Low Coolant or faulty gauge
I'm not a mechanic / technician but it sounds like your engine cooling thermostat is sticking open ( assuming that the electric engine cooling fans are not running continuously )
normally the gauge should be in the middle.(between hot and cold) that is concider operating temp.
The temp sending unit may be shorted to ground. Unplug the sending unit to see if the gauge drops to cold. If it does, you have a faulty temp sending unit.
This is a quote from a popular auto repair book:"It is rare for the temperature gauge to fail,but if it is erratic in operation check the lead from the (temp. sensor) switch for broken insulation and earthing.If the gauge reads maximum,suspect the sender switch(temp. sensor)." The switch can only be tested with an ohm meter or by substitution of a new unit.I just replaced my tem. switch and it didn't fix my gauge!So...
The temp sending unit on the engine could be unplugged or faulty.
change t.stat
Stuck open - no heat from heater, temp gauge hardly moves off of cold. Stuck closed - overheats engine, temp gauge quickly climbs to hot.
== == The one in the head is for water temp. It works the temp. gauge in the dash only. The one in the intake tells the computer to richen or lean the fuel. It does not have a choke to richen the fuel up when it's cold. It reads water temp. Hey I'm cold I need more fuel, so I can start.
fuel gauge stays on full and the tempreture does not move from cold on ford explorer 1998
if this is the problem where the engine warms up slightly and the temperature gauge jumps from cold to off the hot side, then this is a fairly common issue. it is most likely caused by a faulty temp gauge sending unit or poor connection.
The temp sending unit or gauge is bad, probably the sending unit.