Running hot problem v2... umm fixed?

[IIv SHaDoW vII]

98 Eclipse/ 420a n/t

Ok, now I replaced the switch that screws in under the thermostat housing that turns the radiator fan on and off... and the actual temp gauge sensor right under that broke off..
So then... I replaced that (the temp gauge sensor that reads how hot it gets on the cluster) and NOW it doesnt even run hot anymore.. according to the gauge..wtf?!?!?!?!

Could it have been a faulty gauge sensor all along.. I dont get it because at idle the radiator fan is still not coming on. Although, if it isnt getting hot enough I guess it shouldnt come on anyways... but the AC fan was on.. and I wasnt running A/C while it was on.. Any ideas?

 

[bvass]

If the car was running hot the previous owner might have rewired the A/C fan to run permanently in an effort to keep coolant temps down. It could have been a faulty sensor causing an incorrect reading. Did you drain/refill the system when you changed the sensor?

 

[IIv SHaDoW vII]

No but I will be doing that soon too


EDIT- Is there any reason this new sensor might be reading wrong or not screwed in enough? Because I let it idle just now...and there was NO change in temp when the ac fan came on, the temp stays a little under half, and the radiator fan still doesnt come on... And the A/C fan is hooked to stock and it came on after it idled for a bit, not when I started it.

I know the radiator fan is either broken or the relay needs fixed, but I just want to know why its not reading hot with the new sensor..

 

[Locke]

The fans should be kicking on to prevent it from getting hot enough to raise the needle of the stock gauge to begin with. Fix your first fan. The second may be running to keep it at an acceptable level. My fan kicks on and off at idle without the factory temp gauge even twitching.

Note that the factory gauge is not a precision instrument. It is really only for reading "too cold - good enough - too hot", and is not very reliable at even this simple function.