If you've checked that the cooling system was fine you might just have a bad sensor. I think it's towards the front of the engine and shouldn't be difficult to change.

 

its pouring here right now... like buckets worth. so I just did a real quick look around. would something as simple as low coolant be enough to throw the gauge into a weird frenzy?

 

Yes, low coolant could cause that. I would have checked that before even posting, but I've been doing car stuff since before the internet, coming here is never my first thought.

 

Low coolant could cause issues if trapped air hit the sensor, since it could be hotter than the water.

 

oh. sorry... god of the interweb / vehicle fixing.


FORGIVE ME EVERYONE, FOR NOT CHECKING MY COOLANT BEFORE POSTING A SIMPLE QUESTION. im also sorry that it was raining about an inch an hour this morning, and I really didn't feel like getting soaked before going into the office.

to anyone else....

much like the VW's that I've been around for the better part of the last 20 years... im seeing that there are quite a few common or inherent problems with these, as there is with any vehicle. I just thought I'd post up and see what others might think.

 

Yes, vehicle repair experienced. Not a god, was raised catholic though, got over it. My comment was to make you more self-able, teach you how to fish and all that. It's not a stretch to imagine that someone with a overheating problem would check the coolant level.

Rain? You never been wet before? No umbrella? Ever swap out a broken axle shaft in the woods, in the rain, in mud, on a hill? I've been wet before.

 

oh **** fellas.... we're in the presence of a super guy. Is there room to swing on your nuts... or what is your preference of receiving accolades for your witty keyboard banter.

Wowie. You changed an axle in the mud. Would you like to adopt my sons... As you're apparently more of a man than I.

 

Seeing a pattern in why your first post was locked.... if you can't take a bit of ribbing you probably shouldn't post here for help. JeeperDon probably could use a bit more tact in his posting as well.

A more reasonable approach to why you didn't check the coolant level right away would have been the fact the vehicle was hot and popping the cap wouldn't have been wise at the time, so you posted up a question of your symptoms. JeeperDon probably needs to lay off a bit, but you seem to have a real issue with anyone questioning your abilities to troubleshoot??? Why are you getting your panties in a bunch over it? I would have simply ignored JeeperDon and moved on, he didn't think things through completely either.

Back to your issue, you either have an issue with your coolant level, air in the system, or a bad thermostat. Start with those three and report back on what you find.

 

Actually it wasn't him that got that thread locked. But yes, everyone needs to calm down a bit. I'm pretty sure Don wasn't meaning to come across as condescending, but I can see how the OP saw it as that.

 

True. I've mentioned this here before... I usually hang out in a Jeep forum where a high percentage of people swap a motor or weld up a new bumper. I'm not used to a forum where most of the constituents are generally only as car savvy as the general public. It's fine they are, it's me not used to it that caused the flare up here more than the OP. Sorry guys.