I have a 2013 Chevrolet Cruze and this morning my temperature gauge stopped working and the message"AC off due to high engine temp" came on. I woke up and started the vehicle after sitting for 7 hours, it was the same. Obviously it's not hot, help?
AC off due to high engine temp
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Weird man, mine happened this past tuesday. All of a sudden on the highway the temp gauge rose, the car said car overheating idle car. I put it in neutral and turned on my hazards, within 30 seconds the gauge went back to normal and everything was fine so it seems we are having the same issue. Mine is a 2013 Cruze LS.
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Get your thermostat checked. I suspect it's going bad and/or leaking internally.
That was another idea I had, but I am not sure how I would check that if it would be completely random considering it has only happened once so far and no other issues driving since then. If it's leaking then that wouldn't cause this would it? Coolant would just be going through earlier than expected and would not cause overheating.
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Step one when troubleshooting engine temperature issues:
Check your Coolant Level
The "official" level is at the first rib below the top of the tank. There is an embossed arrow that points up to this rib. (Red line)
![NA Cruze Coolant Surge Tank Cold Full Line.jpg]()
At a minimum you must have at least an inch between the coolant level and the top of the lower, large hose leaving the tank (green line). Coolant returns through the small hose at the top and goes out the large one at the bottom. If you are below this lower point you may be able to pull sufficient air into the system to create large air bubbles in the system. When one of these bubbles moves past the thermostat your car will think it's overheating. When a bubble is moving through the engine that part of the engine has zero coolant to transfer heat to, potentially leading to localized but undetected overheating conditions. Like all aluminum engines, our engine is easy to damage when it overheats.
The North American generation 1 Cruze is prone to coolant seepage, so check this level at least every oil change. When it's low, top it off with a 50/50 mix of dexcool and clean tap water (yep, GM says tap water and not distilled water). Then check it again at the next couple of gas stops. If your engine is really low, park the car on level ground and wait for the engine to cool to ambient air temperature. Then fill the coolant to the "full" mark. While the hood is still open and the coolant cap off, start the engine. In a few seconds you will see coolant moving. When it drops below the "full" line fill it back to this line. Do this until the engine reaches operating temperature and then put the cap back on and turn the engine off. When back to ambient air temperature, top off the coolant.
Check your Coolant Level
The "official" level is at the first rib below the top of the tank. There is an embossed arrow that points up to this rib. (Red line)
At a minimum you must have at least an inch between the coolant level and the top of the lower, large hose leaving the tank (green line). Coolant returns through the small hose at the top and goes out the large one at the bottom. If you are below this lower point you may be able to pull sufficient air into the system to create large air bubbles in the system. When one of these bubbles moves past the thermostat your car will think it's overheating. When a bubble is moving through the engine that part of the engine has zero coolant to transfer heat to, potentially leading to localized but undetected overheating conditions. Like all aluminum engines, our engine is easy to damage when it overheats.
The North American generation 1 Cruze is prone to coolant seepage, so check this level at least every oil change. When it's low, top it off with a 50/50 mix of dexcool and clean tap water (yep, GM says tap water and not distilled water). Then check it again at the next couple of gas stops. If your engine is really low, park the car on level ground and wait for the engine to cool to ambient air temperature. Then fill the coolant to the "full" mark. While the hood is still open and the coolant cap off, start the engine. In a few seconds you will see coolant moving. When it drops below the "full" line fill it back to this line. Do this until the engine reaches operating temperature and then put the cap back on and turn the engine off. When back to ambient air temperature, top off the coolant.
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The coolant does seep on this engine. If it's seeping from the thermostat it's covered under the Power Train warranty. You may have to argue with the dealership because a lot of them seem to think the thermostat isn't covered. If it's the water pump it's covered for 10 years /150,000 miles. If, and this is more likely it's seeping out the o-rings from the surge tank cap you'll need to replace that o-ring. The best way to determine this is to dump a bottle of coolant dye into the system. These bottles run about $10 and I keep my coolant filled with it. When the dye comes out with coolant it leaves rather visible fluorescent flakes around the seep point.
What was your coolant level?
In that plastic tank there was none. This is my first experience with a sealed coolant system and so I assumed it was just the overflow tank, before I realized they don't have one. So the coolant level was pretty low though, however it is strange I think it only just happened for the first time with 65k+/- some miles on it. Only happened once until I actually checked it out a week and a half later, was still driven daily.
I'm gonna do a look around when I can because it'd be nice if it was one of the warranty things, however the o-ring seals wouldn't be too bad of a replacement.
Looking at Rockauto trying to find the O-ring, I can get replacement caps for $5.00. Any idea of the o-ring part # though?
Please correct me if I'm wrong but I understood that the overheating warning came on almost immediately after starting the engine. In this case... I don't have the full schematic and circuit description for this vehicle but Id guess you have a bad temp sensor or shorted the two wires in it. Try unplugging it and turn the switch on. Temp gauge should read 0. Same if reading the Ecm. The thermal switch will have less resistance as the engine heats up allowing more current flow back to the ecm. Also if the engine is cold and reads hot with the switch on you have an electrical issue. Did it boil over? What was the level in the tank?
Also Im reading about coolant leaks in these systems. I see no reason for leaks in the system. I believe the cooling system is a very poor design to be safe for the engine. But it should hold pressure. There may be poor materials involved breaking down but from the eleictrical issues I've seen and hearing and reading about I'd say the entire underlying problem. Is electrical. If you have a meter I'd check for voltage between coolant and ground. If current is flowing through the coolant you could have electrolysis causing chemical reactions compromising the integrity of th components. Check the water neck thromostat housing etc. And be sure it's not brittle and or disintegrating if you find this.
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Just an FYI I had this issue and it was my engine temp sensor and another sensor that I can't really remember the name of but also a few weeks later they had to replace my coolant reservoir and vacuum the coolant lines because I had a small crack they claim which is BS it was just a leak on the fitting.
The OP, in the first post, indicated the temp gauge stopped working (reading) while driving and the message came on.
On the next start, 7 hours later, the message returned (overheat) but the OP did not mention the instrument beyond a 'no read' situation.
Rob
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