Temp rises quicker than it normally has

Iratherbfishing · June 8, 2019

New here. I have a 2011 Colorado z71 2WD 3.7L 5 cylinder engine Automatic Trans Crew Cab 73225 miles on it.

I have owned this truck for 5 years now. It had 47500 miles on it when I purchased it.

She is Garage kept, Hand washed once a week.

I have the oil changed once a year.

She is driven two to three times a week. Usually about 5 to 10 miles each time.

The only repair I have had to do to her is replace a faulty battery.

Has anyone had this problem or similar problem?

A few days ago we had to make a long trip. 120 miles round trip.

After driving 62 miles we stopped in a parking lot.

While there It began to rain. I noticed steam coming off the hood. I felt the top of the hood and it was extremely hot. I opened the hood and the engine area was also extremely hot.

The radiator was hot but I could put my hand on the top of the radiator for a second or two and not get burned.

The heat from the hood was turning the rain to steam. The temp gauge was just below the 1/2 way mark.

I had driven her over 1000 miles at one time in the past and never seen this before.

Upon arriving home I parked her in the Garage.

6 hours later I went to start her up when I noticed that the Temp Gauge was already at 1/4 before I even starter her up.

This is after she was sitting in the garage for 6 hours.

The Nest day I went out to start her. The Temp Gauge read 0. However it climbed to 1/4 in about 3 minutes. This normally would take about 10 minutes.

Less than 5 minutes later the temp gauge was reading just below 1/2.

This was all at Idle. Not driving.

This is not normal for my truck. Normally it would take about 20 minutes to reach normal operating temperature. While driving.

The check engine light has never come on.

The first thing I suspected is the Coolant Temperature Sensor is malfunctioning or not working. Since the Check Engine light did not come on.

I bought a new one. Just in case. I then unplugged the old one and tested it with a multi meter. I found no short. I did find a small amount of corrosion on the female plug that it plugs into. I cleaned it out with Electronic Cleaner spray and a dental tool.

I then put it back together and tested it out. The heat gauge climbed a little slower taking 5 minutes to reach 1/4 and about 12 minutes to reach less than half way. However this time it didn't go as high. it stopped between 1/4 and 1/2 way. I then turned on the A/C and it climbed up a tiny bit but still less than half.

When I purchased the Coolant Temp Sensor I also purchased a Thermostat and a water pump just to be safe. ( I can always return them if I need to)

I tested the fan clutch by trying to spin it by hand. It moved a little but would not spin half way around.

I checked for coolant coming out of the water pump but found none.

The upper radiator hose does get hot when the engine is running.

I hooked up the OBD II scanner and got no error codes.

I checked the coolant level and it was full. None had leaked out.

I took her to several auto parts stores in my area until I found one that could check her out with a better OBD II scanner then the one I have.

Theirs showed an error code of P0113. Air Intake Temperature Sensor

I replaced the Mass Airflow Sensor.

We drove around for a couple of hours.

The engine area was very hot but not extremely hot as it was before.

The Temp Gauge is still climbing faster then it normally does. However it is now stopping lower then it had the day before at 1/2 way.