Thanks for the write up. I did it in 30 minutes. Piece of cake.

Another thanks! I just got my 2006 2LT last week and 2 days ago, the temp gauge stopped working. "Sh**!", said I. Checked on the forum, and sure enough it's a common problem with a complete write up on how to fix it. I love car forums! I won't own a car now that doesn't have an active forum.

Mine went out last month @ 56,000 miles, It cost me $0.00 becuse of the 100,000 mile powertrain coverage that we all have. I sure hope everybody posting were out of warranty at the time of change. Love those warranties!!
VT

...I think my supercharger voided the powertrain warranty:nuts:

Nahhhh....... Ya think? :skull:

mebbe they wouldn't notice it....:roflol:

I guess one of the ‘good’ things about buying a previously owned vehicle is some of the ‘dumb stuff’ has already been taken care of.

I just went out and looked, the cooling system in my HHR already has the ‘green stuff’ in it.

I was planning on getting a jug of Dex Cool to top it off before winter but now I’ll just use the Prestone antifreeze I already have, if it needs it. Currently the coolant is right at the Cold level as it should be since the car has not been driven today,… yet.

Thermostat
 

:twothumbs: 2006 purchased new in sept 2006. 40,000 miles. It started when the outside temp dropped into the 40's.
I just did mine, took about an hour. 2.4 with oil cooler and auto. The stat was ok, the internal rubber / plastic seal was deformed. I got mine from Auto Zone for about $22. They read the code it was as everyone stated. They would not clear the code so I pulled the battery.
The car does run colder than stock - about 5 deg.
I will not go to Auto Zone due to their lack of help. I went to Pep Boysto get oil for my other vehicles. I was wondering if they had the stat. They had the stat. , it looked better made and and was only $4.00 more. I would suggest their stat.
:happyfacerainbow:

The check engine light went out but the remote start and a/c did not work. After I pulled the bat, all worked fine.

I wouldn't be to hard on AutoZone not clearing the code - I think someone posted something about them not clearing codes due to liability reasons. And I can kinda agree with that - too many people leave with an incorrect code in their mind and then do the wrong thing to fix the wrong problem as they get the codes mixed up. I don't how many times I have had friends/relatives say "I think the the code was ......"! Or, if the code refers to something safety-related and you had a problem, that would put them in a potentially liable situation. I have sometimes pulled codes for friends and neighbors - and cleared the non-safety related ones - if I encountered a safety-related one, I would not clear it either, and would advise them to book an appointment with a garage/dealer asap.

Clearing it by disconnecting the battery, or pulling a fuse that some have referred to, is not that big a deal.

But, glad you got it fixed and saved a pile of $'s at the same time. Good job man.

I used to fix radiators and other things like that for a living. I was always partial to Daniel brand thermostats and radiator things, but in the many years since I closed shop I’ve been buying other brands when I need one.

The last one I replaced was in the ’04 Neon. The replacement was made in Mexico and the dead one { which was stuck open so the engine did not get up to operating temp which caused the heater not to work} was made in China.

Neither had a brand name stamped in the metal so I don’t know which brand to avoid in the future. I did buy the replacement at the dodge dealer but only because I got it for $3.99 and was guaranteed that it would fit. The replacement came in a box that was just marked genuine Mopar parts. It came with a gasket tooboot.