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Temp gauge malfunction

2K views 22 replies 7 participants last post by  gunsmoke357 
#1 ·
I have a '98 Neon with over 105,000 miles. Lately I've noticed that after a 15 minute warm up and 25 minute drive to work, the temp gauge is barely above "C". I've also noticed that after a brief stop, I can start the car and the gauge will go to the mid point but then slowly fall back to just above "C". I'm located in the mid-south and the coldest it's been was in the mid teens. Any recomendations will be appreciated.
 
#2 ·
bad sensor?
 
#4 ·
Does it blow any HOT air when you run the heater or is it cold?

All the thermostat does is open open up and circulate the coolant. If it's blowing good hot air from the heater it is working fine. However if it's stuck wide open and letting the coolant constantly circulate I could see why it would run cold. Good Luck.

BTW, if your thermostat is changed and it still does it, try the coolant temp sensor.
 
#5 ·
I seem to be having the same issue! Mine doesn't blow completely cold air, but going down the road I never get full heat like I do when parked. I will swap out the thermostat and see what happens. I'm guessing the thermostat is sticking open.
 
#6 ·
kinda_fellin said:
I seem to be having the same issue! Mine doesn't blow completely cold air, but going down the road I never get full heat like I do when parked. I will swap out the thermostat and see what happens. I'm guessing the thermostat is sticking open.
__________________
Do you have your vent on Re circulate or fresh air?
It makes a huge diff in my car.
 
#9 ·
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gunsmoke said:
A guy at local auto parts store recommended I change the Temp Sending Unit. How does that sound to you guys? Thx!
Sounds like a plan to me!!! Especially if your heat is working fine!

kinda_fellin said:
doesnt seem to matter what setting its on..
I think yours is the thermostat!
 
#10 ·
dodgeneonACR98 said:
. Sounds like a plan to me!!! Especially if your heat is working fine!


I think yours is the thermostat!


Yeah thats what I was thinkin... now its just a matter of getting a patch of warm enough weather to bother with it!
 
#12 ·
gunsmoke357 said:
Do you know where the unit is on the car? Or is this something I should have a real mech change?
It should go into the thermostat housing somewhere... at least thats how it was on my 1999 taurus.
 
#13 ·
Had a similar prob with my caravan, heat would blast when parked but while driving in cold weather the heat wouldnt be so warm and the temp gauge would move towards cold, switched the thermostat with a new one and it was much better, temp gauge would stay at 1/2 all the timeand the heat was always quite hot
 
#14 ·
kinda_fellin said:
Yeah thats what I was thinkin... now its just a matter of getting a patch of warm enough weather to bother with it!


If you have no garage, work on the car after the engine has warmed up a little. Much more tolerable. Just be careful with your radiator cap not to get a steam or liquid burn.
 
#15 ·
lol when changing the thermostat or the coolant temp sensor NEVER i repeat NEVER preheat the car for it..... bad idea... thats hot ass liquid... ok the thermostat is like 3 options for one like a 5 dollar one 9 and 13... there all the same buy the 5 dollar one .... ive looked at both and they seem to be exactly the same.... the sensor u need is lik 2 inches from the thermostat... u cant miss it... takes alike a 14 or 15 wrench to get it off...
 
#16 ·
95moparracer said:
lol when changing the thermostat or the coolant temp sensor NEVER i repeat NEVER preheat the car for it..... bad idea... thats hot ass liquid...

LOL. So you don't like that idea 95moparracer? :D


He's right, it's very hot but if you HAVE to work on the car outside and you are VERY careful as to WHEN you open up the radiator cap, it can be done...not by anybody or everybody, but working with a luke-warm engine and fluid that is warm to the touch is very nice when it's really cold outside and you have no option of a heated garage. all i was saying. lol

Edit: If you take the cap off ALWAYS use a large rag or towel folded up when untwisting the cap and don't take it off immediately do it very cautiously.
 
#18 ·
right below the radiator cap
 
#19 ·
Don't laugh...
OK! LOL Seriously If you can find the Radiator cap. You can find the thermostat.Infact you can stick your finger right down in there and touch it.

To check your thermostat you can simply take off your radiator fill cap (with engine cold) then with the cap off start the car. Let it run a while as you look in at the termostat. It should not circulate while the engine is cold. That would mean it was stuck open. Which sounds like your problem. Follow me here? If it is good the coolant will not circulate till the car warms up to normal. Hope that helps!
 
#20 ·
OK, before you go wasting money on stuff, let me tell you a little story.....

I had the opposite problem. My car would read hot. So hot that the light would come on on chime "ding-ding-ding-ding-ding" constantly.

Doing a visual under the hood, there was nothing obviously broken, leaking, etc... Head gasket looked fine, not oil in coolant, coolant in oil, etc... Did a pressure test on the cooling system, and that seemed fine.

Replace radiator cap ($5)
Still reading hot

Flush and new coolant ($25~)

Replace thermostat and gasket from dealer. ($15)
Still reading hot

Replace Coolant Temp Sensor ($25~)
Still over heats.

Only other thing to replace was the radiator.
New Radiator and coolant ($165~)
AND STILL READS HOT!!!!

So now I'm in nearly $250 and this freakin' neon is really starting to piss me off.

Well, every time I worked on this car it was day time. One evening, late dusk almost dark, I started it up in my driveway with the hood open, and that's when I found the culprit. Every time the fans would kick on I'd see a slight glow from the radiator support. The stupid ground wasn't making a good contact. In other words, my car wasn't really hot, but the bad ground was causing the gauge to read erratic.

Fixed the ground and my problem was solved.

I'm not saying this is your problem, but sometimes we forget about the obvious. I could have saved myself $250 and hours of headaches had I thought about this before.
 
#21 ·
Amen to that, bad ground can cause all kinds of problems.
 
#22 ·
Now thats some usefull info-mation!! Thanks EZ. It's funny how sometimes it works out that way! I once changed a head gasket twice in 1 month!!!! Only to find out that after the second time it still leaked oil. I spent money on all those gaskets and spent an entire day installing it AGAIN. When the leak was actualy the oil preasure sending unit. It cost 16$ and took less than 20 min to install!!!!
 
#23 ·
I just got around to fixing the problem with the temp gauge and the problem was the thermostat. When I disassembled the tstat housing, the tstat was in pieces. I installed a new one and all is well for now. Thanks for the good info!
 
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