HELP Temp Guage going crazy

[airlordz]

Hi,
recently my temp guage has been getting into the red zone when i am i a traffic hold up and when i start moving it cools down again. Any ideas. Its not like its in there constantly its only when i idling in traffic for mins. My EGO sensor is faulty so i was also wondering whether it has anything to do with it.

 

[Big Daddy]

I do not know about the "EGO" sensor, but have you checked your electric fan(s) to make sure they/it is operational? They have a thermal switch that should switch them on when your cars tempature reaches a certain temp.

 

[Tigas Bud]

Possible reasons that could cause this;
Bad thermostat, more likely if overheating always.
Airlock in the cooling system
Low on coolant or bad mixture
Fan's viscous coupling is not working, does your main fan spin?
Does your car have ac and an auxiliary electric fan? If it doesn't come on then this would be the problem sitting still with the AC on and the aux fan doesn't operate.
Something blocking part of your radiator from getting air at a standstill.

From what I read on EGO (Exhaust Gas Oxygen) sensor I don't believe it would have anything to do with overheating. More to do with air to fuel mixture ratio.

 

[epj3]

This happened on our van when the intake gasket went to shit and leaked coolant -- which means the coolant was low.

Check your coolant level when the engine is cold, it might be low.

 

[airlordz]

Possible reasons that could cause this;
Bad thermostat, more likely if overheating always.
Airlock in the cooling system
Low on coolant or bad mixture
Fan's viscous coupling is not working, does your main fan spin?
Does your car have ac and an auxiliary electric fan? If it doesn't come on then this would be the problem sitting still with the AC on and the aux fan doesn't operate.
Something blocking part of your radiator from getting air at a standstill.

From what I read on EGO (Exhaust Gas Oxygen) sensor I don't believe it would have anything to do with overheating. More to do with air to fuel mixture ratio.

I dont think is the fan cos it turns i think its the thermostat cos the temp guage goes up and down irregularly. When i am driving it can go either up or down mostly down but when i stop or i am idling it goes up. I dont use the AC. But i will have it checked tomorrow

 

[frolf]

yeah, check coolant level when engine is COLD. my friend drove his car for about a minute two days ago, stoppe,d after like 4 minutes opened teh coolant thing and hot coolant shit exploded all over his arm.

 

[BigEarl325is]

Wow, do NOT let this happen again. Overheating is bad news. First check the TWO fuses for your electric fan (we're assuming you have an E36) Also check the connector on the passenger side of the radiator to make sure it's plugged in (the three prong plug, not the two, some lazy mechanics sometimes put plugs in the wrong spots and two prong plug can fit in there, it happened to me) But most of all, E36s are known for their water pumps to go bad. If this is the case get it replaced IMMEDIATELY. www.thepartsbin.com sells a water pump with a METAL impeller for like 50 bucks. Make sure you get the metal impeller if you buy it because the plastic one brakes very early.

 

[airlordz]

Wow, do NOT let this happen again. Overheating is bad news. First check the TWO fuses for your electric fan (we're assuming you have an E36) Also check the connector on the passenger side of the radiator to make sure it's plugged in (the three prong plug, not the two, some lazy mechanics sometimes put plugs in the wrong spots and two prong plug can fit in there, it happened to me) But most of all, E36s are known for their water pumps to go bad. If this is the case get it replaced IMMEDIATELY. www.thepartsbin.com sells a water pump with a METAL impeller for like 50 bucks. Make sure you get the metal impeller if you buy it because the plastic one brakes very early.

BigEarl i dont think its my pump cos the heating occurs randomly most times when i have stopped in traffic when i am driving it stops so i think its my fan belt or something cos i turned my fan non this morning and it wasnt blowing any air. Just one of thr concerns. Sometimes when i am driving the temp guage goes up too

 

[airlordz]

HEY Guys,
It was my clutch fan that was acting up. So its being fixed today. Will do the EGO sensor tomorrow.
Thanks a lot for all the ideas