Temp needle just barely above half way???

[uno]

Ok, when driving normal or hard either one doesn't matter, after my engine warms up, my temp hand sits about a needle's width above half way on the temp gauge. And it will stay there for all day long if I drive that long. It never goes up past that, but never goes down either. It doesn't change while i'm idleing any different than if i'm going 65mpg....What could it be? I have a new water pump and a new radiator cap. no coolant leaks, and definately no performance changes. The thermostat was changed about 6 months ago also. Could it be a cruddy thermostat? not opening until late? any advice would be helpful. I've searched for about a week and haven't found anything close to what i'm experiencing.

[[s3]]

I think its working fine, but if you wanna tinker with it

drain the coolant in your car, run it for 10 mins see if it goes up

*do this at your own risk*

[uno]

i was thinking maybe the temp sending unit? this sound like an idea? or you think i shouldn't worry about it

[uno]

and btw, i won't be trying that no coolant thing either

[[s3]]

If the needle moves, then theres no problems with it.

My temp needle used to jump up and down like crazy, until I used a hammer and tapped the temp sensor in place. Connecition was loose.

[uno]

thanks i'll check the connection

[trpower7]

Are.......you.......kidding me. No coolant in a car will grenade it within 20 seconds. Hitting anything with a hammer is dumb. Just check the connection. The stock temp gauge has three settings, off, normal, and new headgasket. Right above the middle tick mark is normal.

[IvoryJ30t]

trust me, a car will last much longer than 20 seconds without coolant.

[uno]

s3's just replying that stuff because he's that way, i know he's not serious....nor would i do any of that stuff, but does anyone have any other ideas on my situation?

[IvoryJ30t]

if you have a multimeter and an fsm, other than that i dont know what to tell you.

[MikeMurphy]

Wow, nobody tells the guy that ITS NORMAL!?

your needle isnt supposed to move once it has warmed up. If your idling, after awhile your thermostat will detect that its cooling down and allow less coolant to flow through the radiator. Thus, keeping the engine warm. When its too warm, it lets more coolant go through the radiator, for the opposite result. Your thermostat regulates your engines temp. Simple as that.

geez guys

[IvoryJ30t]

theres nothing wrong with the car. its not like we didnt tell him how to fix it correctly and it blew up. there will be absolutely no consequences from him *thinking* he has a problem when theres nothing wrong.

fine, if it'll make you happy "THERES NOTHING WRONG WITH YOUR CAR, THATS THE WAY IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE!!!"

[MikeMurphy]

there will be absolutely no consequences from him *thinking* he has a problem when theres nothing wrong.

Stress, and maybe some garage will cheat him out of some money. And yes, he could very well screw things up trying to "fix" it himself. I just dont think its appropriate to treat others like that. He posted in the technical section, lets treat it as such.

[IvoryJ30t]

all i said was get a multimeter and an fsm. then he would know for sure. i didnt tell him to do anything stupid.

[[s3]]

s3's just replying that stuff because he's that way, i know he's not serious....nor would i do any of that stuff, but does anyone have any other ideas on my situation?

Yea I was just fuxing around with ya, like I said nothing's wrong with your temp gauge.

[BadMojo]

Wow, nobody tells the guy that ITS NORMAL!?

Trpower7 explained it. As long as the water temp is within an acceptable range, the stock gauge is going to tell you only that much info. If your car is ready to puke up some vital fluids, the gauge will (hopefully) let you know in time to pull over and shut the damn car off!

It's an "idiot light" just like the OE oil pressure light. If you really want to monitor your water temp, there are plenty of real gauges to monitor temp, oil pressure, etc.

Anyway, Uno, as long as your car isn't showing any signs of overheating, don't worry about the gauge. It sounds like it's functioning exactly as designed.

Edit: Have a beer, go to your happy place, relax. Enjoy your car.

[rico05]

Awww hwck. Just for fun I think I'll chime in and say that it is just fine. Mine does the same thing.

[CanadianCoch]

did you try a lower temp thermostat? Try that and see if it keeps it lower. And some people go through several thermostats before they work

The most important thing is how you bleed it.

Dr.

[uno]

sweet , thanks guys for the help......i may try a lower thermo once spring hits.....never heard that was normal on a 240, that's why i asked.....on my camaro and with the sbc, over half way isn't too sweet....but thanks for the input...i appreciate it....relieves my mind alot...