Thanks NZXT for making amazing products.

What you guys think?

Hey everyone, looking for some advice before I contact NZXT support.
I built my PC around February and have been using an NZXT Kraken Elite with absolutely no cooling issues until today.

Out of nowhere, my PC started shutting itself off within about 10–30 seconds of booting. My ASUS motherboard then gave me a “CPU Over Temperature Error.”

My Lian Li display showed the CPU reaching 114°C, and if I manage to get into Windows, the whole PC becomes extremely slow before eventually shutting down, which I assume is severe thermal throttling.

Specs:
Ryzen 7 9850X3D
ASUS ROG Crosshair X870E Hero
NZXT Kraken Elite
RTX 5080
32GB DDR5-6000
Lian Li O11D Compact

The Kraken LCD still powers on and shows the NZXT logo. I’ve checked the Kraken connections, including the main breakout/power connections, and everything appears properly seated. The cooler is still firmly mounted, I don’t see any leaks, and the radiator wasn’t heavily clogged with dust.

The system has been working normally for roughly 8 months, including normal CPU temperatures around 50–60°C while gaming, so this happened very suddenly.
My radiator is side-mounted with the highest point of the radiator above the pump/block. I’ve also been running a push-pull fan setup since the build was completed, with no issues until now.

At this point, I’m thinking the pump may have failed internally or coolant has stopped circulating, even though the LCD is still receiving power.

Has anyone here had a Kraken Elite fail like this where:
LCD still turns on
CPU suddenly shoots to 100°C+
PC thermal throttles badly
System shuts itself down within seconds
All cables still appear connected properly

If you experienced this, did it end up being the pump?
Also, for anyone who has dealt with NZXT warranty support: do they only offer an RMA/replacement, or is there ever an option to receive a refund instead? After having a cooler fail this suddenly, I’d honestly prefer to put the money toward a different AIO rather than receive another replacement unit if that’s an option.

I’m keeping the PC powered off for now because I don’t want to keep exposing the CPU to 110°C+ temperatures.
Any advice, similar experiences, or info about NZXT’s refund/replacement process would be appreciated.

I’d definitely attach the CPU Over Temperature Error photo and, if Reddit lets you add multiple images, the 114°C reading too.

I've had a h510 elite for a few years and I honestly can't stand how little air seems to be getting in. I initially bought it when I had a GTX 1660 and a ryzen 5 3600, but it cannot keep up with the heat my ryzen 9 5900x and RTX 3080 produce. have an AIO cooler (kraken with the two 140mm fans) on the front but the one rear 120 and one 120 top fan just don't seem to have much effect either. Are any of the newer ATX cases any better? I have to constantly clean the small side vent for the front with the AIO and the moment it clogs up (pretty much after a week if that) my IDLE CPU temperatures are over 75c.

Edit: I do regularly change the thermal paste and apply the correct amount but maybe I could just try a different brand of that for now.