Water temperture lamp flickering

pauley · Post by **pauley** » 21 Oct 2003, 21:51

I have a zx volcane td m reg with 70k on the clock and when upto temp just under the 90 mark on the temp gauge the red warning light will sometimes flicker on then go off then come back on solid then go off but the needle never moves from its normal level when this is happening, can anyone shed any light on this as its slightly worrying me.
The needle rises as the car warms up as you would expect, I just need to know if its the rad on the way out or a simple electrical glitch with a sensor.
Thanks.

AndyGimpy · Post by **AndyGimpy** » 21 Oct 2003, 22:20

I'm not sure but have you checked the water level, If this is ok the water level sensor could be faulty and its this thats causing the flickering.

JohnD · Post by **JohnD** » 21 Oct 2003, 23:35

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by AndyGimpy</i>

the water level sensor could be faulty
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
or even the push on connector to it

pauley · Post by **pauley** » 21 Oct 2003, 23:40

The water level appears fine, I did a test when I got home running the engine at 1500 revs while stationary the temperature rose above 90 the light came on just above that mark then the fans kicked in soon after and the temp fell back to just below the 90 mark but the light only went out as the needle passed the 90 mark on the way down.
Do you know what sensor controls the gauge and it is the same sensor for the needle as the warning lamp??

pauley · Post by **pauley** » 21 Oct 2003, 23:41

Could you tell me where on the engine the water level sensor is?

AndersDK · Post by **AndersDK** » 22 Oct 2003, 00:01

The coolant water LEVEL sensor is located either outside down the radiator's filler neck - or in any fitted coolant pressure bottle.

Dave Burns · Post by **Dave Burns** » 22 Oct 2003, 00:23

Low water level warning sensor is in the radiator plastic side tank about half way down, it faces the front of the car and you can get to it by removing the offside headlamp IIRC, which is not difficult, coolant needs to be drained before removing it.
Brown in colour with Cartier printed on it.
Dave

pauley · Post by **pauley** » 22 Oct 2003, 00:44

The coolant leevl is fine as I just checked it and the fans come on at the right temps as its backed up by the numbers int he haynes manual, it looks like the needle is accurate but the warning light is coming on at the wrong point, could it be just a faulty gauge and does anyone know if its replaceable?

oscarloco · Post by **oscarloco** » 25 Nov 2003, 05:15

I have the same problem in my '94 ZX Volcane 2.0 gasoline engine, in my case it is related to a leaky water pump and when the water level drops, the light will come on if I'm driving in traffic or slowly. To avoid this, I usually rev the engine a little (1500 - 2000 RPM)when the fans come on. This keeps the temperature in check and the red light on. But the bottom line is, check your water level and check if there is an air bubble in the system (usually in the heater core) that is causing this.

MW · Post by MW » 25 Nov 2003, 16:35

Sounds like your situation may be different from mine, BUT:
My Xantia gave me the whole works at midnight on the motorway - flashing temp light, then off, then permanently on, plus all the big red STOP lights coming on at once. (Did I mention that it was also raining?)
Pulled over to the hard shoulder, lifted the bonnet, nothing obviously wrong. Above all, no smell of singeing antifreeze, which is what I'd have certainly expected if the coolant had genuinely been in trouble. Crossed my fingers, got back in the car, restarted and drove on at 50. Light flickered on again a bit later, but again no sign that anything was genuinely amiss. Drove home.
Next morning, unplugged the sensor and cleaned it. Never had the problem again.