Car Radiator and the Engine - BFF

If you believe in the concept that all good things in the world come in pairs, then you must be wondering who could be the companion for your car engine. Well, look no further, it is the Radiator. Not to be confused with any Arnold movie, a radiator is an integral part of the engine setup that runs your vehicle. In fact, these two parts of your car are mechanically linked and even though the Engine might be the fiery, hot-headed type, it’s the Radiator that has a soothing influence over it and that's what defines their relationship as well.

If you are not familiar with the major parts in your car, let me introduce you to what is called the Car Radiator all over the world. When you pop-open the hood of your car, the first part that immediately follows the front grille is the radiator. In fact, a radiator itself resembles a grille or a mesh of lean pipes forming a square shaped part that has an opening at the top and a fan located just behind.

The location of the radiator is of extreme importance allowing it to perform its main function i.e. cooling the engine. Let us understand how it manages to do that.

As you would know, all internal combustion engines produce power by burning fuel and this power drives the wheels of your car. A mixture of air and fuel is burnt within the cylinders of the engine and the resulting explosion pushes the pistons of these cylinders that are connected to the crankshaft. Constant periodic explosions inside the cylinders of the engine set the crankshaft in motion. The crankshaft then converts the linear motion of the pistons into rotational motion that travels through the drivetrain of the vehicle and turns the wheels.

But you don’t need to go into all that technical stuff. The fact is that burning of fuel heats up the engine and the same effect is created as a result of friction between the moving parts of the engine. Although engines are made to withstand high temperatures and pressure, if this happens on a consistent basis then engine damage is imminent and that means either an end to your vehicle or a big hole in your wallet.

The truth is that most car engines cease at high temperatures and a consistently heated engine will definitely have damaged internal parts. As you would know about badly maintained engines or malfunctioning parts, they lead to loss of efficiency and power and less MPG means another hole in the wallet and this one won’t mend.

Automotive engineering theories suggest that the engine performs at its best when maintained at standard conditions of temperature and pressure and that is what brought about it's pairing with radiator.

A radiator essentially contains antifreeze or coolant that is circulated through the engine to keep it cool. The antifreeze absorbs the heat produced by a running engine while the cold antifreeze cools the engine. The coolant that gets heated in the process is circulated back to the radiator where it flows through the narrow pipes of the radiator grille. As the vehicle moves, the air entering through the grille of the car cools down the heated antifreeze contained in the radiator. The fact that radiator pipes are narrow means it takes less time for the antifreeze to cool down. If the outside air is not enough, a fan located behind the radiator does the job automatically thus keeping the temperature of the engine under control and preventing it from overheating.

The engine delivers power to run the vehicle but it is the radiator that maintains the health of the engine. Since the effectiveness of the engine also depends on the conditions it operates in, a well performing radiator with good levels of antifreeze in it can make the difference between an engine and an effective engine.

If you want your vehicle to perform at its best, you have to take great care of its engine and an effective radiator can contribute immensely in this regard.

Maintain recommended levels of coolant in the radiator and service the engine on periodic basis to bless this pair and in turn you will get a blessed vehicle.

James Rodham