Car won't start after it gets hot

[gso1974]

01 corolla..after driving in hot weather, up hills, or it conjested city traffic it gets hot. I can't use my air conditioner..and sometimes have to turn my heat on to get the car to cool down. Then when I park the car and try to strat it 5-10 minutes later it won't start. And if you do get it started it spits and sputters and cuts off. You have to wait for it to cool down more to start it. Does anyone know what I can have down when I take it to my mechanic. Thanks!

[shorod]

Welcome to the forum!

For the overheating condition I'd have them start by making sure the radiator cooling fan is working. If so, then you could have them replace the thermostat, hoses, and flush the cooling system. You should also make sure someone didn't stick a piece of cardboard in front of the A/C condensor and that the condensor fins are not plugged.

For the starting issues I'd start by having the shop check the fuel pressure and give the car a tune up. If the car has a distributor, you might have an ignition control module that is going out. That was a common issue on older Fords. You could also move this thread to the Corolla forum to see if any of these symptoms have common causes for this particular model of car. If the fuel pressure is low you can start with a fuel filter (part of the tune up) but likely it will end up being a weak fuel pump.

-Rod