alright this morning i was driving down the road and noticed my temp was 210 which i know is normal looks a couple minutes later and it was 110 and going back up stayeed at 210 then dropped again doing this intermittently. obviously an electrical issue so i checked the sensor to make sure it had a good connection. did not see any corrosion or bent pins. un plugged the sensor to see what the quage read and it was 110.

i think the sensor has gone bad but do not know how to test it. any body got an idea for intermittent issues?

problem number 2

i need to figure out what year dana30 i swapped in

i swapped it in several months ago. it has an external square plug and different knuckles. my buddy that i got it from said it came out of a 93. im pretty sure it is not a 93 dana 30 because the brakes are completely different. the knuckles wont accept my 97 calipers, hubs are different, rotors are different. im thinking it is like an 89 front end because it has a bracket for the caliper to bolt too that bolts too the knuckle. before people say just swap the 97 knuckles back on i cant because they had some wear on them causing an obnoxious rattle from the calipers.

 

My coolant temp gauge swings up and down but not as much as yours. I assumed it was due to the thermostat opening and closing.

 

T-stat "hovers" very slowly in an infinite number of positions between closed/open.....it shouldn't cause major swings in the temp gauge needle.

 

Have you checked the coolant level in the radiator?

 

Sensor is only about 25$ shipped from rockauto.com, cheap to check if that is it.

 

OUT OF WATER? in danger of overheating? Air or steam will not register on the sending unit!

If I rembember right - key on - unplugging the gauge's sender - at the back of the engine, left side, the gauge should go to 0 - all the way cold. IF not, gauge or wiring problem. Could be just the opposite - goes all the way hot. BUT never midway

The front one in the T-stat housing should have no effect on the gauge.

 

on the 97 and newer there is one temp sensor, no the coolant is not low, no recent services, no air pockets, no overheating.