Technical Temp gauge dead/not working

[Ucof]

Morning all,

got in the car to work today and saw that my temp gauge no longer works.

The car will not overheat as it has just had its' coolant level topped up, and the car has never over heated before, however, what is most likely to be wrong with it, or where should I start looking?

It was working perfectly last night when I got home.

I doubt the cable has come out of the back of the cluster, but will check that when I'm home again.

Thanks in advance

 

[Louie Bee]

Maybe the wire has come off the temp sensor..

have a look kind of inline with the oil filler cap on the back face of the cylinder head, higher than the spark plugs, this is where the temp gage sensor lives, and there should be a wire connected.

Don't take the sensor out with a hot engine same as removing the rad cap

 

[Ucof]

Cheers,
I'll do it in the morning before I leave then.

I can confirm that it is definitely a loose connection, or the sensor is faulty - I left work after the car standing still all day and with the gauge not working when I got there, and 5 minutes after starting to drive, I noticed the needle had risen and was acting normally.

If the sensor was faulty, would it only either work or not, or could it be intermittent?

..however it stopped working at some point on the way home as it was back at nothing again.

 

[rawill]

I think it is a dodgy connection somewhere. But if it is the sensor, not expensive.

 

[Ucof]

Yeah, thats what I thought.


I tried doing it this morning but a) it was too dark and b) it was too cold.


It also worked for a bit again before stopping

 

[Chas Uno]

Have you tried earthing the temperature gauge sensor wire? Doing that should instantly make the gauge register max and can help eliminate whether it's the wiring or the sensor at fault. It might be something simple like the spade connector being loose or needing a clean.