My car heats up when im stopped or moving in very slow traffic, sometimes the needle goes all the way up. But when I start driving again the temp goes back to normal or even a few clicks below the midline within seconds of moving. any ideas????

 

has it hit the redline on the guage--does it do that all the time?
It should run 1-2 clicks below half all the time -after the normal few minutes warmup drive of course

You have a major problem if the guage is correct- stop driving until figured out

How is the level in the radiator- full when checked cold
and its resivour bottle- to the full line cold,
and inside its cap-- there is a hose attached that goes into the coolant in the res bottle

how is the radiator cap? rubber seal good or looks broken,
parts store can test it for you for free, or just go buy one and try it- under 10 bucks

Does the driver side fan run on and off as it always has?
Does it run after you shut the car off

 

How is the car running- any differant than 6 months ago? a month ago
How long has it been doing this?

any white smoke from exhaust on starting

Look at the oil dipstick- is it above the full mark suddenly, and has a brownish sludge on it?
Or in the radiator when you remove the cap- anything but the pure color of the coolant?
oil and water together in either place mean blown head gasket
but still have to find what caused that--driving with temp issues results in blown head gaskets and more--not cheap to fix~

 

Forgot to ask about the water pump. Has it ever been changed?

 

Sounds like the fans are not turning on since it cools down while driving. Air is being pushed through the radiator while moving at speed.

 

^ I had the same thought...
Check the two electric radiator fans...

 

My thoughts as well. I have the same issue and its my water pump that needs to be replaced