How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new VW?

Been hot here in California for the last couple of weeks. Over 100 everyday. I am curious how accurate the temp gauge is in newerr VWs. I own a 2001 TDI Beetle and the temp is sometimes accurate to what other outside thermostats show but often it is too high in summer and too low in winter. For example, in stop and go traffic yesterday on my way home through Sacramento, my temp showed 115 degrees.

Once traffic started moving again it went down to 109. I drove past a bill billboard and it showed 104 on it. In winter, my gauge often shows lower than what the same billboards shows.

So, are these VW gauges that poor? Weird how it showed 115 and then went to 109 once I got back up to 55mph.

Is the sensor in the engine bay or something and gets some runoff heat from it to make it inaccurate?

tj

Re: How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new

You're talking about the coolant temp gauge?

Re: How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new

In the Beetle, the temp sensor for air temp is in the cowl on the far end on the passenger side. It is a little silver round thing connected to wires.

So it will change based on the heat given off at the moment and all that. I always find it quite accurate when in motion.

Re: How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new

I'm not sure what you both are talking about, does the Jetta have an air temp gauge?

/Edit. My scangauge can show me the temp of the air coming into the intake. Same thing?

Temperatures vary over terrain, and you don't know how accurate the outdoor thermometers are. If you want to know how accurate the ambient temperature reading is, park the car in a garage or the shade for enough time to reach the ambient temperature (might take a day or so) and place a known accurate thermometer under the hood, and compare. I wouldn't expect it be laboratory accurate, but a few degrees difference probably does't matter. If the engine is hot and the car is stationary, the reading is likely to be higher than the actual ambient temperature.

Re: How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new

My Beetle's outside temp guage is consistently high - usualy 2-5 degrees in the winter / spring/fall, more like 5-10 too hot in the summer. Of course, that could be because of the heat rising from the road too.

Re: How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new

A temperature sensor can be mounted the front bumper of the Jetta. Mine did not come with one but I will install one when I install my high pixel Euro instrument cluster.

Re: How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new

For those who asked--everyone is talking about the exterior temperature reading that is provided by the MFA (if installed).

Re: How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new

Aaahhh. No wonder I was confused, 'cause I ain't got one of them

Re: How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new

it is standard on the NB.

Re: How accurate is the temperature gauge in a new

I find my MFA tracks really well compared to my Mirror gauge and the ones I pass by on road. It does read way high if it had be setting outside under the sun for the day and takes a bit of driving to bring in down while my after market one that is on my Mirror