Hyundai Elantra Overheats and Stopped Running

Question: I have a Hyundai Elantra which stopped running. When I had it towed to the Hyundai dealer, they told me that the head gasket was blown. They indicated that the upper and lower radiator hoses had been reversed at the thermostat housing causing air to be trapped at the front of the housing and the coolant temperature sensor does not read trapped air, causing the vehicle to overheat without the temperature reading hot.

My radiator work was done about 2,500 miles ago. They said that it could take this long for the engine or a cylinder head to warp from the heat. However, the service station that did the faulty repair says it never could have taken this long. Which one of these repair shops should I believe?

Answer: The service station will try to say anything to avoid blame. The dealership has no reason to lie to you about it, and from my experience it could take that amount of time to do engine damage if the vehicle was driven lightly.

If your Hyundai is driven daily and more than a few miles per trip, then yes I would suspect the engine damage would happen fairly quickly. Also if you are in a hot climate that could also cause engine damage to happen sooner.

Hyundai Scratching Noises When Driving

I actually have a 2007 Hyundai. Lately, I’ve been hearing scratching noises when i drive. My friend said it sounds like an animal is stuck under the hood but i’ve looked and don’t hear the noise unless I’m driving here n there. Is it something serious? I can feel it in my foot too when i drive.

ANSWER: It depends on what the noise is related to. Is it related to engine speed (RPM) or vehicle speed. Does it do it when sitting in park or only when driving down the road. That makes a big difference on where to start looking for the noise.

If the noise increases with engine speed when in park, then you could have a bad belt or alternator or water pump bearing. If the noise increases as the cars speed s increases, then you may just have something caught in one of the wheels or in one of the axles. Look under the car to see if you can see anything wrapped around an axle.

If you feel it in your the floor, then you i would for sure look at the front axles. If you do not see anything, you could have a bad CV joint. This is the part of the axle that flexes. It is inside the large rubber boot. It is common on Hyundai or any car for the boot to tear, the grease to leak out and the CV joint to make noise.

You would also hear that noise more when turning as the joint flexes and binds up.