Hey all....

Noticed a few weeks ago that my '99 TL's temp gauge reading was very cold (reads about 1/4 way up from dead Cold, and was normally one bar below 1/2 way). I also noticed the car was taking quite a while to warm up -- meaning, the gauge would read dead cold for the first ~10 minutes of driving.

A few days ago, I noticed the gauge no longer even read as warm as 1/4 way up the gauge -- it only warmed to read two or three "bars" (positions) from Cold. It does not warm up any more than that.

Just changed my thermostat thinking that would solve the problem, and the car does seem to be warming up faster than before. However, the temp gauge needle still does not rise about 3 positions above Cold. So, the car is still not running at optimum/normal temps.

Thoughts? What other probs/parts can I consider?

 

at least its not overheating

 

Sounds like the thermostat is bad. Fortunatley it sounds like our cars have one of the better ones that fail in the open position and not closed.

 

Yeah, I just changed the thermostat today, thinking that was the problem too. No luck.

I know it's long, but read my original post -- all the info is there.

 

Don't think it's okay for the engine to not get to operating temp, I paid $1000+ to have most every seal in a non-TL car replaced because I let it run cold too long with a defective thermostat. Seals get "set" at operating temp, they eventually leak if they don't get warm enough.

If the car feels like it's getting to temp but the gage isn't reading right then it might be the thermocouple (the sensor). Sounds like the gage is functioning and reading the signal being sent. Stay after this problem!

 

^ Thanks for the info and sharing of your experience. I'm actually going to test the Coolant Gauge Temperature Sending Unit later on today to see if that's the problem. I'll update later.

And yes, the gauge needle does seem to function, as it rises from below Cold to 3-4 positions above Cold.....it just never reads warmer than that.

 

Tested the resistance of the Coolant Gauge Temp Sending Unit, and it does not appear to be functioning correctly/at all.

Will replace that sensor next week and see if that solves the problem. I am very confident this will do the trick.

 

thermostats are designed to stay open when they fail. should be a less then $10 part and simple swap.

 

Well, I replaced the Sending Unit, and that did the trick! Was a very simple job too -- just a little tough loosening the old one due to corrosion.

The gauge now responds to temp changes almost immediately and is finally back to resting at normal temp readings (one bar/position below the half-way point on the gauge).

This'll be a good thread for the archives, since none of my searching led to anyone ever even mentioning the Sending Unit, but lots of people having probs with the thermostat. Of course, my first thought was the change the thermostat, which didn't end up solving the prob. So if you ever experience similar probs -- test the Coolant Gauge Temperature Sending Unit for any abnormal readings.

 

Hummm how did i miss this thread. Glad you got it fixed.

 

How much is the sending unit? The thermostat is a pretty cheap fix, so it's not a bad place to start.

 

The sending unit was $41 CAD

 

 

I have the same problem with the temperature gauge. Can some one post the part # for the Sending unit? btw, I have 03 TL-S

 

Hello all,

I know this reply is really late post but I recently ran into this issue and could not find any information on it. On most Acura there is a temp gauge sensor located close to the thermostat. You will notice it because it only has one wire, usually coated in black plastic, going to it(near the thermostat housing). Try replacing this sensor and see if this corrects the issue. The part generally runs around $17-$18. This corrected my issue with my gauge and turned off the check engine light. I just wanted to include this for anyone that ran into the same issue that I did and could not find a lot of information about it.