Engine overheated yesterday is it damaged?

[jeffho]

Well my water pump finally died yesterday on my 99 C2 :( (been delaying the inevitable) while driving on the freeway. I couldn't pull over on the shoulder immediately and the temperature rose to 250 degrees and flashed for just a minute or two. Just wondering, should I be concerned about permanent engine damage due to the heat?

Edited October 31, 2006 by jeffho

[1999Porsche911]

Well my water pump finally died yesterday on my 99 C2 :( (been delaying the inevitable) while driving on the freeway. I couldn't pull over on the shoulder immediately and the temperature rose to 250 degrees and flashed for just a minute or two. Just wondering, should I be concerned about permanent engine damage due to the heat?

Depends. If you did not lose coolant, chances are that there was no damage as 250F coolant is not dangerous to engine componants. If you also lost coolant, then the odds of damage go up as you may have left vital parts of the engine dry, which means the temperature in that area may have exceeded safe levels.

My guess is you will be perfectly fine. Just throw in a new pump and be on your way.

[violaGT3]

Depends. If you did not lose coolant, chances are that there was no damage as 250F coolant is not dangerous to engine componants. If you also lost coolant, then the odds of damage go up as you may have left vital parts of the engine dry, which means the temperature in that area may have exceeded safe levels.

My guess is you will be perfectly fine. Just throw in a new pump and be on your way.

Well said and too true.

[jeffho]

Well my water pump finally died yesterday on my 99 C2 :( (been delaying the inevitable) while driving on the freeway. I couldn't pull over on the shoulder immediately and the temperature rose to 250 degrees and flashed for just a minute or two. Just wondering, should I be concerned about permanent engine damage due to the heat?

Uh oh.... I did lose coolant, after I pulled over, a pool of it well up beneath the car. Scared the $#^%! out of me as I thought it was oil. Funny thing is, the low oil light flashed instead of the coolant light- really thought I had a blown engine. I'm waiting to hear from the techs. Any guesstimates of what specific parts might have been damaged?

Edited October 31, 2006 by jeffho

[jeffho]

Uh oh.... I did lose coolant, after I pulled over, a pool of it well up beneath the car. Scared the $#^%! out of me as I thought it was oil. Funny thing is, the low oil light flashed instead of the coolant light- really thought I had a blown engine. I'm waiting to hear from the techs. Any guesstimates of what specific parts might have been damaged?

Edited October 31, 2006 by jeffho

[White987S]

A lot (>50%) of the cooling comes from the oil anyways. Hope you are OK.

[nick49]

It depends on several factors but the hottest part of the motor is usually the exhaust side of the head near the exhaust port. Excessive localized heat in this area can cause the head to warp. Also overheating motors with aluminum heads can cause the loss of the interference fit between the head and valve seat causing the seats to move and eventially fall out. This in turn will cause valves to bend which can and does crack or break the valve guides and also hammer or sometimes punch a hole right thru a piston. This chain of events can also destroy the small end of the connecting rod and residual metal may be picked up by the oil pump ruining it as well along with lubricated bearings thruout the motor.

My point is not to scare you but overheating a modern aluminum motor can lead to a catastrophic failure very quickly. I have seen more motors destroyed by overheating than oil related issues. Chances are that if the motor still runs with full power that no major damage was done. Good luck!

[1999Porsche911]

Don't lose any sleep over it. You didn't drive the car once the light came on and chances are very good that absolutly no damage was done.

[jeffho]

Well I feel a bit better now, thanks all for your opinions.

[Hroussard]

Well I feel a bit better now, thanks all for your opinions.

It also happened to my 99. Frankly a water pump should not seize after 45k miles especially as this is such a critical part to preserve an engine. Because the engine will pump you water all over the exhaust you might have seen a whole lotta steam belching up. New waterpump ( with a new and different hose ( they changed the hose for some reason) and about 1500 bucks or so and I was on my way . Had the car towed to the Porche dealer of course. Now keep the towing company tel number handy as they are working with the local Prosche dealer ( uis that not sad!!).

Hey, I must say , I had 3 waterpumps going bad on my Mercedes in about 30K miles. Maybe it's all part of a ploy for recurrent revenue!!

HarryR

C2 99