temp gauge

[chimalsu]

just got 4l chim 1996 temp gauge seems eratic takes a while to warm up reaches 90 then drops like a stone back to 50 then moves to around 70 and back to 50 up to 90 in traffic bu t mostly hovers around 50.is this normal

[jamesuk28]

gauges are very unreliable, so don't worry to much. Poss electrical problem or maybe temp sensor, Wait for someone that knows what they are talking about first, to post.

[chimalsu]

cheers for reply its taking a little time to get into the car i love it but i have an old 944s im used to things fitting and working 100%and i find the chim a little dissconcerting

[jamesuk28]

They all do that..... Welcome to club TVR. Don't expect german build quality mate, coz u ain't goin get it. This is british and therefore a pile of poo!! but a very quick pile of poo, that will put more smiles on your face than a cheap hooker.

[chimalsu]

youre right i love the beef and the music just got to get used to the niggles the first thing i learnt was not to wash with hose pipe and dont drive in rain still mopping out and have misted rear lenses but once lid is down you forget all that

[RAW-SEWedge]

The thermostat may be sticking a bit. It's normal for the temp to rise initially till the stat opens, then the temp should drop off. I'd expect it to settle at 80-90 when moving.

Just keep an eye on it and don't worry too much about it. May be worth replacing the thermostat if it runs as low as 50 all the time because it may be sticking open too.

[ropey]

Chimalsu, I had this when I first bought my Chim a year ago. It was the sender unit in the actual engine that was knackered. It's very rare for the gauge to be duff - or so David Batty told me.

New sender units are about £35.

Suggest you get it done before summer kicks in proper. I didn't, and I was totally paranoid the whole time - not knowing what was going on, permanently listening out for the fans kicking in.

Didn't do my bloody pressure any good at all!!

Ropey

[chimalsu]

thanks for advice chaps sender and thermstat were my first choice but didnt want to throw money about if this was usual behavior temp doesnt go over 90 nd drops to 70 but then seems very eratic dropping to 50 then up to 90 back to 50 then 70 then 90 then 50 in any sequance but never over 90 i think il try the stat first and take it from there once again cheers for advice

[chimburt]

air in the system will do that for you.
best peice of advice i can give is don't buy anything until you've bled it, and buy a new expansion bottle cap ( 'bout 3 quid from german, swedish and french, as used on mk2 golfs )