High water temperature at idle

[92ShoOff]

Hey fellas... I just recently finally got a 92 MTX SHO and have been putting quite a bit of money into getting it back to good running condition. The car has 116,000 and doesn't seem to have been dogged at all... but definitely neglected. I had to replace the O2 sensors, replace the ABS pump and motor, refill the tranny fluid... etc. Stuff, that had been ignored the past few years that the owners prior to me drove the car. So now to my question... is it common for the water temperature on SHOs to get fairly high while sitting at idle for a few minutes after the engine is hot? Mine isn't over-heating... but as cold as it is now here in Maryland, if I sit at a traffic light for a few minutes my temperature gets like near the "R" and "O" in the word "NORMAL" on the temperature gauge and obviously doesn't drop until I get moving again. I had to replace the cooling fan motor also when I got the car because it had gone bad prior to me buying it. So I'm sure this car had over-heated at least once before I bought it. But is it normal for the temperature to get that high or is this something I should get checked? Any suggestions would be really appreciated!

With thanks,
Andrew Grayson

 

[93EmeraldMTX]

yeah its normal, mine does the same.

our coolant temp gagues arnt all that accurate.

 

[AutoSHO]

It wont hurt anything to replace the ECT (Engine Coolant Temperature) sensor. Make sure it is the one for the EEC and not the gauge sender. It will be a 2 wire sender whereas the gauge sender is just a one-wire sensor.

 

[SHOZ123]

Fluctuating between the O and R is normal and it should be accompanied by the fan coming on and off. M is more normal for highway driving.

 

[projectSHO89]

Don't worry about it unless it gets into or near the red. If the indicator points to the word NORMAL, the temperature is NORMAL. I don't understand why this concept is so hard to grasp by so many.

These (and most other) engines have a wide operating temperature range.

If you are worried, measure the actual coolant temp using an accurate guage or a non-contact IR thermometer.

Steve

 

[92ShoOff]

Hey thanks guys. This is my first time owning a vehicle that does this, that's why I'm not sure if this is normal with the SHO. But I'll definitely go buy me that ECT just to be safe. Yeah mine sits between the "M" and "A" while driving. That's why I thought it was odd, projectSHO89, that the temp increases so high after just sitting for a few minutes. No other vehicle I've owned did that. Well anyway, thanks everyone. Take care!

 

[SHOZ123]

If all is well and in good condition, the M is ~190F and the O-R ranges is ~205-215F. The fan should come on ~210F.

 

[haydenm315]

projectSHO89:
Don't worry about it unless it gets into or near the red. If the indicator points to the word NORMAL, the temperature is NORMAL. I don't understand why this concept is so hard to grasp by so many.

A lot of cars temp needle makes it's way up to the middle of the range and never moves again. Maybe this is why the concept is so hard to grasp. It's been a long time since my needle has pointed to o, but it does happen to me if the car is warm and I'm not moving or stuck in traffic. If I'm moving, it won't go past m.

 

[HopefulSHO]

haydenm315:
A lot of cars temp needle makes it's way up to the middle of the range and never moves again. Maybe this is why the concept is so hard to grasp. It's been a long time since my needle has pointed to o, but it does happen to me if the car is warm and I'm not moving or stuck in traffic. If I'm moving, it won't go past m.

This is true. The temp gauge on my Avenger would slowly climb to the middle of the guage and just sit there. The gauges in all my other cars actually did something (luckily).