Car runs too cool/intermittant autocheck annoyances

[SuffolkD@aol.com]

Phil:  I'd go one further on the cool running (temp) of the 200 20V.
My 200 20V runs ultra cool.  
Only when stopped in traffic will the temp get into the normal operating 
range.
I suspect the thermostat is partially open all the time.
this (theoretically) gets me:
Lower gas mileage.
Low boost on occasion like the MFTS symptom. 1.3 / 1.4 bar
Luke warm heat in the winter.

I would guess it would lead to engine life longjevidy (sp?) hence the reason 
why I haven't changed mine.

Flase alarms on the IC could be solder breaks in the cluster 
itself..............
-Scott by BOSTON

> From: Phil Rose <>
> At 1:55 PM -0700 10/22/05, Aaron Rosenstein wrote:
> >After a 5 year break from Audis, I got the bug again and picked up a
> >nice 91 200tq from a local seller. The car is in amazing shape overall,
> >and has less miles than my last one, but still ahas a couple quirks.
> >
> >I'm concerned that the engine seems to runn so cool. Unless I'm driving
> >around town slowly, the temp needle never get off the bottom three
> >lines, and my last car always ran just under half even on teh freeway.
> >
> >At the same time, I get the annoying intermittant overheat/water symbol
> >on the autocheck box,
> 
> Glad to hear people are still buying these cars! ;-)
> 
> Don't disconnect autocheck (especially when you might have a temp 
> gauge that's not working properly), but instead find and fix the 
> source(s) of the problems.
> 
> A defective MFTS (multifunction temp sensor) can cause both the low 
> temperature reading _and_ the gratuitous warning for low-coolant 
> level. If a bad MFTS is the source of the problem, the chances are 
> that the A/C compressor won't work and that the max boost is low 
> (e.g., 1.4 bar). Anyway, to test the MFTS, pull the connector off 
> (i.e., disconnect)  the sensor: if that's been your problem, then the 
> low-coolant warnings will stop (for sure), the maximum boost pressure 
> may increase (assuming there're no other problems) and the A/C might 
> work (if refrigerant pressure is OK). Of course the temp gauge will 
> be dead. Simple matter to then replace MFTS.
> 
> The brake pad warning goes off when there's an _open_ sensor circuit. 
> Fixing the brake pad warning is often just a matter of properly 
> shorting the sensor connector wires (if the sensor circuit been 
> defeated by a PO), or correcting a poor contact in one or both of the 
> connectors (if you actually are using pads with sensor connections).
> 
> Oil gauge warning could require oil pressure sensor replacement as 
> mentioned by Chuck.
> 
> Phil
>