What could cause this?

[shodazzl]

Well ,my cars radiator,t-stat,ect,and sender have been replaced,So why is my temp guage needle going to middle of o when driving normally.It had a bad radiator but I recently replaced it.The needle use to hit the top of the gauge.The new radiator brought the gauge down to about the O.Shouldn't the neelde stay at A or L?When running on AUTOMATIC the fan kicks in and the needle is always IN the middle.Is this a right running temp?93 ATx120K done

 

[projectSHO89]

Install a known good temp guage and sending unit and read the exact temperature.

Using the stock guage and a replacement sending unit is no guarantee of an accurate reading, more like a general idea of your temp.

Steve
89

 

[fredhurderjr]

Check to make sure the fan is coming on when the climate control is off. If it's not, there's something wrong there (low-speed, whatever).

Having the climate control unit controlling when your cooling fan is on isn't right.

 

[shodazzl]

The fan does come on with it in the off position.The needle reads at about the O, and this is when the fan kicks in.But shouldn't the car be running at A or L?I guess I'm going to have to check the temp.does anyone know proper operating temp?

 

[pjtoledo]

shodazzl:
Well ,my cars radiator,t-stat,ect,and sender have been replaced,So why is my temp guage needle going to middle of o when driving normally.It had a bad radiator but I recently replaced it.The needle use to hit the top of the gauge.The new radiator brought the gauge down to about the O.Shouldn't the neelde stay at A or L?When running on AUTOMATIC the fan kicks in and the needle is always IN the middle.Is this a right running temp?93 ATx120K done

Did you remove the plugs in the block, and flush the block? The passages can fill with crud, coolant can't cool where it cannot go.
Perry Toledo,Ohio

 

[sdpatt]

The gauge will stay around the "AL" only if you have the 179.6F (82C) thermostat installed. This is normally used in the 3.0L SHO. The normal stat for the 3.2L ATX is the 190.4F (88C) T-stat and will maintain the needle around the middle of the range. Up around the "O" is a little high though. What T-stat did you put in there?

 

[Mike Kopstain]

sdpatt:
The gauge will stay around the "AL" only if you have the 179.6F (82C) thermostat installed. This is normally used in the 3.0L SHO. The normal stat for the 3.2L ATX is the 190.4F (88C) T-stat and will maintain the needle around the middle of the range. Up around the "O" is a little high though. What T-stat did you put in there?

It's immpossible to tell exactly where the gauge will be in what temperature because the gauge only has about a 20 degree window. Also, the calibration is usually off from car to car and the sending units can be a bit funky. Don't waste your time with that gauge. People should realize that it is a problem when they have to describe their engine's temperature with the letter's N,O,R,M,A, and L. Get a true gauge so you can come on here and give us a temperature. thumbs_u It looks cool too.

 

[shodazzl]

Spdatt,I used a revised motorcraft tstat.PjToledo, I think I might have to flush the block.That is my first time hearing of that.Is it common for the SHO to get clogged?ANd I relized it goes up to N and then the fan kicks in(off).So even the new radiator helped it only a bit.