how do i know when my themostat is going bad

Asked by tonironi81 Jul 06, 2007 at 10:41 AM about the Chevrolet Impala

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

my car is heating up to and between the middle and the 260(Red) mark when i drive. but when i drive with the heat on it goes down but still Fluctuates when stoping at a light. how do i know that it is my thermostat and not something else?

7 Answers

There really is no easy way of knowing. It could be the thermostat, the water pump, the radiator. There are a lot of reasons why it would go up and down. I would take it to a mechanic and have a diagnostic check done.

Also look to see that the 2 radiator fans are ON when temp. is past middle of dash guage hot. The 2 electric fans help temp.

The thermostat is not in the radiator , 50%antifreeze and 50%distilled water is. One of car radiator FAN'S was slightly slower (bad bearings) than the other fan,causing the sometime overheating (guage past halfway). I had complete fans/housing replaced (part 120, labor 60).

When buying antifreeze that all ready has the distilled water in the jug Do Not add distilled water . Pour it in. When buying pure antifreeze you have to add the water (usually half) amount is dependent on winter climate you live.

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