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Temp Gauge Needle


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Mel
New User

May 26, 2008, 4:48 PM

Post #1 of 4 (1910 views)
Temp Gauge Needle Sign In

Hi,

Just wondering if anyone can help me i own a 98 Jeep Cherokee Classic which has done about 150,000km. In the past 6 months i have spent about $1800.00 on it...replacing the battery, fan clutch, temp censors, hoses, fuel pump and water pump.

It has been driving fine but on the way to work this morning my temp gauge went up quite a fair way, not into the red and only seemed to go up when i am idling but it is strange as i have had all that stuff replaced, i also noted that the oil gauge also went up a little bit. Also the needle did not go back to 0 when i turned the car off.

Also the other strange thing this is i have my air con, radio and lights on my new battery the battery charge seems to move from the centre to left.....like i am sucking to much power. Don't know if this is another issue or could be joined in with the car overheating.

I am worried my mechanic is ripping me off and not fixing the car properly...does anyone have any suggests about what it might be ?


Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky / Moderator
Tom Greenleaf profile image

May 26, 2008, 5:53 PM

Post #2 of 4 (1903 views)
Re: Temp Gauge Needle Sign In

?? This could be caused by the belt(s) not being tight enough except the oil pressure which I don't know how that might be involved right now. Step one is to check the belt tension with all that at once going on,

T



DanD
Veteran / Moderator
DanD profile image

May 27, 2008, 4:23 AM

Post #3 of 4 (1899 views)
Re: Temp Gauge Needle Sign In

Was the engine actually on the verge of overheating or is it a gauge issue; is my first thought?
Why I ask is because of the other things you mentioned; the oil pressure and voltage gauges also doing something different, than what you think is their normal?

A couple more questions come to mind; why was the water pump & fan clutch replaced?
Was the vehicle overheating at that time; if so how hot did YOU let the engine get?
Overheating an engine may have caused internal damage that will not show up right away; not like what a leaking water pump or a fan clutch with bad/seized bearings would.
They possibly were the cause of an overheat then but now you may have to deal with the effects of the engine getting to hot.

Then you never know; it’s possible that the new fan clutch is defective and not drawing enough air through the rad while at idle, allowing the engine to become hot?
Oil viscosity changes with heat, which would change your gauge readings. As well as electrical loads; the hotter an electrical system gets the harder things have to work, lowering system voltage.

What you need to do is go back to you mechanic and tell him what you’ve told us. Let him check the previous repairs, along with all the other possibilities that might be causing this.

One last question and this isn’t solely directed at you; so don’t take offence.
Why is it that when people don’t understand, what’s happening to their vehicle; the first thing that comes to mind is.

Quote
I’m worried my mechanic is ripping me off

Could it be that something else is happening to a ten year old vehicle; it’s a piece of machinery; machinery that even in ideal conditions breakdown; where out in day too day use are we going to find ideal conditions.

Go and talk to your mechanic; don’t let suspicion get in the way of reality.

Dan.

Canadian "EH"






(This post was edited by DanD on May 27, 2008, 4:26 AM)


brbettge
User

May 31, 2008, 5:21 AM

Post #4 of 4 (1883 views)
Re: Temp Gauge Needle Sign In

Just to add my two cents worth... This sounds an awful lot like a ground issue. A ground wire that has not been tightened or has been left off and may be "dangling" and touching a metal grounding surface somewhere. It is really easy to miss one even for a seasoned mechanic. Go back to the mechanic and have him check it over again with ground issues especially.

Ground problems cause havoc in automotive systems making all sorts of electrical gremlins pop their heads out. I always did hate those little suckers!! good luck, it will most likely turn out to be an easy fix....when found! rick






 
 
 






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