# Thermostat barely moves



## Showa (Jan 4, 2011)

Greets all,
had a new thermostat put in a couple months ago into my Z24 after having the head gasket replaced.
Now it barely moves. I live in jamaica where it's always warm and typically the temperature guage stays between 1/4 and 1/2.
Now it barely moves past the lowest reading even after hours of driving in 90 degree weather with the a/c on.
The engine is def getting hot. What could be causing this. Its a brand new genuine thermostat.
Thanks
d


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## SPEEDO (Jun 9, 2003)

it could be the wrong temp, might have been installed backwards, there is a arrow on it pointing to the correct position... check the connector on the temp sender.. a couple of ideas anyway


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## Showa (Jan 4, 2011)

Thank you. The thermostat is properly installed, I checked. Is the temp sender the same as the temp switch? I changed the switch and it still barely moves.


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## Showa (Jan 4, 2011)

Truck drives fine. But I am still amazed by how the thermostat doesn't move now. No other ideas?


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## NelsonCnty (Jan 7, 2008)

Mine behaves the same way. In the past, I checked and replaced the temp sender but that made no difference. My gauge gets a hair past the fat line at the bottom, and that's when I know the truck is warmed up. Weird.


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## SPEEDO (Jun 9, 2003)

are you sure you do not have any trapped air in the system? the temp sender will not work unless it is in coolant (instead of a air pocket)


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## smj999smj (Jan 1, 2006)

Unplug the temp sender and run a direct ground to the harness connector. When you turn the key "on," the needle should move up to full "hot." If it doesn't you have either a bad coolant gauge or an "open" in your wire between the gauge and the sender harness connector. If the test confirms the circuit and gauge are good, you can do a resistance test to the sender using an ohmmeter and compare to the readings in the FSM in regards to the engine temperature. If the sender is okay, then the issue is likely a bad thermostat, assuming all of the air is purged out of the coolant system. Try raising the front of the truck and loosening the bleeder to purge out any air. Sometimes even new Nissan parts are defective, all though not common.


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## Showa (Jan 4, 2011)

Thank you all. Still always cool all the time. Doesnt move. Is the temp sender the same as the temp switch? I drove for like 5 hrs in 95 degree jamaican heat and it barely moved. Now I am getting worried.


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## smj999smj (Jan 1, 2006)

Temp sensor for the gauge will have one wire, whereas if there's a temp sensor (or "ECT") for the computer, it will have two wires. I think I pretty much explained how to test this in my last post, almost 5 months ago.


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## rogoman (Dec 16, 2004)

Showa said:


> Thank you all. Still always cool all the time. Doesnt move. Is the temp sender the same as the temp switch? I drove for like 5 hrs in 95 degree jamaican heat and it barely moved. Now I am getting worried.


Did you install a Nissan OEM thermostat? If you installed an aftermarket unit, then that may be your problem; most aftermarket thermostats don't work very good at maintaining proper temperature control.


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## Showa (Jan 4, 2011)

Thank you. 6 months later. It was a faulty thermostat. Went through 2. Seems like a bad batch.


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