PT Cruiser Overheating Issue

I go over the complete cooling system of a PT Cruiser and explain how it works and how to diagnose it if you are experiencing an overheating issue.
My video on using a temperature gun to diagnose:
• Diagnosing a hot Smell...
Find us on Facebook: groups/80427...

[@30bkg]

Subscribed! I'm not a mechanic or even a car guy really but you seem very knowledgeable and explain things very thoroughly. I just had a pt cruiser given to me and it has a cooling issue so I've been watching every thing I can find on them and I have to say you have by far done the best at explaining things, thank you

[@CarswithNash]

That's nice to hear. Thank you for subscribing.

[@mapuanakupuna3471]

I'm a 65 year old female with no mechanic knowledge or skills what so ever! Your video helped me tremendously to better understand the situation!! My 2004 Turbo PT Cruiser started overheating today & I found your video. I try to educate myself on what may be going on with any car issues before I call my friend who's a mechanic so I can explain the situation to him before he drives to my place to assess & repair the car. Mahalo nui loa for sharing your immense knowledge. Best Wishes & Aloha!

[@CarswithNash]

Mapuana Kupuna Thank you for your kind words! Good luck with your PT, hope it’s minor.

[@melissamorrow1705]

Thank you for sharing this video. Explanations were easy to understand and follow. Gives so many suggestions to try. Clear footage.

[@CarswithNash]

Thanks. I appreciate the feedback.

[@seandoody4833]

Huge help.. I’ve tried everything. Going out to try this now. Thanks brother

[@victork5740]

Fantastic listen to easy to follow extremely thorough love this guy

[@CarswithNash]

Thanks, I always enjoy feedback like this!(-:

[@seandoody4833]

Update! Everything went perfect and runs better then new! Big shout out and thanks again Matt’s Garage!

[@morgannewilliams6098]

What was wrong with yours

[@harley2226]

out standing you know your stuff thank you

[@scottcates]

Thank you. Very useful. I just bought one that overheats a little. Time to go through the cooling system.

[@CarswithNash]

Thanks, I appreciate the feedback.

[@ypaulbrown]

Thanks! hopefully your information has helped me with my problem with cooling in a 2002 PT, Cheers from Florida, Paul

[@CarswithNash]

Wow! I really appreciate that so much!

[@thejasks2318]

Your videos are great💯

[@CarswithNash]

car first Thanks, I really appreciate that!

[@dangeraghty6715]

Super informative, very through and helpful. Thanks 👍

[@CarswithNash]

Appreciate the feedback, thanks.

[@morgannewilliams6098]

Great video...gonna try these suggestions n hope I figure mine out

[@theman.6396]

Before watching, I did the obvious. Didn't work. Glad I found you. Wish me luck

[@CarswithNash]

Good luck! What are your symptoms?

[@theman.6396]

Think I found the problem being the fan. If it sat in line somewhere it would throw the light to check gauge and it would climb to 3/4 and try to go past that but stayed. I didn't wanna chance it so I put in a thermostat the other night and made sure there was no air in the system. Drove it around all night fairly hard (but didn't sit anywhere) and it remained under half. Thought it was fixed. She had to go somewhere and started it up and we were talking over 20-30 mins and she got back in it and the same thing it was hit and she said she could hear it bubbling. I thought okay well let's try the cap, havnt bought it yet but found your video which led me to the fan. It spun freely so I double checked everything else and let it sit and warm up. The fan never came on. Think im onto it!

[@CarswithNash]

@@theman.6396 Yeah that seems to be a common problem with the PT‘s, if all else fails just wire it straight to key on power and put a toggle switch on it for when you want it off. (sometimes it’s a PCM fault and that becomes the most cost effective solution)

[@johndillon3942]

Excellent!!!!!

[@ssuperdave100]

I'll have to try that tomorrow by taking all the radiator fluid out and doing the bleeder method.

[@johncarguy1980]

Nice vid, thanks! My PT sounded like this one and wasnt turning over, after about 50 attempts it finally started, I think the fuel line was clogged

[@CarswithNash]

John Carguy Yeah I haven’t fully diagnosed it, but I did try starting fluid and it didn’t make any difference so that should rule out a fuel issue. It was sold to me as a none runner but of course I had hoped they were wrong... Thanks for watching.

[@ericlavoie399]

hydraulic lefter needs to prime up in oil if sat for long time

[@Tiger0366]

I saw a video somewhere about failure to start in a PT in which the temperature sensor was bad and prevented starting because the main computer prevents this when it senses overheating. This was diagnosed by OBDII software and monitoring the sensor readings.

[@CarswithNash]

Thomas Blow Yep! That’s why I like to replace those as a preventative maintenance item, I actually replaced one just last week, video to come.

[@markmiller-kx9mk]

good videos Matt!! everyone what is best coolant universal or ????

[@buddyharshaw9140]

Good video man I notice you can bye a pt cheap bc they say runs good but will try run hot good to kno

[@CarswithNash]

Buddy Harshaw That’s why you gotta be sure to take a long enough test drive, not just around the block, I try to drive them 15-20mins and then I know for sure.

[@RadicallyLowly]

👋🏼Ty 👏👏 Matt for this in 📝 depth review of 🔥heating & cooling ❄️ diagnostics ✅

[@CarswithNash]

Rich J. Birdsall (Radically-Lowly) Thanks for watching!(-:

[@BumBeaDIYs]

Hi Matt quick question for you is the 2003 cylinder block the same as the 2005 PT cruiser?...Thanks we watch all your since we own and our PT cruiser fans☺️

[@CarswithNash]

Bum Bea DIY's I’m pretty positive it is, should be a direct fit.

[@jeremygranson7085]

Turbo model PT Cruisers don’t have fan relays. I recently had a hi temp issue on my PT and the fan relay was my first thought; this is how I discovered that the turbo models aren’t relay driven. Ultimately I found that my fans were working fine and if I kept my RPM’s over 3k the temp would stay normal. Idling and low rpm cruising (55-65 mph) resulted in a hi temp. Apparently growth in the radiator was restricting flow and the hi RPMs pushed enough water through the choked system to keep it cool. Replaced the radiator and haven’t had anymore issues.

[@CarswithNash]

Jeremy Granson Yeap you are correct, the turbo’s actually have a variable speed fan vs. the high/low in the none turbo, it’s controlled directly by the PCM. I actually don’t have a lot of experience with the turbo models yet and wasn’t aware of that when I made this video. Glad you got yours figured out.

[@jeremygranson7085]

Matt's Garage as you pointed out, there are multiple potential failure points in the cooling system on the PT. This is why so many people experience over temp issues w this car. The designers tried to put way too much into the tiny engine bay. High maintenance and tight working spaces makes the PT a real PITA at times. I picked mine up w 70k miles and have replaced the timing belt, water pump, valve cover gasket kit, all motor mounts, cam position sensor, PCM, radiator, radiator cap, transmission mount, transmission drain pan (swapped for one w a drain plug), front end bushing kit, both cv axles, one hub and bearing... the list goes on. This is why you can buy these things for next to nothing. The cost to keep on the road is monetarily exhaustive.

[@CarswithNash]

Jeremy Granson I actually enjoy working on them, I don’t find the engine bay “tiny” at all, it’s very well laid out. Most the stuff you’ve replaced are common wear items on any car, these cars are older now, you’ve gotta expect that, it’s the same with any other car that age you buy, I know that first hand. We’ve got 5 in our family including the one in this video, the other 4 have all been fantastic cars, in fact my parent’s are 6000 miles into a cross country road trip they are taking in their ‘03 Dream Cruiser currently.

[@jeremygranson7085]

Matt's Garage, “well laid out” and “plenty of room” are not synonymous. I had to remove all the motor mounts and slide the engine over to remove the motor mount that us embedded in the passenger side frame and to have enough room to get a new riming belt in. Not exactly ideal. The service intervals are significantly earlier than most cars. I believe this leads to the typical failures a lot of people encounter; they aren’t following the PT maintenance schedule. Anywho, thanks for the responses, enjoy the ride!

[@CarswithNash]

Jeremy Granson You just jack the engine up and pull the mount out from under, the engine goes really high without having to disconnect anything, you leave the transmission mount connected and just jack the engine up, that’s how you get at the timing belt as well. I gotta do a timing belt on one soon so I’ll be doing a video on that. Those center mounts typically last forever, I’ve never changed one, had ‘em with 200+ k miles, same with the transmission mount.

[@ConnieBC]

Thank you!

[@CarswithNash]

You are most welcome!(-:

[@Steelbooking541]

So I have had a ruff idle while running the AC for a good couple months, and have suspected that the high speed fan is having problems. But recently over the last week or so, the PT is starting to get too hot, sometimes almost to red (so far not into red) when I drive 50 or so miles. It will cool itself a little bit while moving but heat up fast while at idle. I find this odd because it will hold regular temperature for 30 or so miles THEN start rising. Between the AC issue and now the overheating issue I'm pretty sure the high speed fan is not clicking on properly. So in your opinion should I replace the high speed fan relay first and hope for the best? Should I go for the thermostat, or possibly just put in a whole new fan? I have read sometimes the fans high speed goes out on the unit itself. Thanks for the help ahead of time, you're always awesome Matt! You're help, passion and videos have helped me love my PT even more than I would alone 😁

[@CarswithNash]

Justin Thanks for the kind words and feedback. Sorry I’m delayed in responding to you. I would start with a new fan or if you didn’t know you can get just the motor, takes about 5mins to swap into the old housing and they are around $60, I think it’s likely just the fan motor has worn out.

[@johnbryan2414]

I heard if your top rad hose is hot to the touch, but the lower one is not, it means the radiator is clogged. Thats how mine is. It overheats if i push 70, but cools down if i slow down. Then i felt hoses and the lower one was much cooler.

[@kathylewis7543]

Thanks Matt !!! What year is this because my pt is 2005 people have told me it is the 2006 and forward that all is in PCM is thst true? Wait the temp sensor is wby the antifreeze tube? I don't have any codes like p0157 can it still be tve temp sensor? I think you may have said its a fan issue I think that might be it but I can't filled on for my 2005 local do you think the part geek one will work it says it fits my car fingers crossed ... thank you!

[@CarswithNash]

The one in the video is a 2003 GT. Yes 2006 cars have a totally different electrical systems, I’m not that familiar with them to be honest, we do have a 2006 but it’s been a project car for several years (custom paint and body) and before then never gave us any trouble at all, I’ve never had to work on it really. Sorry I haven’t had a chance to get to many comments in the last week I’ve been so busy. I like to change the temperature sensors as preventative maintenance, yes they can have glitches and not throw a code. The fan motors are a pretty common fail item on the PT it seems.

[@jesse1247]

Does the water pump have a weep hole? Would you notice fluid loss under the car if the water pump was failing? Can you do a video on overheating in the 2006-2010 cars? Thanks for all the videos. I just bought a 2006 turbo GT that is in great shape and hope to be able to keep it for many years.

[@CarswithNash]

As far as the cooling system goes it’s exactly the same on those newer cars. Yes they do have a weep hole, they will leak out the right side at the rear of the engine. The problem is I have seen those water pumps lock up without warning, so it is always better to error on the side of caution and replace them as a preventative maintenance item.

[@jesse1247]

@@CarswithNash Thanks. I thought there was some difference in the way the fan worked. What are those 2 things that look like relays on the radiator of the 2006?

[@CarswithNash]

@@jesse1247 Yeah those are fan relays and on the older turbo cars the fan is actually run from the PCM.

[@jesse1247]

@@CarswithNash Thanks again

[@lorrainegiordano2574]

PT cruiser I just bought 2 days ago has a turbo after driving for 2 hours I ejected a CD that was so hot I had to drop it. Looked over at the gauge needle was right in the middle the car was not overheating put my hand on the center where the window switches and radio are located. It was very very warm. Do you have an idea what might be going on. I'm afraid to drive it now. And I just got it two days ago. Have been with you out of car for over a month. I've got things to do and I'm nervous about getting in the car. Never had a car shoot out a hot CD before

[@CarswithNash]

That is an unusual one for sure, I believe there is a separate 10 amp fuse in the under dash panel to the left of the steering column and if you pull that out the radio will have no power and then you shouldn't have to worry, it sounds to me like your radio has an issue. A good audio shop might be your best bet for having it looked at.

[@b_chill]

Car just overheated again due to the fan, this will be my four time replacing the fan due the low speed not working. I’m curious to the problem being the actual fan or the electrical leading into it such as maybe a fuse or relay?

[@b_chill]

I seem to be on a 6 to 8 month interval on replacing this fan

[@henrynmariagranillo6608]

Hi Matt so I was driving around in my 2006 PT cruiser began overheating but it would stop when I would move. I was driving it around without knowing it didn't have any coolant. Finally when I guess she couldn't take it anymore she blew her top off. I filled it with water to bring it home and the next day drove it again and was fine for a while till it began to gurgle. I noticed the tank that supposed to be filled was dry empty. Sorry this was my daughter's car so when I got it I had no idea it was in this condition. What do you think? I filled her up. Do you think she'll be fine now? Could that have been my problem? Thanks hope you can help. Maria

[@CarswithNash]

If the coolant level stays up it’s fine but if it keeps going down it probably means the head gasket is blown, which is pretty common if they overheat bad.

[@henrynmariagranillo6608]

So tonight I drove it again and it's leaking...😭

[@CarswithNash]

@@henrynmariagranillo6608 Sorry to hear that.

I have an 07 touring edition and it is having high temp issues as well as gurgling I recently had it serviced to replace the fan the radiator is new and recently changed the thermostat and radiator cap as well. It is still making a gurgling sounds after shutting off from driving no more than 30 minutes and today I started it up to go to the store didn’t feel safe driving it because just sitting there it felt like it was jerking. Any advice?

[@CarswithNash]

Sounds like you either have air in the system or your head gasket is blown.

@@CarswithNash praying it’s just air 😂

@@CarswithNash it also just had a flush and fresh coolant added at the mechanics how would I know there is air in it or how to get the air out?

[@jdwilliams518]

Mine only overheats if it sits idling too long.. driving is fine.. don't think the fan is turning on... the ground on half the car was bad when i bought it last week.. got the fuel pump/sender, lights, horn, and blinker grounds fixed so far..

[@Jon-bq5pd]

Hey man i know this video is old but i bought a 05 pt cruiser gt turbo and it only overheats when i floor it or go uphill. I replaced the thermostat but it didnt work. What do you think it might be

[@CarswithNash]

Did you properly bleed the air as you filled the system? That would be the less severe possibility and the more severe possibility would be a blown head gasket… Which unfortunately is not uncommon when you buy a car used that maybe a seller was trying to unload it with a hidden issue. You can buy a test kit that attaches where the radiator cap goes and then you run the car and it can tell if you have exhaust gases in your cooling system which would indicate a blown head gasket. You can buy those kits at auto parts stores or on Amazon, that’s the most accurate way to check it. (and probably would be the first step that a mechanic would take in diagnosing it, so better to buy the kit and do it yourself and save some money) Just make sure you don’t have any air bubbles in it first because what will happen when you floored is it’ll suck the air bubble through and start circulating water and then that really hot pocket of water that was sitting there will hit the temperature sensor and send the gauge into the red…

[@Jon-bq5pd]

@@CarswithNash thank you im going to bleed the cooling system. I dont think the head gasket is blown because the oil looks good no coolant in there. If i drive it normal it wont overheat only when its under a load. It overheats to about 3/4 but it doesnt make it to the red. Plus when im at a stop light the temp will come back down to half way.

[@CarswithNash]

@@Jon-bq5pd You may want to try to just do a system flush or replace the radiator. The cooling system on these cars is just “adequate”, if anything is a little bit weak they can easily creep up. You don’t always get mixing of fluids with a blown head gasket, but normally the coolant level will drop regardless because if it’s not mixing it is burning coolant. Hopefully it is a simple fix for you.

[@Jon-bq5pd]

@@CarswithNash thank you very much ill try that first

[@Jeromee98]

My PT temperature reading goes up then back to normal, now here's the crazy part I seen the antifreeze being squeezed out of the resivor never seen anything like that before!

[@CarswithNash]

Keith Herbert Sounds like you’ve got air in the system. I’d drain the system and refill it with the air bleeder open to avoid trapping air, that bleeder should be open till you get solid coolant coming out, then close it and top off the system, squeeze the upper hose to release any trapped air within it.

[@ericlavoie4697]

Yeh mind going it I think my head is pumping air in my system

[@berenwarrior6276]

My pt thermostat will go to half way to high with only a few min., of driving it shouldn't get that high that fast of driving then it will gurgle when I shut the engine .

[@CarswithNash]

That's typically a sign of an air pocket in the system or possibly a blown head gasket. Sorry I'm late responding to this.

[@berenwarrior6276]

@@CarswithNash thanks , I'm going to do the minor things like change out fuses , thermostat , filler neck , replace the fan , air blow clean the radiator and make damn sure I bleed the system ; and have mechanic change out water pump and timing belt . That way I can eliminate all possible problems , if it ends up being the head or gasket , I'll save up the money and have that done . Thanks for your time and input . 😎✌

[@CarswithNash]

@@berenwarrior6276 There is a chemical test you can do to determine if exhaust gases are getting into the coolant which would indicate a blown head gasket, you should have your mechanic do that test and determine for sure before doing the timing belt and water pump. He will have to take that belt right back off if he is removing the head so it’ll be a lot of wasted labour if it turns out to have a blow and head gasket later...

[@cgraves27]

What about the convertibles?

[@CarswithNash]

What about them? They have the same engine and cooling system as the other PTs. If you’re wondering do I recommend them, yes I do, I have owned a 2005 for a few years, they are great cars.

[@runsolomon]

The thermostat has an air release built into it

[@CarswithNash]

Some do, some don’t, it still doesn’t flow enough air and it will air lock if you don’t use the bleeder properly.

[@austinrainey7217]

Burnt valve at least 1

[@CarswithNash]

I actually have a good running replacement engine to put in that car, hopefully next summer.

[@user-ou6zm9pp3h]

*Most,of,the,engine,dies,with,the,engine,heat/My,opinion,is/*This,is,the,only,way,for,the,overheating,problem/*whenever,your,car,engines,hot/*You,can,open,the,engine,cap,and,the,hallf,of,the,gas,cap/*especially,night,makes,cooling,better/*God,bless

[@mostlymoparih5682]

Here I is.

[@mostlymoparih5682]

Good point. Ground points are important. It's easier to lay on the ground to fix a cooling system problem in the summer than the winter. When I acquire a new vehicle I usually change the lower radiator hose and the thermostat. If the upper goes on you it's generally pretty easy to chang.

[@mostlymoparih5682]

good video

[@CarswithNash]

MostlymoparIH Thanks Martin! I’m so annoyed that youtube held your comments as “possible spam”! Anyways that’s why I never replied, I couldn’t see them till I went in on my computer and looked to see what was held, I had 18 held comments and only 3 were actually spam. Anyways I always try to respond to all comments, so if I miss one there’s normally a reason.

[@mostlymoparih5682]

@@CarswithNash No worries. I have been very busy myself.

[@romantrans1]

Perfect car for the crusher. I think PT stands for Perfect Trash. These cars are one big pile of poorly engineered cheaply made Domestic junk.

[@CarswithNash]

You clearly have no idea what you're talking about or who you're talking to.

[@ariellee2277]

im stuck 148-152 robinhood dr dela d fl 32724