Hi my name is Brad and I am new to the site. Anyways, I have a 1997 Bonneville SSE with the 3800 Series II V6. I just bought it a couple of months ago with 68000 miles on the clock, but i am now notiving that it runs warm. The temp guage has the number 200 hundred on the middle of the dial, but the needle is always on the next mark after that, or a guess form me would be about 235-240 degrees all the time. Is that the normal operating temperature? I jsut replaced the termostat and fluched the coolant system, but it is still running hot!! Can anyone help me figure out what is wrong with it? Thanks in advance.

The notch after should be around 215-220. That is considered OK for running temps. It also could be a guage with a bad sending unit. My gauge always reads about 10 degrees higher than normal. If you don't feel anything lagging in the engine, then you are OK.

If you have the chance, get a hold of a scanner, and it will tell you the exact temp of the engine. There are two different sensors for that. One for your gauge, and one for the computer. The computer one seems to be right most of the time.

i had the same concern when i bought my 96 ssei. temp would go to 220 in traffic until the fans kicked on. put in a 180 thermostat and it runs cooler now but still goes to 220 in traffic. its normal.