Did my thermostat stick?
12-01-2009, 07:29 PM
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Did my thermostat stick? Driving home from the park and ride, its about 45-50 degrees outside. Well, sitting in a nice bit of traffic, patiently waiting to get home. Like I always do, I check my guages frequently, everything good. Inch forward as people always do. Look down, and see my temp guage jump from just before 210 to the first line past 210, I instantly thought "WTF?!" So I watched it a few more seconds and it kept creeping higher, I quickly turned the heater on full blast, and had my hand on the key ready to kill the engine. Then in 2-3 movements, went back to 210 and stayed there the rest of the way home.
I had never experienced something like this, so it was my first assumption. I had a coolant flush 13 months ago, so coolant should still be just fine.
Any other thoughts? Is it difficult to replace the thermostat?
I had never experienced something like this, so it was my first assumption. I had a coolant flush 13 months ago, so coolant should still be just fine.
Any other thoughts? Is it difficult to replace the thermostat?
12-01-2009, 07:42 PM
#4
Any time you temp guage "jumps" up and down, its almost certainly a failing coolant temp sensor.
If your t-stat was stuck closed your temp guage would not stop until it went into the red once it started to move. Nothing your heater is gonna do to stop it once that snowball starts rolling.
Also, when you are overheating the temp needle moves slowly and steadily, it sweeps, they don't jump up and down quickly.
.
If your t-stat was stuck closed your temp guage would not stop until it went into the red once it started to move. Nothing your heater is gonna do to stop it once that snowball starts rolling.
Also, when you are overheating the temp needle moves slowly and steadily, it sweeps, they don't jump up and down quickly.
.
12-01-2009, 07:43 PM
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the internal of the thermastat is a type of elastic compound that expands when it reaches a certain temprature, and when a thermostat gets old enough that elastic compound can find its way out and then the thermostat wont open up or it would partially open up. so in your case its maybe not opening up all the way, it took a higher temp for it to open. so yes your assumption is correct.
12-01-2009, 07:45 PM
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12-01-2009, 07:56 PM
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Just looked at autozone the 'oem' replacement is 19.99 and the 160 thermo 29.99. So not to bad at all. Coolant temp sensors don't seem to be to expensive either. Since I have an '01, is mine located on the front of the drivers side head?
12-01-2009, 08:03 PM
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yea thats a good deal. also buy the cheaper value craft product from autozone, and you will be surprised to open the box and find out its a oem motorad thermostat the same one that comes with the car and its made in Germany
