Technical Coolant temp sensor problem

[ElkyElky]

On a daily basis now, I'm getting a warning message about my coolant temp sensor and the temp needle stops working. Turning the car off and back on usually fixes it but it's not long before the warning re-appears.

Is there anything I can check/do to try cure this problem? Cash is a little tight at the moment and I'm trying to avoid a visit to the garage. Would be great if someone could also post some pictures of what it looks like and where it's located.

Also, could it cause any problems with the car if it's left as is for the moment? The car won't blow up or cause the dash board to explode in my face?

Many thanks

 

[Deckchair5]

What engine is it?


1.6 eng temp sensor and connector are all green here
First step I would do is pull off the engine temp sensor connector and spray the contact points there with electrical contact cleaner (nothing else!)
Let it dry and retry. Often the contact points become tarnished and gives high resistance

If the eng temp sensor isn't working properly then it can cause a lot of problems from poor starting to poor economy and even engine overheating. It's a very vital component but thankfully they're very cheap and easy to change

 

[ElkyElky]

It's a 1.2.

I've actually noticed it struggle to start up first thing in the morning but I put that down to the cold, starting up seems to take a few seconds longer each morning.

 

[Deckchair5]

Ok your sensor will be in almost the same place. Find your thermostat housing and it'll usually be close by

If you're handy with a multimeter then you can check the sensor's resistance at differing eng temps. It should follow this chart of temp v resistance

But usually it's simply a poor contact and often just moving the connector off and back on again can cure it

 

[ElkyElky]

Ok your sensor will be in almost the same place. Find your thermostat housing and it'll usually be close by

If you're handy with a multimeter then you can check the sensor's resistance at differing eng temps. It should follow this chart of temp v resistance
View attachment 84393
But usually it's simply a poor contact and often just moving the connector off and back on again can cure it

Thanks. I'll go pop out and look for that green connector, I have some electrical cleaner in the boot so I'll give that a try first. I just hope it works, this couldn't have came at a worse time. :bang:

 

[ElkyElky]

Hi again.

Looked around for the green connector but couldn't see it anywhere. I found a black connector which looks pretty much like the same sort of size as your image, clipped at the right side of the engine. Although I had a good look around and couldn't see anything remotely green.

The black connector has black plastic tubing around the wires at both sides, exactly like your image, could this be it? I'm getting the error message permanently now.

 

[Deckchair5]

Sorry if I confused you. I posted a picture of a 1.6 and said
"1.6 eng temp sensor and connector are all green here"
but it could be any colour on your car. It will just have two wires going into the connector and the connector is square where it enters the sensor


The sensor is just around the back of the thermostat housing, quite awkward to get access to it. You might want to disconnect the inlet pipe at one end to make it easier