testing water temp gauge....

[sc2dave]

My gauge never goes past the half mark,no matter what. how can i make it go all the way up,as in disconnecting the sensor wire and doing something so as to make it think it's overheating? 95 5sfe auto

[flyeri]

Mine never gets to half scale. What are you trying to accomplish by having it indicating hot?

[sc2dave]

i want to see if the gauge can physically go all the way up, to determine if it indeed does work properly

[96paseo]

You can remove the connector and ground it to the engine block. Insert a wire into the connector and ground it, then check the gauge. It should go all the way up. Do this quickly so you don't hurt the gauge. If the gauge works normally, replace your sending unit. I suppose you have changed your t-stat and your heat works?

[sc2dave]

It has plenty of heat and the gauge seems to go to the half mark pretty quick. Nope, haven't changed t-stat

[Creeps228]

same here, i have a coolant leak somewhere without the reservoir tank and my needle never goes past the half way mark i dont know why but im not complaining. I check my radiator frequently and there is always coolant there and the oil isn't milky and neither is the trans oil, but testing the connector should be a good way to check if its working though

[96CamrySport]

ummm....gauge doesn't move between 190-230 degrees F. That's designed in. 190 is the thermostat's set point, 230 is when the fan turns on. Only time I've ever seen it go any higher was after an auto-x, 2 minutes of balls to the wall driving and I only broke 60 once (small track). Ground it to verify the gauge range, then leave it alone - it's working normally.

[flyeri]

What 96 said. Just go with what is normal on your car and pay attention to any abnormal changes. Kinda like running the tank to empty to see if the gas guage will go all the way to "E."

[toysarefun]

Pull the sensor (to easy), and immerse it in boiling water. Then you'll know where 212 is! Something like a soldering iron or blow torch would push the gauge up further. While you have the sensor off, test it with an ohmmeter to see if it's within OEM spec if you want. Oh, btw, it sounds like your cooling system is working perfectly and the gauge is right on.