Hi, the car is a 96 Accord LX 4 cylinder. The temp gauge fluctuates with driving conditions. When on highway, or moving at medium to high speeds, the gauge shows a normal reading. However, in slow and stop/go traffic conditions, the temp gauge goes up to high levels. Thinking it may be a stuck thermostat. Anyone have thoughts on this, and where the thermostat might be if it is the problem? Thanx in advance.

 

make sure both of your fans are working when engine is at operating temp ..
it could be a bad t-stat, feel both radiator hoses , if the lower feels cool or barely warm . i would replace the t-stat, chk radiator cap as well, chk for leaks,

if fan ( s) not working , chk fuses,if ok, hit the back side of the motor and see if fan come on, if so, u got a bad motor, if not, make sure u got power and ground at motor,,if not,,, possible fuse, relay wiring... if u got power ,, at the t-stat housing there is a green plud, 2 wires in it , unplug it and jump the 2 wires together if fans come on u got a bad fan switch ,,,

just do a quick thing first, put a/c on ,, both fans should come on if they do, fuses, relays, motors, are all ok ...

 

Thank you for your help. I will try them.

 

I got a simiar case my temp gauge reads hot++ & goes way beyond range as soon as the car warms up fans, hoses, thermosat radiator and everything is fine, and motor stays cool!!!

Im thinking the temp gauge on the cluster is grounded out or something??? but have no real idea of what the hell is going on.

Has this happened to anybody before?? ???

Any suggestions PLZ!!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by crucial-vtec &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I got a simiar case my temp gauge reads hot++ & goes way beyond range as soon as the car warms up fans, hoses, thermosat radiator and everything is fine, and motor stays cool!!!

Im thinking the temp gauge on the cluster is grounded out or something??? but have no real idea of what the hell is going on.

Has this happened to anybody before?? ???

Any suggestions PLZ!!</TD></TR></TABLE>

the temp. guage is pretty reliable, it's more likely that your thermostat or fan craps out than the guage.


check your coolant level, it's like the step before the first step

first thing first, it's like 99percent of the time your fan's fuse blew.
check and see if both fan will kick in.

second thing to check is the themostat, how you check it? you really can't just change a new one from honda, a discount brand stat will only cause more harm than good. OE stat are like 15 buck, autozone crap is around 10-12.

still can't get it to stay at middle? might want to do a bleed check and see if there's any bubble in the system, your accord have a bleed valve by the head. air in the system will cause jumping needle

if the problem still exist, check the coolant, open the cap when the car is cold so you don't set your baby face on fire. see if you see oily milky oil in your coolant, if so, it's a sign of blew headgasket, the oily film in the coolant is motor oil.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by iam7head &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

the temp. guage is pretty reliable, it's more likely that your thermostat or fan craps out than the guage.


check your coolant level, it's like the step before the first step

first thing first, it's like 99percent of the time your fan's fuse blew.
check and see if both fan will kick in.

second thing to check is the themostat, how you check it? you really can't just change a new one from honda, a discount brand stat will only cause more harm than good. OE stat are like 15 buck, autozone crap is around 10-12.

still can't get it to stay at middle? might want to do a bleed check and see if there's any bubble in the system, your accord have a bleed valve by the head. air in the system will cause jumping needle

if the problem still exist, check the coolant, open the cap when the car is cold so you don't set your baby face on fire. see if you see oily milky oil in your coolant, if so, it's a sign of blew headgasket, the oily film in the coolant is motor oil.

</TD></TR></TABLE>

I know my fans are working because when i turn my ac on both fans kick in, also the coolant system was flushed and refilled less than 10k miles ago (new thermosat and hoses) coolant level is slightly over full, i will look under the cap 2morrow though

 

Check to make sure your fan is coming on when the engine gets hot, not just when the a/c is on. Could be a bad fan switch or temp sensor.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by amckee &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Check to make sure your fan is coming on when the engine gets hot, not just when the a/c is on. Could be a bad fan switch or temp sensor.</TD></TR></TABLE>

fan switch and sensors are all working properly too, I rev the car the other day till they came on...

As fot the temp sensor i replaced that and still same problem.

I took the car to a mechanic the other day and he told me he could diagnose the car till he found the prob, but this would be $$$ hourly , he told me to save my money.... so i laughed at him and left.

 

If you fans are working properly it is your thermostat. Just flush out the system using distilled water, install a new thermostat and fill with honda antifreeze. Your car will thank you. I do this about every three years.

 

Just replace the themostat. Cheap, easy and gives you piece of mind if it isn't the problem. I would think that would be the problem though. Even if it is relitively new, they sometimes fail quickly for no reason. Seen it happen before. You can't really go wrong with a $10 part. Even if it doesn't fix the problem, atleast you know to look elsewhere.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 3rd Degree &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Just replace the themostat. Cheap, easy and gives you piece of mind if it isn't the problem. I would think that would be the problem though. Even if it is relitively new, they sometimes fail quickly for no reason. Seen it happen before. You can't really go wrong with a $10 part. Even if it doesn't fix the problem, atleast you know to look elsewhere.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I guess im off to autozone for a new thermosat.... thou i dought my temp gauge will read normally like before

Wondering if my temp gauge is shorted out, would it go up till it cant no more???

Because like i said before.... i start the car and after 1min when car warms up, needle jus goes straight up

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by crucial-vtec &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I guess im off to autozone for a new thermosat.... thou i dought my temp gauge will read normally like before

Wondering if my temp gauge is shorted out, would it go up till it cant no more???

Because like i said before.... i start the car and after 1min when car warms up, needle jus goes straight up </TD></TR></TABLE>

if gauge shoots up to H real fast ,u could have a bad sending unit or a bad temp gauge ,,

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by deserthonda &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

if gauge shoots up to H real fast ,u could have a bad sending unit or a bad temp gauge ,,</TD></TR></TABLE>

srry for newb question but what and were is sending unit??? any diagnostic tips?????
thanx

 

Just sounds like your fans are not working