Temperature Gauge a dummy gauge?

[tinnyms3]

Temp gauge on most cars are useless, might as well just use a light to indicate when cold or hot. Coolant temps constantly fluctuate about 40 degrees in normal driving which is like 1/4 of gauge range, so a true gauge will tell you when there is a potential problem with your cooling system if you start to see larger variation.

[Daemione]

Originally Posted by bambbrose

Almost all, as in 95%+, modern cars use dummy coolant gauges.

Thank you for bringing this up - I'm always amazed at how few people realize how useless their temp gauge is.

And basically repeating a recent sentiment of mine, this is another reason I love my old Datsun. The coolant gauge actually follows the coolant temperature, so it's actually worth referencing, and is a usable tuning tool. Any dyno operator worth his/her salt knows that engine temperature has to be consistent from run to run, or a comparison is useless - moreso with modern cars than with older ones. ECU's do a whole lot of tinkering with varying coolant temperatures. And you can't use a stock gauge to tell.

[Deslock]

Unfortunately, it's a dummy gauge.

Gotta respect Mazda for bringing a real oil gauge back to the Miata with the NC (though it still has a faux temp gauge). I would've happily paid $100 more to have real oil and temp gauges in my BRZ.

[Sportsguy83]

Originally Posted by Deslock

Unfortunately, it's a dummy gauge.

Gotta respect Mazda for bringing a real oil gauge back to the Miata with the NC (though it still has a faux temp gauge). I would've happily paid $100 more to have real oil and temp gauges in my BRZ.

It's not about money, its about having a gauge to accommodate the masses a.k.a. dumb people who see the gauge move a mm and come screaming their car needs to be fixed.

[70NYD]

Originally Posted by bambbrose

Perhaps I should have been more clear.

Almost all, as in 95%+, modern cars use dummy coolant gauges. Your Astro is no exception as GM has been doing this for a long time, since 99 I believe.


From another website:

Essentially, the gauge stays cold until ~160 degrees (adj), and then quickly moves to the middle area as you reach operating temperature. From there, it stays put unless you go significantly above or below the standard range. The gauge is not linear as you might think.

I'm sure the BRZ is no exception to this standard, I was just hoping that some of you could confirm what you have seen your own gauges do.

I ask because most of these dummy gauges are inadequate for track events, as they only warn you at 230+, usually after you are getting too hot for your cooling system.

this is usually how it works in modern cars
the gauge will stay at cold untill operating temp reaches around 70 degrees Celsius then it will move linearly untill temperature reaches operating temperature (different for different cars but lets say 95 degrees Celsius for argument sake) and it will stay in the middle of the dial until the temperature is about to hit boiling point (different depending on what the pressure of the system is)

[Bristecom]

Originally Posted by viper_driver

Dummy gauge, I like it. That's exactly what consumers want. Same as a fuel gauge that stays on Full for a really long time when the tank's not really full so people think the car is getting great mileage, regardless of what is actually happening. That's what consumers want. Car manufacturers will build anything we want to buy.

Yeah, it's like my phone. People were complaining that the bars were too low most of the time and assumed that it was getting a worse signal than their old phones but it was actually just more accurate. So they came out with an update that recalibrated it to show more bars even though the signal strength stayed the same...

[csaba]

Originally Posted by Draco-REX

I've never seen a dummy coolant gauge. Every one I've owned moved with the coolant temperature.

The one in the BRZ is no exception. It warms as it should and fluctuates slightly depending on driving conditions. But you have to keep in mind that modern cooling systems are very efficient. They do a good job of keeping the coolant at a steady temperature so you won't see large fluctuations in the coolant needle.

Exactly!

What kind of question was that OP?

[csaba]

Originally Posted by 70NYD

this is usually how it works in modern cars
the gauge will stay at cold untill operating temp reaches around 70 degrees Celsius then it will move linearly untill temperature reaches operating temperature (different for different cars but lets say 95 degrees Celsius for argument sake) and it will stay in the middle of the dial until the temperature is about to hit boiling point (different depending on what the pressure of the system is)

Yes but actually lower than middle slitely .

[csaba]

Originally Posted by Daemione

Thank you for bringing this up - I'm always amazed at how few people realize how useless their temp gauge is.

And basically repeating a recent sentiment of mine, this is another reason I love my old Datsun. The coolant gauge actually follows the coolant temperature, so it's actually worth referencing, and is a usable tuning tool. Any dyno operator worth his/her salt knows that engine temperature has to be consistent from run to run, or a comparison is useless - moreso with modern cars than with older ones. ECU's do a whole lot of tinkering with varying coolant temperatures. And you can't use a stock gauge to tell.

How often most people do dyno runs ? Never. So the gauge is serves its purpose just fine for most . When engine is hot gauge moves up so you get an idea that your car has a problem. They made it simple

[chulooz]

Originally Posted by Draco-REX

I've never seen a dummy coolant gauge. Every one I've owned moved with the coolant temperature.

The one in the BRZ is no exception. It warms as it should and fluctuates slightly depending on driving conditions. But you have to keep in mind that modern cooling systems are very efficient. They do a good job of keeping the coolant at a steady temperature so you won't see large fluctuations in the coolant needle.

Talk to us more about these fluctuations? Which cars have you owned?

[Dave-ROR]

Originally Posted by Draco-REX

I've never seen a dummy coolant gauge. Every one I've owned moved with the coolant temperature.

The one in the BRZ is no exception. It warms as it should and fluctuates slightly depending on driving conditions. But you have to keep in mind that modern cooling systems are very efficient. They do a good job of keeping the coolant at a steady temperature so you won't see large fluctuations in the coolant needle.

Most stock gauges actually are kinda dumb. Many won't move for a wide change in temp. Consider it an diot light IMO as it will move towards hot when it gets dangerous but it won't show the difference between 190 and 220. Mine acts just like my other cars but I bet if you data log you'll see a good variance in coolant temps without the gauge budging. Again it will when it overheats though.

[Dadhawk]

I guess the term "dummy" threw me off in this discussion. To me, that means it doesn' work at all, like those prop electronics they use at a furniture store.

What is being described here matches the fuel gauge. It's not accurate but gives you an overall "impression" of whats going on at determined critical point. (there was a whole other thread where I ranted about the accuracy of "E" on modern cars).

I agree it should be accurate, or it should not pretend to be accurate by putting numbers on the gauge. Just a Red/Yellow/Green range.

[Dave-ROR]

The fuel light comes on early for sure, but my fuel gauge actually does seem pretty good.. a hell of a lot more accurate than my Integra which takes 3/4 tank to move from fuel to half, then drops like a rock from that point...

[Chenslee]

Sure, there are "dummy" gauges out there that have 3 positions: cold, normal, new-engine.
I've been monitoring the coolant temps in my civic via a scan-gauge for over 3 years and the dash gauge is accurate. I get my second "bar" when the temp hits 130°, and it warms up to about 185° within 3 minutes. I've never seen temps higher than 195°. I think that wildly fluctuating coolant temps are a thing of the past and we are confusing poorly designed sensor feedback with rock solid modern cooling systems.