Coolant temp gauge not @ 12 o'clock? Solution...

**Nebone** · 06-02-2008 10:03 PM

My coolant temperature gauge has not seen 12 o'clock since a while and I finally decided to replace it as I been feeling a sloppy 1.8T.

I replaced the thermostat. Did not have to remove anything but the TB hose and intake manifold support brace. Used a special Snap-On u-joint w/ built in socket. Lost about half gallon of coolant, but the quicker you are at swapping one thermostat with another, the less you will loose.

The car warms up like 5x faster now. Oil pressure is lower, oil temperatures are higher and vacuum is higher too.

This DIY really pushed me to get it done.

http://forums.audiworld.com/tt/msgs/1304805.phtml

**317ssayzarc** · 06-02-2008 10:21 PM

yea boooiiiii! lol

**Militant-Grunt** · 06-02-2008 10:35 PM

A transverse DIY worked out for you well? haha

**Poopie** · 06-02-2008 11:25 PM

i would have drained it first. coolant splashing in your face is not cool

**njm23** · 06-02-2008 11:40 PM

yeah, doesn't taste very good when it randomly comes out into your face. But you gotta do what you gotta do, and maybe he didn't feel like buying 2 things of g12 at like $22 a thing. Savin money. ha

**Nebone** · 06-03-2008 06:29 AM

I worked from the top. Its a little different on the longitudal than the transverse but same basic idea. I was just too lazy to pull the alternator and throttle body to do the job and found this easy way plus my VW tech buddy lent me the nice special Snap-On tool yey.

My face was no where near the coolant at all time and barely on my hand. Only time it comes out is when the thermostat is pulled from the block and it comes out like a waterfall then.

I had the thermostat for about three years sitting in a box and finally came time to bust it out.

I paid $25 for a gallon of G12 and used ~1/3 of the bottle.

- Jake, I even gave you the thermostat so do your Golf now, pronto.

**Nebone** · 06-03-2008 10:10 AM

Coolant won't splash if pressure is removed. Open the coolant reservoir cap and close it again. This will release pressure but keep a vacuum type ordeal in the passages.

To air out the system, I initially filled the reservoir with coolant and straightly massaged and squeezed the lower coolant hose a few times. The reservoir cap was off and I started the car and let it warm up to temp. Revv it a few times to circulate the coolant pump better. Shut the car off and add coolant if necessary and close the cap. Coolant level will fall after the car cools overnight or so. - Jakes method.

**LateraLex** · 04-08-2009 04:23 PM

Good post - I will try this when we get a warm day up in Boston. Did you remove your dipstick? From the pictures it looks like you could do the job while leaving it in there.