🔧 How I Fixed My Dell Precision 5560 Overheating Problem

When I bought my Dell Precision 5560, I expected solid performance and premium build quality — and to be fair, it is a great machine.
I bought it second-hand from a seller on Facebook: facebook.com/DARK.EVIL.ASH.

But not long after setting it up, I ran into a frustrating problem: overheating.

🚩 The problem: Constant thermal throttling

Straight away, the laptop would run hot under any real workload.

The fans were blasting like turbines.
CPU temps would spike over 95°C, hitting 100°C within seconds.
It would throttle performance or shut down under heavy load.

🔍 What I checked first

✅ Fans — both working fine.
✅ Vents — clear and free of dust.
✅ Replaced thermal paste — used fresh high-quality paste, reinstalled the heatsink correctly.

No improvement — still overheating.

🔬 The real culprit: a failed heat pipe

If you’ve got working fans, clean vents, and good paste, there’s only one thing left: the heat pipe.
When the pipe fails internally (loses vacuum or leaks its fluid), it can’t transfer heat properly. Your chips overheat no matter what.

In my case, the heat sink was staying oddly cool even while the CPU was cooking — classic sign of a bad heat pipe.

🛠️ The fix

I ordered a genuine replacement — Dell DP/N 359CG — from Parts-People.com. It’s the correct heatsink assembly for the Precision 5560 with discrete NVIDIA graphics.

🚚 What’s next

The replacement heat pipe is on its way from Parts-People now — I’ll update this once I’ve installed it and tested the temps again!

📌 Takeaway

If you’re buying second-hand — check the temps and cooling system right away. Sometimes the seller might not know (or might not care).

If you see temps hitting 100°C with good fans and fresh paste, it’s probably your heat pipe — and swapping it yourself can save you a big headache and an expensive repair bill.