outdoor air temperature gauge problem

Has anyone had a problem with their outdoor air temperature gauge going haywire? My 98 2.8 A4Q with 83k miles just started doing this: I drove in freezing winter weather along the Great Lakes to Akron, Ohio, on Christmas Day and then ran the car through a car wash so I could see out of it, and the gauge shot all the way from the actual

+23F temp to -58F and back and then all the way down again. The next morning it did the same thing, down and back and down and back again, several times as I drove home on cold, but wet roads. It was ok the next day, when the roads were drier (temps still cold, 20s and lower), but today when I ran the car through another carwash, the same thing happened, with the temp reading going all the way down to -58F.

Is this a faulty temp sensor? Where is this thing located? Could it be affected by the car wash and low exterior temperature combination? What's the cost to fix/repair?

Reply to
KLS
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Could be. Probably a duff connection though.

It's low down fixed to the inside of the front bumper usually. It's certainly there on my A3. It's on the passenger side on my right hand drive car.

Water in the plug? Or maybe you dislodged it in the car wash.

Reply to
Chris Bartram

Been there, On my 2001 A4Q there are three sensors, one under the bumper, one in the windshield well outside, and one inside , some in in the dashboard, I think. It was the one in the windshield well, every time it got wet, the temp went nuts. If you have automatic temp control, it will screw that up as well. I was under warranty, but it will cost if they have to go after that senor in the well.

\Bob Lail

Reply to
Bob Lail

The duff connection theory wins the prize!! I needed to bring my car in for the lower control arm recall inspection, so I asked my dealer to investigate this problem. Happy early birthday to me: $40 just to fix the rotten wiring! Evidently the tech got the car up, touched the sensor, and had it drop right into his hand. All is well now, and thank God I didn't lose that $300 sensor.

Reply to
KLS

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