96 850 temp gauge slightly above 3:00 o'clock

Post by **JimBee** » 14 Oct 2013, 21:46

The needle has been like that for over a year. On a compass, it would be a degree or two, just enough to notice it's not exactly due East. I wonder if it's the t-stat. I know I changed it but don't recall if I used an after market or OEM.

Should I be concerned?

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 14 Oct 2013, 22:06

My Platinum has always read about a needle width high, even after changing the ECT sensor, the thermostat, the radiator and the water pump (not all at the same time, just as a part of other maintenance or repairs) it has never moved. I guess some of them just read a bit high.

...Lee

Marcobrick · Post by **Marcobrick** » 15 Oct 2013, 00:25

Mine too, as per Lee's post. I also changed the same parts on my old turbo wagon, and it always read high. Probably nothing to worry about!

Post by **taxi** » 15 Oct 2013, 00:52

That's funny, my favorite line is also "how hard can it be?".
And the functional 850:s in Sweden also has the needles slightly above center, I too think it's supposed to be that way.

Post by **JimBee** » 15 Oct 2013, 08:01

Oh, good. One less thing to worry about. Thanks all for the peace of mind

Post by **sdube** » 15 Oct 2013, 09:01

same here, my 97 850 temp needle is a little above 3 o'clock

Post by **cn90** » 15 Oct 2013, 09:22

Assuming the thermostat is new, every dash gauge is a bit different.
My tstat is Wahler and is brand new, but the gauge is a tiny tiny bit (about 1mm) below 3:00 o'clock.
I'd not worry about it.

eld4au6 · Post by **eld4au6** » 15 Oct 2013, 10:52

Same here on both 96 R's

jrobles007 · Post by **jrobles007** » 15 Oct 2013, 20:38

I had the same concern, after replacing water pump & thermostat. After researching coolant information on this site (for example Coolant antifreeze volvo recommendatiosn ) I realized I was running the wrong coolant. I had a bottle of Peak flush and completed a coolant flush of the engine following the instructions on the bottle. I used distiller water and then filled her up with Zerex G05. There was a lot of sludge flushed out and the car runs noticeably cooler. Now my temp needle was more like at the 2 o'clock position. It is now at 3 o'clock and will go slightly above it on hot days. It stays constant even with AC on. I did this in spring of this year and have noticed some remains of the orange sludge in the overflow tank, but the car still runs cooler than before. I plan to replace coolant again next spring.

Post by **rspi** » 15 Oct 2013, 22:29

The simplest thing to do is read live data with an OBD2 reader. These needles are taken off most of the time when people do the ODO gear repair, if not put back on just right, it will be off when it comes to temp. My guess is that there is nothing to worry about but read the live data to be sure.