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3 Easy Ways to Prep Your Car or Truck for Summer Heat

3 Easy Ways to Prep Your Car or Truck for Summer Heat
By Cole Quinnell
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3 Easy Ways to Prep Your Car or Truck for Summer Heat

Summer is nearly here, which means it’s time to get out there and have some fun with your hot rod, muscle car, 4x4 or truck! It can also mean overheating or living in fear of overheating if the cooling system isn’t up to the task. Fortunately, keeping your customized and hot-rodded vehicle cool isn’t too difficult. Here are three things you can do right now to make sure that you have fun in the summer sun!

Check the Radiator Cap Sometimes, it’s the simple things that cause the hardest problems, as in, one of the most overlooked components is the radiator cap. A worn cap or one with a tear in the seal won’t be able to hold pressure, which could cause a cooling system that’s otherwise in perfect condition to overheat. Check the cap every year and replace it every 5 years as inexpensive insurance. Make sure your new cap has the correct pressure rating: An old vehicle with an original-style engine and radiator should use a 16-lb cap; upgraded performance engines and radiators typically can use a 22-lb cap, and many new vehicles use a 30-lb cap.

Install an Auxiliary Electric Fan If your truck is running hot at idle or slow speeds – like while pulling into a car show or sitting in traffic – adding an auxiliary electric fan (a pusher) to the front of the radiator can be a simple and cost-effective fix. A toggle switch or thermostat control will allow you to turn it on and off as needed. Flex-A-Lite offers many auxiliary electric fans in a variety of sizes, making it easy to find the perfect one for your truck.

Install a Remote-Mount Transmission Cooler An automatic-transmission cooler puts heat inside the radiator or in front of the radiator, making it harder for the radiator to keep the engine cool. But using a Flex-A-Lite Remote Mount Transmission Cooler with an integral electric fan can move this 200-plus-degree source of heat under your truck instead. This is a new line of transmission coolers with patented Dimpled-Plate technology to keep the fluid mixed as it passes through the cooler, giving this transmission cooler nearly twice the cooling capacity of low-cost transmission coolers.