Hi Forum!

We have an 02 stratus that for whatever reason the temp does not seem to be rising. We had an hour trip yesterday and the gauge never moved and the heater was blowing luke warm air. I am looking for a few suggestions as to what would cause this issue. The heater will work intermittently. Example: today while driving around the owner was sitting in a parking lot drinking coffee in the car and after turning the heater on and off a few times it did finally start to warm up some.

I know an exact diagnostic across the intertubez is likely impossible. i just need a few suggestions as to where to look so I can start troubleshooting the problem.

Thanks in advance!

 

The thermostat maybe stuck open, try replacing the t-stat first.

 

Thanks Master Tech! I was suspecting a thermostat type issue. I found a replacement at autozone between 10 and 17 dollars. This is the 2.4 DOHC so from what I have found it appears the thermostat is located at the top of the engine vs. bottom on the 6cyl.

We will give that a shot and see what happens!

 

Let me know if this fixes it. My car takes a long time for the temp gauge to move and the heater hardly ever works.

 

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to give an update. Fixed the issue. Was indeed the a failed thermostat. Easy fix on the 2.4L DOHC. Here are a couple pics.

This is what a thermostat normally looks like. Just for a reference in case anyone is unfamiliar with them.





Here is the one I removed from this car:






Decent difference aye?!

Lol. Anyway, after replacing the thermostat everything is right and she heats again.

I figured this was the problem but I appreciate the advice in re-affirming my suspicions!

Thanks