Temp Sensor says cold...

[PiccoloAtWork]

Ok, it has recently been like lower 30's upper 20's and my car even after a 20 minute drive will be at the blue reading. After about 40 + minutes of driving in stop and go, it might read on the L or if I'm lucky the A. I just want to see if I got this right. Since I read up in the search function...

The reason it stays on cold for so long is that the Thermostat is staying open and not closing to heat up one part of the coolant into normal operating temperatures, before it opens to transfer from block to radiator. Is this right? Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Chuck Laughner]

Yeah. thats rite. IT could be stuck open. thumb

 

[Joe'sSHO]

Are you getting heat? My SHO does the same thing (temp needle is really low) but the heat works fine and the thermostat is new. Could just be a POS gauge (as the SHO's are known for them). I wouldn't worry too much unless you're not getting sufficient heat. At least it won't over heat! If you aren't getting heat though, I would suggest replacing the thermostat. It's only 7 bucks and easy to install. BTW welcome to the forum!

 

[advocate]

try turning your EATC off of auto and use floor or vent. With mine if I leave it on auto it stays like how you described. Turn it to floor and it goes to the middle of the guage.

worth a try.

 

[PiccoloAtWork]

Hehe, thanks for the welcome, but my real member number is #1234. (Piccolo) The guage will do that no matter what the EATC is doing. And it does blow warm air. So is it the T-stat, or the sensor to the guage? Thanks for the help...

 

[AutoSHO]

I would start by replacing the Temperature Sender for the Dash gauge. It should run under $10. It is located next to the coil pack, under the throttle body, on the thermostat housing. You might also want to replace the ECT (Engine Coolant Temperature Sensor) while you are there. They run $16.99.