TastyBacon

I bought a new, Made in China, AC Delco coolant temp sensor, and thought I got a defective one, because it seems to read about 10F higher than the old one did. Also, after the car has been sitting for a long time (overnight, or multiple days), if I just turn the car on (but don't start it) and scroll through the Gages menu in the DIC, the coolant temp will show about 10F higher than the oil temp. Seems like they should be the same, right?

So, I went to Carquest and got a generic (DriveWorks) sensor, also Made in China. Looks identical to the one in the AC Delco box. This time, I tested its resistance with an ohmmeter after it had been sitting in the garage for several hours, right next to two indoor thermometers, which both agreed that the garage was 86F, the resistance measured at 1816 ohms, which according to this chart, is just a little over 35C, or 95F. So, this one reads about 10F high too!

At this point I was frustrated and sick of buying Made in China crap, so I went to the dealer and ordered an OEM sensor. When it showed up, it was the same Made in China sensor in the same AC Delco box as the first one. I'd already paid for it, so I took it home. This time I measured the resistance of both sensors when the garage was 77F. One was 2.09K ohms, the other was 2.11K. That translates to a little over 30C (86F) on GM's chart. I went and checked the DIC reported coolant temp on the car, which had been sitting in the garage this whole time, and it was 88F! Meanwhile, the oil temp sensor was 76F, pretty much dead on what it should be.

So, what's up with these junk, Made in China coolant temp sensors that all read high, and where can I get a good one that accurately reports what the temperature is? I never thought it would be this difficult.

For reference, the AC Delco part I bought was 213-4514, and the GM part was 19236568.

foggy

The temp sensors are designed to read liquid... Not Air
So this might account for them being "off"

vettenuts

Curious, have your tried heating them up in some water to find out if the temperature becomes more accurate with higher temperatures? Might not be accurate at ambient but might be at 200 degrees.

TastyBacon

I've only taken the car on one long highway trip with the new motor, but it used to run right above the thermostat temp, around 190-195F. Seems like it runs at about 205F now, but that's not the most scientific test. I'll see if I can rig up an experiment with one of these sensors with a thermometer and a pan of hot water.

Still, is there only one coolant temperature sensor made for these cars anymore? Has anyone bought one recently and gotten anything other than this same Made in China sensor?

vettenuts

Curious if you have the original, where was it made?

73Corvette

http://delphi.com/manufacturers/auto...id-temperature

foggy

Almost ALL of new replacement Delco parts are "made in china" now..
Even the fuel pumps, weatherstrip, crank sensors, etc
All for even cars as new as 2013.
It's ******** I think.. I buy American to keep my money here !