Will a stereo make a car overheat?

[Malibu3.1]

Probably a stupid question, but I have a good reason for asking. My girlfriends 00 malibu was fine when she got it. Her brother hooked up an amp and a 15" subwoofer, and her car started overheating. She warped both heads and he took the "system" out. I fixed her car. It ran fine ALL day yesterday. I was on the road ALL day. I hooked up an amp and 2 12's this morning, and it is all of the sudden running hot again. Is the "system" the problem?

[Bumpin1OHM]

only thing i can imagine is that it would put more strain on the alternator, but i dont see the amount of the engine working more causing it to overheat...

[carlover626]

You may have low power in the charging system (either Batt. Alt. or the wires connections are not passing current correctly). I would make sure that you have clean/tight battery connections, and the charging system is within spec's WITHOUT the stereo installed.

[antoniobanderas]

baloney,,a stereo will never overheat a engine even with a poor charging system,its true it will add more load on the engine but never to the point of overheating the engine, you better check the thermostat by checking for radiator hoses getting hard and hot,and take a look at the reservoir for water circulation,you could have a bad water pump or a clogged radiator just something to get you busy for now oky dorky?

[carlover626]

I was more thinking that the low power of the engine is making the water pump work less efficiantly.
But you never know, the thermostat could be aware of when you are hooking up the stereo and decide not to work..........:)

[Malibu3.1]

Originally posted by antoniobanderas
baloney,,a stereo will never overheat a engine even with a poor charging system,its true it will add more load on the engine but never to the point of overheating the engine, you better check the thermostat by checking for radiator hoses getting hard and hot,and take a look at the reservoir for water circulation,you could have a bad water pump or a clogged radiator just something to get you busy for now oky dorky?
I just replaced most of the cooling system components. Cooling system was flushed. The heads were resurfaced, new thermostat, new cooling fans, new rad hoses, new heater hoses, new waterpump, new gaskets everywhere, new overflow cap. It was running fine before the stereo install.

[sunrunner_pei]

I'm sitting here racking my brain, trying to think of any possible reason the stereo could cause the car to overheat. An you know what? I can't think of any. Yet.

Wait! (Grasping at straws here...) Perhaps the added weight of the sub enclosure is enough to push it over the edge? Maybe? :)

[Malibu3.1]

Originally posted by sunrunner_pei
I'm sitting here racking my brain, trying to think of any possible reason the stereo could cause the car to overheat. An you know what? I can't think of any. Yet.

Wait! (Grasping at straws here...) Perhaps the added weight of the sub enclosure is enough to push it over the edge? Maybe? :)
Give me a break. I was thinking the same thing. I even said: probably a stupid question However the car was fine before the amp was hooked up. I am not an idiot. Just the kinda reaction I expected to get from a few forum smart @sses.
I am going to remove the amp and subs. I will let you all know how things go afterwards.

[sunrunner_pei]

Jeez Will, take it easy! I didn't mean anything by my reply (Hence the smilie). I'm searious though when I say I can't think of any relation to the stereo and the overheating.

No need to get pissed off.

[Malibu3.1]

Originally posted by sunrunner_pei
Jeez Will, take it easy! I didn't mean anything by my reply (Hence the smilie). I'm searious though when I say I can't think of any relation to the stereo and the overheating.

No need to get pissed off.
my bad. long day and frustrated.

[sunrunner_pei]

It's all good. :) I'll do my best to think of any other logical explanations though.

[DjDuncman]

Is it possible that you're just driving the car harder while you have the system blasting? You just might not realise it with the added noise and vibration. Thats about all I can think could possibly cause this problem...

[Prospeeder]

Weak charging system no suppling enough power to the injectors or Fuel pump, causing the car to run leaner and overheat? LOL i dunno, anything counts right? Its a very strange problem

[prescill]

Could be the amp is taking the extra power away from the cooling fans on the rad(not spinning fast enough to cool tjhe car) due to a low battery or alternator. Just a thought

[antoniobanderas]

not a chance,I'm ruining two big ass alpine amps and i can go all day long cruising and my engine temp never goes hotter than normal,I do however burn more gas since the battery needs to recharge more often,forget about the sound system,you need to have the engine hook up to check for proper operation could be ruining lean due to several facts,and you will never find the cause,this board is nice for most ideas ,but,when the problems lies underlined is time to go deeper,not to mean to be smart with you but, thats how it is , good luck

[rixGAphx]

The strong shock wave produced by a 1200w amp driving a pair of 12" woofers creates a sound barrier in front of the car.
This prevents much air from entering the grill, whether or not the fans are working properly.

It's a known problem with the malibu body design.







:D :D

Seriously, I'll bet the coolant level is just low.
You should recheck it a couple days after a major service, since a couple quarts of air can easily be trapped in the heater circuit.

-Rick

[alegar001]

I like the idea of juice getting roobed from the rad fan. Newer model cars have computer controlled fans i think. Could be the amp is messing with the computer.

[sunrunner_pei]

Under normal driving it isn't common for the fans to have to cut in at all thought. They should only turn on in excessive heat or extended idling, or a combination of both.

[antoniobanderas]

hmm...... you state you changed the cooling fans.... why? just because ? have you actually see them came on at all ? you know,they turn on by the the signal they get from the cooling sensor to the ECM which in turn sends the signal to the cooling fan relay and from there to the fan motor bla bla bla,if they don't came on,it will tend to overheat your engine in bad traffic or warm weather or in hard acceleration or extended idling especially with a load such you sound system but only if you are using it

[kyboman]

I am surprised that Rixgaphx didn't mention the cable issue. I think it is an electrical problem due to too much power draw from the amp. It is drawing down the electrical system just enough to make the computer go nuts.

Are you sure you have an overheating problem after the gasket change?? You may just have a faulty reading from the thermostat due to low volts.

Try hooking the amp to another hot lead and run a separate ground back to the battery of closest ground connection to the battery.

IF the t-stat shows hot (liek in the red), disconnect the amp and see if the gauge drastically changes. This will mean an electrical problem

Strange problems like this are almost always electrical.

BTW, most posters try to help. However, on strange problems like this, some humor can get other posters brain waves "a movin"

[Malibu3.1]

Originally posted by antoniobanderas
hmm...... you state you changed the cooling fans.... why? just because ? have you actually see them came on at all ? you know,they turn on by the the signal they get from the cooling sensor to the ECM which in turn sends the signal to the cooling fan relay and from there to the fan motor bla bla bla,if they don't came on,it will tend to overheat your engine in bad traffic or warm weather or in hard acceleration or extended idling especially with a load such you sound system but only if you are using it
I never change anything "just because" no sense wasting my money. The old fans were bad. That is how my girlfriend warped the heads. I hooked them directly to the battery. They didnt work at all.
you know.........bla bla bla
And yes, I know how electric cooling fans work.

[Malibu3.1]

Originally posted by kyboman
I am surprised that Rixgaphx didn't mention the cable issue. I think it is an electrical problem due to too much power draw from the amp. It is drawing down the electrical system just enough to make the computer go nuts.

Are you sure you have an overheating problem after the gasket change?? You may just have a faulty reading from the thermostat due to low volts.

Try hooking the amp to another hot lead and run a separate ground back to the battery of closest ground connection to the battery.

IF the t-stat shows hot (liek in the red), disconnect the amp and see if the gauge drastically changes. This will mean an electrical problem

Strange problems like this are almost always electrical.

BTW, most posters try to help. However, on strange problems like this, some humor can get other posters brain waves "a movin"
Good theory, however it really is running hot. Its not just the guage.
I took the amp back out. This is where it runs without the amp.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v514/GeoStormRS/MaliBu/hot.jpg
It runs a notch higher than in the picture with the amp. Not high enough to to any damage, but enough to irritate me. I know for a fact that it runs 1 notch above average because I need to bleed the air out again. I have not had time to do so. After I do that, I'll let you all know how it runs. It does run 1 notch cooler without the amp. Perhaps I need to check the alternator and battery.

[carlover626]

Hey man sorry for being a smart ass in the beginning, I was more directing it to someone who wanted to discredit my opinion when there was really no easy answer anywhere. :???:
My thought was that your Batt. or Alt. (or both?) are on their last leg and that the amp was taking all the power that was previously going to the other functions of your car, like the water pump.
Just get your voltage tested, it may blow my thought right out of the window......................

[rixGAphx]

Originally posted by Malibu3.1
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v514/GeoStormRS/MaliBu/hot.jpg
It runs a notch higher than in the picture with the amp. Not high enough to to any damage, but enough to irritate me.
Well, I think you had us concerned (and yourself) for no reason.

Keep in mind that electrical water temp gages are no more than 95% accurate on a good day.

Look at the gage in your picture, and interpolate the temperature that's indicated.
The large marker just below the needle indicates 180*F.
So, the needle is indicating 185*F.
The next 'notch' (the smallest line, above the needle) is 200*F.

Your factory OEM t'stat is SUPPOSED to be 195*F, so that's where the needle SHOULD be, winter or summer, amplifier or headlights or not.

I tend to agree with Kyboman, that what you're seeing with the amp 'on' is a voltage/amperage drawdown of the entire electrical system, and it's affect is only seen in this one gage.
How many watts in this amp? 1200?
1200 watts = 100 amps, which is about 3/4 of the alternator's TOTAL OUTPUT at 2500 rpm road speed.
At idle, the amplifier is sucking power from the battery (big time), and of course other systems will falter a little bit (lights may dim, gages read improperly, etc.).

This *may* adversely affect the operation of the PCM (Powertrain Control Module, the GA's engine/tranny 'puter), but only after all holy hell has broken loose in the rest of the car. Like 'Batt' icon, 'ABS' icon, tranny slippage in first gear, AC compressor turning itself 'off', etc.

You may want to consider an Optima Yellow Top battery, since they are engineered to better-accomodate the deep draws of an audio system.

Hope this helps.
-Rick

[Malibu3.1]

Thank you, that makes sense. It ran in the middle before. I wonder why it runs above the middle now.

[antoniobanderas]

1200 watts = 100 amps, which is about 3/4 of the alternator's TOTAL OUTPUT at 2500 rpm road speed." ?????? lol ,lol and another lol.stock alternators put out at most 120 amps at full rated RPMs
let us not daydream here!