Engine Temperature Idiot Meter?

Your 2000 Mustang warmed up in an instant? You had the proof that the laws of thermodynamics are not valid, and objects can change their temperature at will, without putting any heat into them, and you sold it ??? Seriously, if the needle in your Mustang jumped up to 'Normal' as soon as you started the engine, there was something wrong with either the engine (a blown head gasket comes to mind) or the gauge.

I seem to remember it moving to the center right away. Guess I was lucky never to have had a problem in the three years that I had it.

I take it the acuracy of the Explorer gauge is normal then?

Well, it's probably not all that accurate. It doesn't even have numbers, so you can't really judge its accuracy anyway. But it is displaying normal behavior. Engines take time to warm up, and the gauge is reflecting that. Don't know what was going on with your Mustang gauge, except maybe you're thinking of the oil pressure gauge and not the water temperature.

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On Mon, 11 Aug 2003 21:55:05 GMT, "Jethro"

It cuts the number of questions about a fluctuating oil pressure reading amazingly. Those questions get expensive after a while, and they just aren't necessary. The pressure varies according to engine temp & RPMs, as you know, but a lot of others just don't know that, and assume something's wrong.

The "gauges" are a more secure indicator. They typically fail in the "no-go" condition. Idiot lights fail in the "go" condition (off), so if the bulb is bad you could have a problem and not know it until it's too late. And yes, the lack of gauges looks cheap. Ford isn't alone in it's use of pseudo-gauges to fool you into thinking they are real.

My '98 EB info center is a go/no-go message only.

Jack

Hold down the odometer(trip) reset button while you start the car. Keep holding for about 5 seconds. This will put the IC in diagnostic mode. Using the odometer button you can cycle through various displays. Speed, RPM's, Cooland Temp, Voltage. There are also displays for a/d conversions (ie fuel level is 240 in a 0-255 range) and some software versions.

From /Richard

Yep the temp gauge is "real" my '03 two weeks old does the same thing so does the truck and my '99 XLS the other gauges are truly "idiot" gauges

/Richard

From: Richard

I just tried this on my '03 XLT. Some of the readings I understood and some not. Where do I find a list of the readings and what they mean?

/Richard

Thanks for the tip. I got it all to display. Any idea where I can the meaning of all the codes?

Does this work with the '03 Mountaineer?

Neil

this past

the other

the dial,

driving

eventually

don't think

didn't do

You see, the engine temperature builds up slowly and the gage shows it. I think there was something wrong with your Mustang. Also try to start hot engine. After 10 - 20 minutes off. And see what it will show.

It should.