Overheated (Slightly), Saab 9-5

[ET16]

I was driving yesterday on I-95 outside of Baltimore in my 05 Saab 9-5, and I got a low coolant warning. I take note and drive a little more, and suddenly I see the temperature climb. It's at the top of the green, and I get a warning chime, and I pull over. Luckily, I have some water in a jug in my trunk, and I top off. It's a split heater hose. I go down the road until a rest stop with a bathroom and water, and I refill the radiator and my jug. I drive some more, pull over and refill. I see a supermarket, and I pull over to buy three more gallons of water to get me home.

So, I think I'm fine (and lucky, as I never got into the red on the temp gauge, only very top of green), but I thought I'd ask. How hard is it to overheat these engine and cause real damage? I have since put a new hose in, and the car runs fine; I maybe used a little oil. Should I do anything?

 

[CT8]

It depends.

 

[cptbarkey]

you should look over the rest of your coolant hoses and replace them, as well as take a very hard look at your radiator, at 10 years and plastic fantastic its probably past its prime.

 

[B20z]

It's a wait-and-see situation now. Look for signs of a heat damaged engine. This is a serious situation to be in and the idiot gauge is not a true indicator of maximum engine temps or hot spots. I would've gone with a tow or had someone bring me a hose before continuing to drive. But what's done is done. Good luck.

 

[Eddie]

Your good to go with no damage. If you drive many miles in the RED, then probably major damage. Ed

 

[ET16]

Originally Posted By: cptbarkey
you should look over the rest of your coolant hoses and replace them, as well as take a very hard look at your radiator, at 10 years and plastic fantastic its probably past its prime.


I looked around some today. The rest of the hoses look fine.

 

[B20z]

Hoses are regular maintenance to me and not something I rely on looks to assess. They can rot from the inside out. Your choice. I replace them all when I buy a new (used) car and then on a scheduled basis. You already lost one so why continue to risk it?

 

[Brad_C]

Same with Volvos. Rubber hoses, plastic radiators and overflow tanks get changed out every 7 years. Nissen radiators and genuine hoses. Aftermarket hoses / tanks get changed out every 3 years.

It works out at about $100/year for the genuine stuff which is about what I spend on oil (1 change M1 5w30 $90 + $10 filter).
Cheap insurance.

 

[ET16]

Good points about maintenance. I have replaced the top radiator hose, and will look into changing others.

 

[camrydriver111]

Plastic is supposed to last millions of years.

 

[Brad_C]

Originally Posted By: camrydriver111
Plastic is supposed to last millions of years.


It does when it's not routinely exposed to 100C alcohol and 20psi of pressure. The glycol seems to slowly leach the plasticizer out and over many years it gets brittle until it finally breaks.

I've had several dealers with many moons experience with plastic/aluminium radiators just suggest you replace them every 7 years. Many go far longer, but when you are 1000km from the nearest town and out of mobile range it's pretty embarrassing to have to set off your EPIRB because your radiator popped and you have no other way of summoning help. It's even more expensive when you have someone else driving and they don't notice the pegged gauge and warning lights and drive it until something melts or seizes.

Much easier just to replace the radiator every 7 years when you do the hoses and expansion tank.