# VW Beetle- coolant temp sensor

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/vw-beetle-coolant-temp-sensor/14899>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Created:** [June 5, 2008, 11:32pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/vw-beetle-coolant-temp-sensor/14899 "2008-06-05T23:32:04Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![kla351](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c4cdca/32.png) [@kla351](https://community.cartalk.com/u/kla351)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2008, 11:32pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/vw-beetle-coolant-temp-sensor/14899/1 "2008-06-05T23:32:04Z")

</div>

Car is my dad’s 2004 VW Beetle- attemping to replace the coolant tempeture sensor- comes out pretty easily, removed wire conection and then plastic retaining C clip and pulling sensor out like a plug- Now I can not get new sensor to seat the last quarter inch needed to get the plastic C clip over the ridges on the sensor-  
  
 Is there some trick or tool needed to get the sensor to seat? I tried forcing it by hand but no luck- still a quarter inch too high-  
  
 (Haynes repair manual on order but need help now)  
  
 Thanks in advance for any information.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/joseph_e_meehan/32/21_2.png) [@Joseph\_E\_Meehan](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Joseph_E_Meehan)\
**Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 12:44am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/vw-beetle-coolant-temp-sensor/14899/2 "2008-06-06T00:44:53Z")

</div>

It has been a while since I did mine. As I recall there is a gasket that may not come out with the old one. Make certain there is not an extra gasket there.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![kla351](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c4cdca/32.png) [@kla351](https://community.cartalk.com/u/kla351)\
**Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 1:30am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/vw-beetle-coolant-temp-sensor/14899/3 "2008-06-06T01:30:42Z")

</div>

I was looking for a gasket or rubber ring in the tube that the old sensor came out of but could not see one- I felt in the tube with my finger and could feel a rounded ridge that I figured sealed the sensor- didn’t feel much like rubber but maybe it was just old and hard- the new sensor did not come with a gasket so I was unsure if one was reqwuired- perhaps the ridge I felt in the tube is ment to be a permanent, nonreplacable seal? Am I just not appling enough pressure to force the sensor in?