Water Temp Guage not moving or only going upto 1 third

freelander 1 - 2.0 l series diesel

Noticed yesterday when i had gone on a reasonable run that my water temp guage was only on 1/3 oposed to the usual half way that it always gets to and never moves from.

Today went on a shorter run and noticed that the temp guage didnt even move up

Does this sound like a sender problem or thermostat

has anyone else had this issue

Im thinking maybe the thermostat is stuck open? Just dont want to take the thermostat out as it says theres an o ring that needs to be replaced and dont have one. Is it ok to take the thermostat out and not replace that for a short period until i can get one or should I wait till i have the new o ring.

many thanks

Thermostat opening early is the most likely cause. The sensor is cheap and easy to change, if you want to eliminate it

Nodge68 said:

Thermostat opening early is the most likely cause. The sensor is cheap and easy to change, if you want to eliminate it

Click to expand...

thanks Nodge. There are two water sensors on the thermostat top one two pin i disconected and it turns the fan on so im saying thats working. My mate run a wire from battery to the lower sensor and the gauge went up so im changing that one a 1 wire one. Maybe that will help someone else if theres stops working

The 2 wire sensor is for the ECU. The ECU will put the fans on, if it thinks there's a problem with the sensor.

The 1 wire sensor is for the gauge, as you've found

Nodge68 said:

The 2 wire sensor is for the ECU. The ECU will put the fans on, if it thinks there's a problem with the sensor.

The 1 wire sensor is for the gauge, as you've found

Click to expand...

Cheers Nodge you're loads more use than my Haynes manual thanks.

This shows the location of the Temp sensor that controls the fan and im assuming talks to the ecu



this photo below shows the temperature transmitter that links to your temp guage on the dashboard. I have taken out the wire so you can see better its directly below the temp sensor with one wire going to it, you can pull off the wire and get a deep 12mm socket on it.



My guage for about a week or so took ages to register then it registered cold alll the time then it just stopped working completly

Great idea to actually photo and identify the 2 sensors - hope your time taken helps someone in the future

The first sensor doesn't talk to the fans - it simply sends a signal to the ECU. The ECU will then use that signal for the operation of the engine - controlling the fans and fueling (dunno if it uses it for controlling anything else).

As GG said. The fans are under ECU control, based on signals receive from the ECT. The ECU will also add slight fueling modifications and control the glow plugs, also based on the ECT sensor.