Last night, the engine of my 1997 Honda Accord overheated when I was 2 blocks from my home. The radiator fluid level was okay, but when I tried to put the heat on to cool off the engine, only cold air came out. My question is: Is it safe to drive it ~1.5 miles to the repair shop at 6:45 in the am in San Francisco without having a problem or damaging the engine?
If you must drive it to the shop check the oil level before you take off. If you have AAA towing it is the safest way to handle getting it to a shop. 1.5 miles tends to get longer than that when the car is not right.
Since you have no clue about the problem and you’ve already driven the car when it has overheated, it would be best NOT to start or drive the car at all. Aluminum heads, blocks, and other parts do not handle heat well at all. The only really safe option is a tow. The risk of driving it to the shop maybe small, but the cost of doing damage is huge. If your motor suffers any damage the whole car is junk since repair will exceed the value of the car.
Did you check inside the radiator, or just in the plastic reservoir bottle? The reservoir can look fine even if the radiator is low or empty. The fact that you didn’t get hot air from the heater indicates low coolant level.
Please check the level in the radiator before you do anything else.
Engine over heating…and cold when turning on heat…Stuck thermostat or a bad water pump.
Need to get this looked at. Do NOT drive it.