Be careful there is a temperature coolant switch mounted next to the thermostat housing. I thought this was the sensor and replaced it by mistake. There is another sensor.
Head gasket. Do block test for gases in coolant
The guage on the dash uses the ONE wire sensor... This is located in the block near the drivers side. Eric First check to see if you have coolant in the radiator. If there is no coolant you will not get any reading from the temperature sensor. If there is coolant then change the temperature sensor.
You may have a bad temperature sending unit. If that switch is defective, you will get a faulty reading. Also check the radiator to see if the coolant is flowing and there is no blockage in the radiator itself. Also check the belt for tightness.
Make sure your coolant is FULL, it will stop reading if your coolant is low and the low coolant light doesn't always work. My radiator was full and i took the thermoustat off to find the block hlaf empty on my 91. Paco
You need to get the temperature sensor repaired or, more likely, replaced.
Overheating due to low coolant, inoperative fan, restricted radiator, etc.Overheating due to low coolant, inoperative fan, restricted radiator, etc.
Depending on the engine, the coolant temperature in a Cadillac could be from 180 to 195 degrees. The thermostat can be changed to give a lower or higher temp reading.
Because when your moving, air is moving at the radiator, cooling it down, thus cooling your coolant down, thus cooling your motor temperature down causing the coolant temperature sensor to pick up a lower reading and relaying it to the gauge. Depending on how high it is in "Park" you may have poor circulation, a broken or missing fan shroud, weak water pump impellers, low coolant, inactive coolant fans or a bad fan clutch.
My question is, where is the engine coolant temperature sensor located, in a cylinder head or in the intake manifold close to the thermostat? If it is in a cylinder head it will give you a hotter reading than if it was in the intake manifold.
It sounds like you have a blown head gasket. Combustion gases can enter the cooling system through either a blown head gasket or cracked cylinder head. The gases (under pressure) force coolant out of the reservoir. This also causes a void in the upper part of the cooling system , leaving no coolant at the thermostat and the coolant temperature sending unit. The result is a erroneous temperature Reading and will even prevent the thermostat from opening.
The temperature sender (the sensor that sends the temperature signal to the gauge) has to be immersed in coolant in order to correctly read the temperature. If the coolant is so low that it leaves the sender high and dry, the temperature shown on the gauge will not be a true reading. if the sensor is not immersed in the coolant, there a big chance it wont read at all...
The PCM (powertrain control unit/computer) sends power to the fan relay based on the output of the coolant temperature sensor reading. The relay then sends power to the fan; thus turning the fan on.