. This can mean exhaust in the rad or oil or coolant going into the oil or cylinders. Watch for a white puff of smoke when starting, that could mean coolant inside the pistons.

I would be doing a compression test to check the head gasket. This doesn't always identify every way a head gasket 'can' blow, but it can give you a good indication if one or two cylinders, especially side by side or end ones have low compression. For some reason I have seen the most problems with the head gasket on #6 or between #3 and 4 after an overheat.

If the valve seals or head gasket is blown, then having the head rebuilt and shaved flat is called for. The valve guides can wear extremely fast with no coolant too.

Good luck.

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's

"E.L. Lambert" wrote:

I would expect huge drivetrain issues if he drove with 1 odd-sized tire in

4WD... especially that big a difference. I know Subaru (AWD) says that if you replace 1 tirem replace them all or you will fry something. I had a mechanic show me the results of a guy buying 2 new tires and putting them up front... old tires in the back (50% wear?). Not a pretty picture.

he may have thought he was talking to me... LOL

message

I'd probably have the kid help change the oil/filter, then pull a compression check. Then do him a favor and have him help you find and fix the overheat problem.

serg wrote:

I had a similar problem, my fault, drove my '96 XJ across the desert w/air conditioning and letting the cruise control determine when the engine should shift... dumb. So it overheated but letting it fast idle in neutral brought it back to normal within a minute or two. The most common problem would be a head gasket, with increased pressure to the radiator and/or water and oil mixing. Absent that (do the compression check), you probably came out OK... tough engines. Make sure he's with you when you do the checks and perform maintenance, best learning experience. Going to watch my daughter change the oil in her '03 4x4 F150 tonight. Best lessons my kids ever learned.

--Rocky

It never ceases to amaze me how people on usenet take every opportunity to turn a reasonable discussion into an opportunity to insult and harangue otheres.

The jeep does not overheat as long as it gets some wind and is not left to idle in one spot. This is something that my son was informed of and agreed to. And there is nothing wrong with using an offsized spare for a short distance, as long as you don't leave the lockers engaged. Detroit makes cares with teeny spares all the time.

Now that I've patiently given you a much more polite response than you deserve, get your nose out of my business. It's none of your concern how I raise my kids.