at what guage level can you say the car has started over heating
9 Answers
when it goes red and you start to see smoke
Not sure on Corollas but most cars the operating temperature is a little shy of half-way on the gauge. If you start going any significant amount past halfway you may have a problem. Like I said though I don't know for your car specifically, this is just an 'in general' suggestion.
When the gauge points at the red lines, it is too hot. Your owner's manual will tell you what the normal operating temperature should be. If you call a mechanic, they will most likely have software that will tell them what it is suposed to be and would probably tell you for free
Normal cars usually its in the 120-130oC range, i dont know what farenheit that is though?
If it goes above the halfway point there is an issue, it is overheating when it is in the red. If it starts going above the halfway point the quick assumption is the thermostat is stuck closed, or there is a coolant leak and you are running low on coolant. Otherwise i haven't experienced any issues with newer corollas at the shop with overheating yet.
the car is overheating when the gauge goes into the red or you start to notice a funky smell...thats all the grease on the block getting cooked off...blast the heat if you find yourself in this situation and pull over and let the car cool off otherwise youll end up cracking the head or boiling the coolant(yes coolant will boil if it gets hot enough ive seen it happen its not pretty)
its different for every car, but if its above the halfway line on your gauge, thats usually a bad sign.
