re: Car- Outside Temperature Indicator

My 2009 Silverado’s sensor was located behind the front grill near the radiator. I had it changed once due to inaccuracy, but the replacement gave the same readings so I just gave up. I think they all read a few degrees hotter than actual temp.

The concrete/asphalt your car sits on will always make it a few degrees hotter

Ambient air temperature sensors are usually located behind the grille on a car, but sometimes are mounted near the wiper cowl or behind the bumper.

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I had it changed once due to inaccuracy

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Man, that outside temp must be pretty important to you.

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Man, that outside temp must be pretty important to you.

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Or people just like it when their shite works properly.

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2004 Mercury Grand Marquis

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Straight pimpin

I think on days like this summer those readings should just default to hot as frick and be done with it

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True but mine even shows wrong under my carport......
Really curious about where the sensor is located.

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My vehicles sensor shows temps like that regularly while under the shady carport too. It is because the sensor is within a couple of feet of the hot assed driveway that catches full sun and is actually that hot. Driveways, like roads and buildings are great heat sinks, and this causes unusually high temperature readings.
That is the same reason why it is important for weather stations to not be located right next to concrete, even though there is an inordinate amount of them that are these days, thus skewing actual temperature data for a region.

Most thermistors are located low up under the front bumper/bumper cover.

They are inherently not the most accurate of instruments, and are usually mounted close enough to the tarmac to read a little high from the radiant heat of the road surface.

They work by measuring resistance. At x resistance reading, it thinks it's x hot. But yes, they are known to be a degree or so off even before you take radiant heat from the road surface into account.