My dumbass car

TAYLOR J

MEMBER
2004 VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE
85,000 MILES

Make a long story short, Thursday my car broke down, I drive a 04 vw beetle. I have a crack in my radiator so I constantly have to put coolant in it when the light comes on. Well this time the light came on and my car started shaking and then it just shut itself off. Along with the coolant light coming on the epc light and battery light came on. Did my car just over heat? Or is there a more serious problem?

1 Reply

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
33,727 POSTS

What is the "epc"? You said you add coolant when the light comes on. Light for what? Some cars have a low coolant level light in the reservoir. That would be you responding to a minor problem. Some cars are too cheap to have a temperature gauge; they use a "hot" light instead. If that's what you have, that light is there to tell you damage has already occurred. If that happens enough times the cylinder head could warp and / or the head gasket could start leaking. That alone can lead to overheating, and if it's bad enough it will cause a rough running engine.

If the generator quit working, there could be coolant that has sprayed onto the belt and is causing it to slip. I'd look for something minor like that before I'd assume the problem is serious, but most engines can't stand up to repeated overheating without some negative consequences.