thermostat problems

Dropped89 · 02-01-2004, 04:25 AM

ok so its really cold tonight and i never really paid much attention to my temp gauge but you know it never warmes up goes a 1/4 of the way and never warms up and im thinking wtf , also i have bairly any heat. I only get heat and a temperature reading when i dog the crap out of the car. I know the thermostat has to be broken because it is not allowing the engine coolant to run its cycle giving me cold air while stopped and idle. now sinse the thermostat is reading the engine to be cold most of the time the computer will cause the fuel pump to pump more gas than needed into a warm engine, this could foul the plugs or give hesitation and a bad idle. Ive pretty much narrowed it down to that , i will try to replace it tomorrow. just another thing to add to a list of crap that can cause your engine to fail its potential performance.

FastNX · 02-01-2004, 10:43 AM

I don't think you know what a thermostat is or what it does. It does not "read" anything. It is a mechanical valve that opens and closes at a certain temp. When the thermostat is closed, the coolant circulates within the engine and bypasses the rad. When it reaches a certain temperature, the thermostat will open and the coolant will flow through the rad. A faulty thermostat will open too early, or stick open at all times. This will cause overcooling as you described.

Also the cold start function will not make the fuel pump pump extra fuel, it will tell the injectors to pulse for longer, allowing more fuel in. The fuel pump is on all the time. whatever is not sprayed through the injectors is sent back to the fuel tank and pumped again until it is finally used.

Bryan Smith · 02-01-2004, 10:52 AM

The only problem I'm having is taking too long to warm up, and heater never really blows hot unless I sit and idle. I'm going to replace the thermostat today and hopefully that'll be the fix.

Dropped89 · 02-01-2004, 11:08 AM

i knew what a thermostat did and does thnks.

It was late i wasnt saying the right things, i know that hte thermostat opens and closes to allow coolant through the engine.

i might not have said it specifically but i did know how those pieces of the car worked lol.

Im guessing this could be a problem. and the injectors pulsating longer to allow more fuel in, that would cause a bad air/fuel mixture right? this would cause a bad running condition unless i really punched it right?

maybe i can pick one up today.

thanks all the same.

RockyB · 02-01-2004, 03:54 PM

I have the same problem, I originally bought a autozone thermostat because I wasn't getting addiquet(sp?) heat, thinking that might help. Also, my car is running rich at idle even after warmup. So, I figured the ecu is getting a cold signal from the temp sesor. I then had to dish out little over $100 for a OEM thermostat, rad cap, and temp sensor. That help a bit with the heat and running rich @ idle. I have bleed the coolant system 3 time hoping I just had air, but if the coolant had air pockets my temp gauge will be reading high at normal op temps. Basically, I just can't get normal heat temp from the heater. The only time I can get ok heat is when I start the car and leave it running for 30-45 minutes, when I jump in it its warm. But the minute I start driving the heat like disappears and I get cold/warm air. Any help is apprieciated.
Rocky

Erikbronx · 02-01-2004, 04:25 PM

I have the same problem, however I just changed the thermostat, and hope I just need to bleed the system thoroughly.

Dropped89 · 02-01-2004, 08:53 PM

i havnt put mine in yet but it better help i mena the car runs awsome cold then after driving it for about 10 mins it starts to give me crap