Hey guys i have a 90 DA and when its cold out my temp gauge will go to the off position. I put an EG half rad in it because my old rad was junk. i was just wondering if this is bad. I feel like the motor needs to be somewhat warm and i sometimes worry it could be running too cold.. the needle is slowly moving, not jumping or flickering. Please let me know what you think. Thanks in advance.

 

it's probably the gauge. try replacing the sending unit.

 

I can almost guarantee its not the gauge functioning improperly. it fluctuates according to how i drive. for example if i let the car warm up then just drift in neutral down a hill the it really cools the engine and the gauge goes all the way down.
I let my car warm up before i do any real driving so when the gauge says the motor is cold it worries me. I am just curious to know if the engine getting so cold is bad..

 

I had this problem a few weeks ago and it was the sending unit for the gauge. In fact, it's the same exact part in my 95 GSR

Autozone Link

The gauge measures temperature by calculating electrical resistance. As the temperature rises, the metal thermistor inside expands and the resistance changes and is recorded on the gauge. These type of things don't go out completely they usually just get inaccurate.If you have an automotive thermometer that would help. I do think its most likely your gauge sending unit MAYBE the thermostat. Changing both wont cost more than $30 so might as well do it.

 

Bleed your coolant system.

 

I appreciate the advice but i am not looking for advice on fixing something that is not broken.
I am simply asking whether or not it is bad for the motor for it to cool off so much. During warm weather it does not do this, and during hot weather i need to run my fan.. I may be misunderstanding you though. Are you saying my thermostat may be opening when it does not need to, or are you telling me to fix something that is not broken lol.. I do not want to sound like a jerk, but i just want to know if it is bad for my motor or not to run so cold.

 

too cold is not good. replace the temp gauge sending unit it's like $13

 

Yes.

Constantly running with a low coolant temperature will prevent the fuel injection system from reaching closed loop operation, so it will be running way too rich. This will cause poor fuel mileage, excessive carbon build-up, abnormal idle, etc.

The system is designed with a specific operating temperature range in mind, and will not run efficiently outside of that range.

 

Well if that's your question, you could have searched google "is it bad to drive a car that's underheating." But since you posted here, I was under the assumption you wanted to fix your gauge/thermostat problem. My fault sorry.

 

both parts are cheap. if the gauge is correct, then your thermostat is bad. if the gauge is wrong, then the temp sending unit is bad and your car isn't actually overheating.

 

Okay it was just a misunderstanding on part. sorry for the confusion, i will get the sending unit and most likely a new thermostat this weekend.
Thanks for the help, and being persistent because i was not listening lol