yesterday, whilst on my home from work i noticed the esp light came on. i wasn't sure if i had hit the button by accident, so, i hit the esp button. nothing happened. i pulled over. shut the car off. turned the car back on. the light went out and didn't come back on. then, today, i was cruising home from work and looked down and noticed the engine coolant temp guage was on C. i had been on the road for about 20 minutes when i noticed this. i kept going and it then shot up to "normal" (for me that's right in the middle). it did this one more time before i made it home. a searched the board and decided it might be the ect sensor. but, then thought it might in some way be related to the esp light coming on yesterday? is this a coincidence? or, perhaps another warning sign? gremlins? i find it odd that these two things would happend in the span of 24hrs. i haven't had any problems with the car yet. also, there isn't a cel.

i am thinking that my best bet is to replace the ect sensor and see what happens. i looked thru the bently and it looks like it's in an easy enough place to reach.

does this sound like a smart first move?
any place in particular to get one from? dealer should be easiest, right?
is it time to invest in a vag-com?

tia!

 

buy a vagcom cable off ebay for 20 bucks to use... always a good tool

as for the esp light comin on n then goin off ????? does it allow u to control it now ... prob just a wierd electrical problem ... as for the ect my temp gauge is doin the same thing ... its it shoots from c to midddle instantly then its a connection problem if it stays on c and then take like 45+ seconds to get to the middle then its a sticky thermostat or the ect ... good luck if its the thermostat i hear its a pita to replace ... i dont know about the ect tho ... let me know what you find out on that and if it is an easydiy ... i heard on the thread i made that it wasnt good to let it rest on c bc you could crack the block from it warming up so fast after you have been driving it ?? not sure how credible that is tho

 

i thought you had to drop like $250 ona vag-com! that's great. thanks joe!

esp is working properly now.

i've got to get my hands on a new ect. prolly call the dealer tomorrow. i'll def keep you posted.

 

yea lemme know how u do the install bc mine is real screwy lately

 

one more update.

it was hot today here. first time in a while that the temp was over 90. so, i decided to go out this evening when the temps were about 70. once again, the temp gauge acted funny. it seemed to be working just fine, working it's way up towards the half way point. where it almost always ends up when i drive for extended periods of time. however, after 3 or 4 minutes of driving it was about 2/3 of the way to the half way point when it suddenly dipped almost back to C. then, it immediately recovered and shot back up. it went past where it was and all the way to the middle. there it stayed for another 15 minutes of driving. i pulled over and shut the car off for 20 mins. when i shut it off, the oil temp was at 200, the engine coolant temp was in the middle. when i turned it back on, the oil temp was 175, the engine coolant temp was in the middle. shouldn't it have dropped a bit? interestingly, it stayed in the middle for the next 20 minutes of driving. i'm not too comfortable with the accuracy of the gauge at the moment. and, i wonder if it's actually warmer than the reading it's giving. why won't it go past the middle? odd.

 

well these cars stay hot for a while so after just 20 mins thats normal ... during the winter here i go inside for a half hour and come out and my gauge still shows some heat when its about 20 degrees out

as for the dipping up and down is it instant shooting back and forth or does it creep back and forth like 45 seconds to ... if its instal its a connection and if it doesnt pray its the ect n not the thermostat

 

i spent an hour this morning trying to get to the ect sensor. after reviewing the bentley, i thought i'd found it. but, gave up when what i thought was it, apparently wasn't. i'm just going to take it in to my shop. the problem being the ect is just a guess on my part anyway. i don't have anymore time to spend on my own looking into it. :/

 

is i could help you and i hate to learn at your expense but could you tell me where it is when you find out lol