Cars often experience breakdowns due to tire, engine, or battery trouble during the hot months of July and August – and even well into September. This is due to the mechanical problems associated with extreme temperatures. In this blog post, the towing experts here at Chicago Towing will detail some of the most common causes of Summer car breakdowns.

Overheating

Cars often overheat when driving. A sign of overheating is smoke or steam coming from underneath the hood of the car, or a weird smell coming from the engine. Check the temperature gauge on your car’s dashboard to see if it’s overheating. If your car is overheating, turn off the air conditioning right away to reduce the stress on your car’s engine. Then pull over the car as soon as you can, and let your car cool down. Before starting your car again, we recommend adding fluid to your engine, or contact an expert at Chicago Towing.

Rear or Front Tires Blown Out

Tire blowouts are common in Summer months. Heat can cause tire blowouts, and as the temperatures increase, so does your tire pressure – causing them to expand. When you drive on hot asphalt with overfilled tires, it causes friction that often causes a tire blowout. Make sure to keep monitoring the air pressure in your tires during the Summer to make sure they aren’t overfilled.

Car Battery Heat-Related Drainage

Extreme temperatures of all sorts – extreme Summer heat just as much as extreme Winter cold – have a strong effect on your car’s battery. The heat of the Summer causes the battery in your car to expand, causing the battery’s inner fluid to evaporate – which in turn, causes the car battery to cease functioning much faster. There’s simply no way to prevent this – but car batteries, when dead, must be replaced. If you find your car broken down in the Chicago area during the hot months of Summer, reach out to the experts here at Chicago Towing for instant assistance.