khagill88

I have a 2001 chevy malibu, 3.1 engine... I've been havin a problem where the temp gauge. In the car would go up to the half way mark like normal and after like 10 mins or so the gauge drop down and the car start running hard and after awhile it goes back up to the normal mark. I changed the temp sensor cause i thought that was the problem didnt fix it. I changed the thermostat didnt fix it... now the gauge wont go up to the half way mark it stay down. I dnt know what else to do... can somebody email me with help my email is khagill88@gmail.com

EinST

Welcome to the forum. You replaced the ECT sensor and the problem got worse? You probably have a break in the wiring that goes between the PCM and ECT sensor. Pull the electrical connector off the sensor and then measure the voltage across the two sockets on the connector with key on, engine off. The voltage on the YEL wire relative to the ORN/BLK wire should be 5V. If nowhere near 5V, pierce the wires before they go into the connector and then repeat the measurement. The break in the wiring often develops right around the bend, just inside the electrical connector. If that's the culprit, splice in a new connector (take care to seal the splices good).