Focus temp guage

[paul38]

Hi Guys,

Quick question, recently since the colder weather has kicked in ive noticed as the temperature guage on the car is rising to its notmal position, if i stop say at traffic lights then begin to move on the guage drops down a bit then slowly starts to rise back to where it previously had been and will continue to do this until it is at its normal position, and even then can drop back to a quarter after a short stop at lights.

Only after a really long drive will it stay constant at normal. Is this normal, ive read that mondaeos sometimes do this, i should mention it never rises above the normal mark.

Ive even noticed the same happening when driving up hill which i cant get my head around

The car seems to be driving normally and over last weekend returned 58mpg on a combined 80 miles of driving.

opps should mention its an 06 1.8tdci focus

Baffled

Paul

[Carruthers]

My fiesta tends to due this but on mine there is a slight issue with the HCV.

[DennisTheMenace]

Its because its a diesel and they run cooler than a petrol as there is no explosion it the combustion cycle and less heat generated , hence the drop in temp when ticking over , they also take an age to bloody warm up*!



Unless its a company car, warm as toast in 2 miles

[paul38]

Hi guys,

thanks for the replys.
I took the car on about a 50 mile run yesterday and even at the end of the run noticed the temp guage move from normal to about a quarter when going uphill then when back on the flat rose back to normal - is this normal? (excuse the pun)

Ive driven diesels for about 7-8 years and never noticed the temp doing this before but this is my first ford diesel so wondering is this normal.

I

[DennisTheMenace]

Could be just the thremostat opening , they are too efficient modern diesels , my vectra will hover around the 80 mark if gunning it in this weather but in the summer sits at 90 , its nothing to worry about , as for the Heater Control Valve , i doubt it unless the heater is not changing temp when you move the dial , i remember the climate control in my ghia focus was pathetic

[paul38]

Hi guys,

An update on the temperature guage saga - left the car in with main dealers yesterday whos diagnosis was that it is a problem which ford are aware of and are working on a solution for it.!!

Is it just me or is this coming more common, explanation for faults which dealers cannot diagnose. I had the same response from Audi last year on 2 different ocassions only they added "but dont worry its not safety related" as if that makes everything ok.

Apparently, ford tested the thermostat to make sure it was opening and closing at the right time, checked the temp sender and the latest version of the software was in the ecu. their summary was it is a callibration issue with the temp being displayed on the guage.

I find this all a bit strange, - the focus especially the 1.8 TDCI engine has been around for some time so only for this fault t start to surface seems strange. - if it was a callibration problem surely this would mean the guage was + or - a certain amount across the range instead of dropping when accellerating, going up hill or turning a right hand corner!!

Sorry for the rant, but i now find myself constantly watching the guage and its peeing me right off

[Damian S]

Ive got a 2.0 tdci and have exactly the same problem. when I first got the car last october I took it to ford and asked them to check it out as I suspected the stat may be stuck open... ie it was behaving exactly like previous petrol cars Ive had with knackered stats. Their response was ... there is nothing wrong with it, thats just the way they are. meh!

and as mentioned by someone above, it takes an age to warm up. when the ambient temp is freezing it can take over 15 miles of driving to get it up to running temp unless I boot it loads, which is rarely possible in rush hour traffic. Even when up to temp, it will drop when cruising at lower speeds or when stuck in traffic.
The temp itself doesnt bother me but I get a bit pissed off with the mpg being rubbish whilst its not up to running temp. Unfortunately, in winter that seems to last for the majority of my daily commute.

I dont think there is a solution...