Check gauge light and temp gauge pegged!

MN12nationals

Registered User
Ok another problem has arised with the SC.

The other day I did a little fishtail on the wet parking lot coming out of a store and as I was half way home I noticed that the "Check Gauge" light was on. Hmm, usually this means I'm low on fuel but this was not the case, so I glanced over at the temp gauge and noticed it was pegged.

Weird I though because the car seemed to be running fine, but I took it very easy the rest of the way home. I figured something must have came loose to cause this so I checked the wire that goes to the temp senser near the thermostat, and this was securely attached and made no difference if I wiggled it a bit. So I decided to let it sit and see if it changed when I started it back up. I did after the car sat all weekend while I was out of town, but to my disappointment it did the same thing this morning.

I chalked this up as something just faulty as the car ran fine and did not get any hotter then normal. As I drove to work I noticed at idle it would rev a few hundred RPM's but nothing to extreme. As I almost got to work the check engine light came on and it wanted to stall out. If I kept the RPM's up a bit it would run good, but at idle it would bog down and want to cut out. I also notice that it started to smell really rich all the sudden. Parked the car and it died since I let it try and idle.

Any ideas on this? I will try to get out there and pull a code on this if I can, but its raining out there now so it will have to wait till after work possibly.

Great way to start my Bday isn't it! :mad:
 
Your engine may really be overheating, be very cautious about that. Make sure the coolant is topped off, and make sure your fan works. You can test it sitting in your driveway, just letting it idle. When the needle on the guage get to around "R", the fan should come one. If it doesn't, turn on the A/C. If it still doesn't, stop the engine and start trouble shooting the fan.

Then pull codes. See where it leads you. I dont' know for sure, but it is absolutely possible for the EEC to start shutting down the engine when it get a signal that its overheating. The ECT sensor provides the EEC with a temperature signal, the guage has a separate "sender" unit. :)
 
The gauge never really moves, its instant pegged even on a cold start up. Thats what makes me believe its sensor or connection related here.

Coolant is topped off.

Is there anything in the ignition switch that might cause this, as I did have a "click" no start issue that was never really found and that is one of the last places I have to look.
 
Check engine groung

I would check to see if you pulled the grounding strap loose.
You can just connect a cable between the battery to the engine to see if that could be the problem. I would also then connect the battery to the chassis to make sure you are getting a good ground.
The no click situation gives me a hint.
Another test is to see if you are getting proper voltage out of your alternator.
These are where I would start to look first.
Sometimes it's just something dumb like a loose wire.
Good luck!
Bill
 
Ditto on the grounding check.. You can use the black jumper cable on bare metal on the engine to the neg battery post to see if that is the problem. Of course, make sure the clamps/posts are clean and snug. Double check the running voltage.

Next, there is usually an electronic regulator in the instrument cluster that is supposed to keep things at the proper voltage level. That won't be easy to find/fix unless you know something about electronics. You may need to find a new cluster and swap out the speedometer to keep the current odometer setting. :)
 
Well I checked the wire once again on the temp sensor and after removing and putting it back on the temp gauge went back to normal. So I though all was good, wrong answer!

Car still would jerk, and buck if I was just trying to slowly go through the gears. The CEL was still present but I chalked that up to being in memory. Drove it a bit more to make it home and it seemed to get better but then the temp got up around normal operating temps and it seemed to start to jerk and buck again.

Made it home and let the engine cool down a bit and unplugged the battery.

I pulled codes on it and here is what I got:

157 - which has to do with the MAF voltage.

So I checked the MAF and noticed it was not fully seated as the clip is broke off. Don't know if it was enough to cause the light or not.

I was also doing some research on these symptoms and found where some recommended trying to disconnect the cam sensor. I did this as well and went for a test drive. The car ran perfectly, as it used to before this ordeal. Now I did not try to hook the cam sensor back up as the engine was hot and it was late last night and I kept burning myself trying to plug that connector back in.

So thats where I am at now. I did not change the location of the battery ground as of yet, nor have I checked the grounding strap on the engine. Those I will get to tonight hopefully.

Thanks for the help so far guys!
 
I had no issues with thr Tach, but someone recommended it as it could be faulty and other sensors or means would have to make up for it, or something along the lines of that. I had a friend searching the forums for me so I was just getting a readers digest run down on the posts and possible solutions.

I was just happy that the car drove nicely once again. Now I just need to narrow it down and find the reason.
 
The car goes into stay alive mode. If you unplugged it and it ran better, it might be causing the problem, even if the tach isn't acting funny. Cam sensors aren't that expensive.
 
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