Outside Temperature Sensor faulty? - - - Location?

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old 09-07-2008, 03:18 AM
  #1  
Instructor
Thread Starter
iTrader: (1)
 
x rsx 2 env x's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Age: 37
Posts: 179
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Outside Temperature Sensor faulty? - - - Location?

sometimes i will start my car it will read the temp (although it seems to be off lately) anyways sometimes i start the car and all i get is a "OUTSIDE TEMP - - -" im guessing its a faulty sensor my TL has been a electrical problem since ive got it pretty much only at 37k =[ anyway is it worth it to replace anyone know where it is
Old 09-07-2008, 10:15 PM
  #2  
6th Gear
 
Snowball's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Montreal
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
According to the user manual, the sensor is in the front bumper.
Old 09-07-2008, 11:21 PM
  #3  
Senior Moderator
 
csmeance's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Space Coast, FL
Posts: 20,834
Received 1,989 Likes on 1,412 Posts
its not faulty. Its designed to do that, the car has to be moving faster than 2MPH, but less than 12 MPH and then it will take a reading, also the car has to be up to operating temps. Also if the temp is over 115, it will read ---
Old 09-08-2008, 01:18 AM
  #4  
Instructor
Thread Starter
iTrader: (1)
 
x rsx 2 env x's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Age: 37
Posts: 179
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
so how rare is this then??? ive been driving for awhile before and it turns on.. and alot of the time i never move and it has a reading.. i can turn the key to the on position and get reading so i dont think the moving has anything to do with it
Old 09-08-2008, 02:10 AM
  #5  
Registered but harmless
 
Will Y.'s Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Age: 59
Posts: 14,842
Received 1,102 Likes on 763 Posts
My TL always has a temp, as soon as the car starts up-- it may not be an accurate reading, though, until it has been driven for a little. This morning, it read 79*F at start up (front end was in the sun), then stabilized to a more accurate 72* after about two miles of driving.

The "---" indicates a problem, as does the "117*F" if it really isn't that hot.

I believe the sensor is under the bumper, towards the right front tire- the owner's manual had a diagram pointing it out, IIRC. It's a warranty repair.
Old 09-08-2008, 02:38 AM
  #6  
Driven to Perfection
 
mattster's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Provo, UT
Age: 43
Posts: 323
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Is 115 really the upper limit? It gets quite a bit hotter in many areas on occasion.
Old 09-08-2008, 11:56 AM
  #7  
1st Gear
 
SamO2's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Atlanta, GA
Age: 56
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Well, along these lines, I have a slightly different problem.

I started up my '05 non-navi Friday night to find that all of my preset radio stations were gone, no Bluetooth connectivity indication on the radio display, and no temperature reading. Bluetooth was in fact connected and could be seen in the MFD and worked fine for calls. I turned the car off and restarted but same problem. On Saturday morning, everyhting was back to normal, including all of my presets. Seems like some kind of software initialization bug to me. Anybody else seen this???
Old 09-08-2008, 12:01 PM
  #8  
Keep Right Except to Pass
 
1995hoo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Kingstowne, VA
Age: 50
Posts: 2,403
Received 44 Likes on 35 Posts
Originally Posted by Will Y.
My TL always has a temp, as soon as the car starts up-- it may not be an accurate reading, though, until it has been driven for a little. This morning, it read 79*F at start up (front end was in the sun), then stabilized to a more accurate 72* after about two miles of driving.

The "---" indicates a problem, as does the "117*F" if it really isn't that hot.

I believe the sensor is under the bumper, towards the right front tire- the owner's manual had a diagram pointing it out, IIRC. It's a warranty repair.
Regarding 117ºF, bear in mind that if the car has been parked in particularly strong sun the sensor may give a much higher reading than is accurate until it cools down a bit, especially if you have NBP. As long as the reading returns to a more normal one within the first few minutes of driving, there is little reason to be concerned.
Old 09-08-2008, 10:07 PM
  #9  
Instructor
Thread Starter
iTrader: (1)
 
x rsx 2 env x's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Age: 37
Posts: 179
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
point is it shouldnt read 117.. either way. I read one manual it says the cut off is 115 other said 113
Old 09-09-2008, 08:02 AM
  #10  
Keep Right Except to Pass
 
1995hoo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Kingstowne, VA
Age: 50
Posts: 2,403
Received 44 Likes on 35 Posts
Originally Posted by x rsx 2 env x
point is it shouldnt read 117.. either way. I read one manual it says the cut off is 115 other said 113
Perhaps more recent model years have a higher cutoff. I believe my '04 cuts off at 111ºF.
Old 09-09-2008, 11:45 AM
  #11  
Registered but harmless
 
Will Y.'s Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Age: 59
Posts: 14,842
Received 1,102 Likes on 763 Posts
Originally Posted by x rsx 2 env x
point is it shouldnt read 117.. either way. I read one manual it says the cut off is 115 other said 113
I don't know how accurate the temp sensor/readout is- I wouldn't worry if it reads "117*F" and the actual temp is 112*F. I doubt there is an actual limiter on the temp sensor, so there may be some variation on when the sensor stops reading.
Whether it's 111* or 120*F, it's already way too hot for me to care about the difference.

However, if it's 60*F or 80*F outside and your temp sensor is reading "117*F" when the TL's front end is not stuck in an oven or baking on blacktop, the temp sensor may be bad.
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
acuratl26
2G TL (1999-2003)
24
04-23-2020 07:30 PM
rp_guy
Member Cars for Sale
9
07-16-2017 07:33 AM
RobbDizzle
2G RL Tires, Wheels & Suspension
5
10-15-2015 11:16 AM
hrothgar02
2G RDX (2013-2018)
1
09-28-2015 11:08 AM



Quick Reply: Outside Temperature Sensor faulty? - - - Location?



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 09:55 PM.