Quote:
Originally Posted by speedyturtle
Hi, I know I'm bumping an old thread but this was the first thing to come up on the Google search and I'm a member here so I figured I'd ask here  My 2000 Boxster when warmed up (it's been hot lately since I've purchased it 80+ everyday) but stays in the dead center of the 0 in the 180. Is this normal or running too hot? A lot of threads I've seen say that their cars run right at 180 whereas mine runs right a good bit past that but not quite all the way over to the other dash (like I said, right in the dead center of that 0). |
I wouldn't say you're running too hot. The gauge is not the most accurate device out there, and really the only time you need to be concerned is if you reach or go past the 3rd mark (unlabeled, signifies 215° F), hit the 250° mark, or see a flashing or steady red light above the 250° mark. My car tends to never go back to touching the 180° mark once it passes it, and I find that most of the time I'm somewhere around the 0, either touching one of its edges or sitting in the middle of it. Unless I can get the car out in some clear air (no traffic in front of me) and 50+mph, it'll simply run in that range as I drive around the city or get stuck behind someone on the highway. When I'm cruising on the highway with no one in front and plenty of air getting to the radiators and ducting, the needle can run back down to just slightly to the right of the 180° mark.
I think I can safely assume that your commuting tends to be similar to mine if you're in any sort of urban setting in NJ, so don't worry about how the car's running right now from what you described. Do, however, take the advice I'm sure you've seen in some of your searches and remove the front bumper cover to clean out the ducts for the radiators. They collect all sorts of debris, and this will hamper their performance and eventually lead to corrosion.