How Many Components Are There in Your Car's Cooling System?

Automotive Blog

The cooling system that looks after your car's engine is composed of approximately 10 different elements, each of which is crucial to its performance. You may need to determine what part you have to replace and need to know more about how those components interact.

1. The core of the radiator is made up of aluminium tubes that have been flattened and linked together with individual, aluminium strips. These strips allow the heat to be transferred away from the tubes during operation. 
2. On each side of the radiator is a tank made from plastic material. Each tank is connected to the radiator core with a gasket, to ensure it is sealed properly.
3. The core is in turn connected to a reserve tank, where any coolant that is released under pressure is stored. The system is designed to "retrieve" this coolant as needed to maintain levels. As water flows it will expand as it gets hot, and this creates pressure in the system.
4. This is why there is a pressure cap on top of the radiator cover, which is set to release this pressure if it gets past a certain threshold
5. On the back of the radiator and next to the engine will be one or two electric fans, contained within a protective housing. These fans operate when the car is stationary to ensure that air continues to flow through the radiator. They are operated by a monitor attached to the engine that constantly senses the temperature.
6. A water pump is attached to the engine and operates whenever the motor is running, to keep coolant moving.
7. The fan belt is the driving mechanism and is usually also responsible for driving your power steering pump and alternator. The water pump is normally replaced as a whole unit, but there is also a separate seal and gasket attached to prevent leakage.
8. A simple thermostat valve regulates flow of coolant through the radiator and is linked to a bypass system, which kicks in when the temperature is optimum.
9. The heater is an integral part of the cooling system. The heater core, which looks like a mini radiator, is connected to the cooling system with two rubber hoses. Hot coolant comes in from the water pump and is returned to the top of the engine. A fan will pull air through the heater core and push it to the heating ducts inside the car.
10. A number of different rubber hoses connect everything together. Firstly, you will need an upper and lower radiator hose in order to route the coolant between the radiator and the engine. Two extra hoses connect the coolant coming from the engine to the core of the heater. You will need a fifth hose for bypass and this circulates coolant when the thermostat is closed. Lastly, a sixth hose connects the radiator to the reserve bottle, for fluids released by the pressure cap.

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17 February 2015