So my thermostat was broken which has caused several problems with my car, one of which probably the head gasket, others being the coolant bottle + cap.

Now as the Skoda dealership was unable to find this fault and I only noticed it after coolant leaks etc got diagnosed :thumbdwn: this is not ideal to put it mildly.

The real problem is that this will cost me an absolute fortune now compared to having found this problem immediately.

As per my sig etc, I did NOT expect warranty on engine etc due to what I have done to my car, but then I was kinda expecting my temperature gauge to show an overheating car. It blatently DOES NOT and is USELESS unless you have a pump failure or something along those lines.

Basically my temperature gauge goes up to normal temperatures over time, but never really goes much above 90 deg C (the middle). I noticed it is very, very slightly over now but hardly noticable.

Therefore I am looking for a suggestion on where to put a proper temperature sensor in the future. I will end up with a fair few new sensors soon no doubt, so I can detect these kind of problems before they get worse in the future, unlike this time where it will end up costing me >500 quid at a minimum :(

It should also beep when overheating.

The flashing light/beep thing happens when the fluid has already dropped below minimum, which (IMHO) is far too late. By this time the engine is already boiling up fluid inside the engine.

I know what you're saying though, and assuming the fluid actually goes round properly it should be fine I suppose, most of the time

If you lost a lot of coolant the sensor will give a false reading- often low- due to it not getting contact with coolant. My Ibiza TDi that I had a few years ago dumped it's coolant on the M5. My first warning was the heater went cold, then the guage dropped to cold.

As mentioned by cjb, the sensor can only read if its contact with water. If the water is all gone then nothing will show on the gauge, it doesnt matter what sensor is in use. Its possible it may read a little due to the internal temp of the engine.

Can you get the gauge checked to make sure its not getting stuck as the temp rises.

Its possible it may read a little due to the internal temp of the engine.

That's what mine did in the TDi90 Ibiza. I was near the end of a 36 mile [*cough*]mph motorway journey. The heater went cold, then the guage dropped to about 1/3, probably no further due to the head being hot. I pulled over, and no coolant. Turned out to be the water pump, fixed under warranty.

Thanks for the extra info

My waterpump was checked and found fine, and the level was just below minimum (at the point where the sensor triggers the read flashing temp sensor warning light on the dash). The water temperature shown was a shade over the middle.

Is there a way in which I can use vagcom to drive the temp gauge as a test? IIRC you can do it with the speedo so I'd imagine there must be a way?

I'm actually looking into installing a Defi-Link II type system now, kinda want oil pressure/temp/EGT/boost anyway, so if that goes ahead I'll drop an extra water temp sensor on too I suppose