is the coolant temp sending unit the sensor that controlls the engine air/fuel ratios? or is it a combo of all of them

 

there is a separate sending unit for the temperature gauge and for the sensor that goes to the ECU. The one for the ECU, which especially affects cold start and cold running, is locatedon the back of the waterpump housing near the alternator.

air fuel ratio depends on a lot of factors, but most importantly the signal from the AFM (which determines engine load) and the o2 sensor (which controls AFR under cruising conditions but not under heavy load)

 

the one that is located on the waterpump housing is removable correct?

 

yeah. just be careful. ive actually seen someone crack teh housing because the sensor was stuck in and all rusty and what not.

 

ok so i know i have a good maf i know i have no vaccume leaks and im going to do the timing with a timing light and then try to replace that thermo sending unit...also will any other things throw air/fuel mixtures out of wack?

 

do you have a wideband?

 

nope not yet

 

Don't just replace it, check it to see if it's actually the problem first. Otherwise you could be wasting your time and money replacing a perfectly good sensor. At the very least you should check for error codes as suggested before, but the best way to check is to measure it's signal voltage at the ECU and compare it to the figures in the FSM.

 

ok. so how do you "know" that the air fuel mixture is off?