If you were recently driving your vehicle, wait about 15 minutes to let your engine cool down so you don’t burn yourself.
The location of your vehicle’s temperature sensor may vary depending on your make and model, but generally, it’s located next to your thermostat on your engine block. If you’re working on a truck with a large engine, the thermostat may be located behind the metal cylinder on top of the engine block known as the intake plenum. You’ll need a professional to remove the intake plenum without damaging your engine.
The connectors are used to plug the sensor into the wire harness. If the leads are touching you won’t get an accurate reading. Most temperature sensors have 3 connectors, but some may have 5. No matter how many connectors, always attach the leads to the ones on the outside to keep them spaced apart.
The cold water will serve as a reference measurement for your sensor.
The DC setting will give you a voltage reading that you can use to test your sensor.
A common reading for a temperature sensor in cold water is around 5 volts.
A hot water reading should give you around . 25 volts. [10] X Research source Make sure the cup you use is able to hold boiling water safely. Be careful not to burn your fingers in the hot water.
For example, if your vehicle’s temperature sensor is supposed to have around 5 volts in a cold reading, check your measurements to see if yours closely match the correct reading.
