[arunphilip]

I'm saddened to see that the EcoSport doesn't have a temperature gauge, it depends on the ubiquitous MIL/CEL.

This got me wondering - for cars that have a MID, why aren't they exposing the engine's coolant temperature on one of the screens, for those of us who care?

Having fooled around with an ELM327 OBD reader, I know the ECU exposes this information, so it shouldn't cost anything to show it on a digital MID.

[vaisakhr]

Its a must have. In face that is the only thing which tell us about the condition of the engine. Normal cars don't have monitors for other things like LO pressure & temperature, FO pressure & temperature. That gauge is the only warning sign we have to avoid a seize. The moment it crosses the middle line you know there is some thing not good about the health of your engine.

[fazayal]

Even I used to feel that good old temperature gauge should be included in new generation cars. However, my mindset was changed some days ago.

After running the Mumbai Marathon on 19th January, I was coming home in a black yellow Santro cab. As you all would know Santro has the good old simple temperature gauge. The driver was quite friendly and we were having a good chat. On Juhu circle signal one of the car drivers told us that the coolant was leaking. Instinctively I looked at the temperature gauge and saw that the needle was sitting quietly on "H". Somehow, the cab was taken on a corner without disturbing too much of traffic. I paid the cab driver his fare and then took an autorickshaw.

If there was an engine overheating warning light on dashboard, the attention of driver would have been on the light immediately and further damage could have been prevented. However, the temperature gauge sits in a corner and the eyes of the driver seldom goes near it.

In an ideal world the cars should have both temperature gauge as well as engine overheating warning light. However, if I have to chose one of them, I would chose the warning light after this incident.

[debuda]

I personally feel that a coolant temperature gauge is a very important device in any car. Having said that, I know many motorists who never bother to glance at the temperature gauge while driving and for them it may be a better alternative to have an audio-visual warning when coolant temperature exceeds a certain safe value.

Many cars do provide a visual warning, but I strongly feel it should be combined with an audio warning as well for critical parameters like lub oil pressure and coolant temperature. More than a quarter century ago, when I bought my first car (a Maruti 800), I carried out a simple DIY modification and installed audio alarm for warning lamps such as lub oil pressure, alternator and hand brake / brake fluid level.

Many years ago, I was once driving from Bombay to Lonavla in my M-800 and near Vashi I noticed that the coolant temperature gauge was showing abnormally high value. I stopped the car and preliminary investigations revealed that the motor-driven radiator fan was not coming on because the thermostatic relay (which senses the radiator temperature and closes a contact to start the fan when temperature exceeds a certain preset value) had become defective. Luckily, my personal 'long drive tool kit' included some long electrical wires and I connected two wires to the defective relay and routed the free ends of the two wires inside the car. Whenever I shorted the two wires inside the car, the radiator fan would start running. Then I started the car, gave the wires to my wife and resumed our drive to Lonavla. Whenever I saw the gauge needle going above the midway mark on the dial, I would ask my wife to short the wires and the fan would start running. After the radiator temperature came down, she would disconnect the wires. Like this, we reached Lonavla without any problem, thanks to the temperature gauge.


Now I have a XUV-500 which has a digital temperature gauge as shown in the picture below.



This digital temperature gauge, IMHO, is not going to win any prizes for good design. The reason is this : the blue coloured 'safe zone' has 6 segments, but all the 6 are always on as long as the coolant temperature is below a certain preset value. In other words, whether the coolant is below freezing point or normal running temperature, all these 6 blue segments are always glowing. Only when the temperature exceeds a certain value, the red segments are supposed to start glowing (I haven't actually experienced such a situation in my XUV).

Why couldn't the M&M engineers design the gauge such that each one of the blue segments would indicate a certain temperature range? That would have helped me know when the engine was adequately 'warmed up' after starting the car from cold. Now I have no way of knowing whether the coolant has reached optimal operating temperature.

As we all know, when one starts a car from cold, initially the engine coolant is prevented (by a thermostatic bypass valve) from flowing through the radiator so that the engine may warm up quickly. Only after the coolant has reached normal operating temperature, the thermostatic bypass valve allows it to enter the radiator. With the XUV temperature gauge, I would not come to know whether the thermostatic valve is working properly or not. However, the good old analog temperature gauge of my Maruti 800 used to give me all the information I wanted!

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by debuda

Why couldn't the M&M engineers design the gauge such that each one of the blue segments would indicate a certain temperature range?

As we all know, when one starts a car from cold, initially the engine coolant is prevented (by a thermostatic bypass valve) from flowing through the radiator so that the engine may warm up quickly. Only after the coolant has reached normal operating temperature, the thermostatic bypass valve allows it to enter the radiator. With the XUV temperature gauge, I would not come to know whether the thermostatic valve is working properly or not.

Do these blue segments fill up at a time or they gradually light up?

In my Swift ZDi, I don't cross 50-60 kmph for 6-7 kms as the engine is cool and not in the optimum operating temperature.

I tried checking the same with my OBD II reader which reads 26 deg C when cool and the optimum operating temperature is 75 deg C which is attained at the above speeds with 6-7 kms.





The temperature gauge on the instrumentation console is at the centre at that point.



Anurag.

[arnabchak]

Absolute must.

I am of the opinion that the regulators need to make the temperature gauge(be it analogue or digital) mandatory.

The simple gauge has saved me a couple of times in my Ikon from severe engine damage.

Very very useful to have it in the car and seriously mising it in m Wagon R now!!

[Red Liner]

So for cars that don't have it - is there something that can be fit that gives this information real time?

[bigben]

I have not missed the temperature gauge in the four and a half years that I have been using my Vista.
The temperature of the engine is displayed in the form of bars. In all my years of driving I have only seen 2 bars light up.
Just in case you miss the temperature bar graph, the instrument cluster also houses a high coolant temperature indicator that lights up the moment the engine becomes very hot.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

So for cars that don't have it - is there something that can be fit that gives this information real time?

One possibility is that if your car is an OBD-II classified (cars made from 2010) have a 16-pin OBD pet where an ELM 327 reader can be plugged-in and using the software (Torque PRO, Fun2Drive) can give you real-time information.

I am using it my cars even though my car has the temperature gauge.

Originally Posted by bigben

I have not missed the temperature gauge in the four and a half years that I have been using my Vista.

Just in case you miss the temperature bar graph, the instrument cluster also houses a high coolant temperature indicator that lights up the moment the engine becomes very hot.

I agree. When I the Ritz for 3 years which didn't come with the temperature gauge but a blue light - When engine is cold and Red light - when the engine is over-heating. Never saw the red light ever in my 1 lakh kms stint with it but the point is the temperature gauge is just a safety feature and a ready reckoner for all to get the fastest information from the engine regarding over heating.

Many drivers ignore the instrumentation warning lamps and keep in driving, the red light will be ignored and kept driven where damages would have occurred. Here the gauge could help in saving the engine.

Anurag.

[Raag Sandhu]

A comprehensive instrument cluster is a must have, especially if you live in a tropical climate like India or in extreme tempratures like the UAE. My new Chevrolet Tahoe has analogue dials for engine oil pressure, voltmeter, engine temp guage and fuel guage which I really appreciate as it helps me give a perspective of the benchmark of absolute performance in a new vehicle. Additonal info like tansmission temp, oil life indicator, TPMS, Gradual detereoration can be noticed on a regular basis and one can notice the behaviuor of fluids in varying load conditions. Its like the vehicle talks to you in real time by showing what its feeling at that very moment and its fun to notice and correlate any changes in readings when the vehicle feels sluggish on a cold morning or feels quicker on a cool evening. All in all, knowledge is power!

[humyum]

A temperature gauge is a MUST. If you drive your car everyday, you will know what the ideal coolant temperature is after it has warmed up. In modern day cars, in any type of condition ( traffic, highway, high revving action bla bla) the temperature of the coolant will never indicate anything more than the temperature you see everyday on the cluster as the cooling systems are always over designed.

With a temperature gauge, you can make out something is amiss the very moment the needle climbs even a little more than the everyday temperature and preventive action can be taken, if you did not have the temperature gauge you would have to rely on the high engine temperature light which comes on at a point when the engine has already reached high temperatures.

[arnabchak]

Originally Posted by Raag Sandhu

A comprehensive instrument cluster is a must have, especially if you live in a tropical climate like India or in extreme tempratures like the UAE.

+1 to your views.

I am of the opinion that the bare meters one should have are the Speedo, Tacho, ANALOGUE(preferably not even digital) temp meter and the Fuel Gauge.

All the above as analogue is desirable. Of late, I loved the simple yet classy console of the Hyundai Grand i10. Simple, classy, understanted.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by arnabchak

+1 to your views.

I am of the opinion that the bare meters one should have are the Speedo, Tacho, ANALOGUE(preferably not even digital) temp meter and the Fuel Gauge.

I hate the digital one but some cars have no gauge so the digital is fine but when it comes to the feel, analogue ones are the best, preferred and understood.

Anurag.

[arnabchak]

@Anurag

+1 to your views. The more the meters, the better for me ;-).

I drool the analogues and as you rightly said, if at all they have to give digital, will take it over not being given one at all!!

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by arnabchak

@Anurag

+1 to your views. The more the meters, the better for me.

I drool the analogues and as you rightly said, if at all they have to give digital, will take it over not being given one at all!!

Digitalization has taken the feel of rawness in the driving experience.

Gauge are an enthusiasts tool.

Anurag.