I would do the easy things first. Check to make sure your radiator
and or your AC condenser are not blocked or filled with debris
(sawdust). I had a plastic bag blow into my radiator and it blocked
the cooling air, but at a stop light it fell down and the engine
cooled off.
A clogged AC condenser could raise the engine temp if the AC is used.
If they are all clear, I would suspect a thermostat is sticking. They
are relatively easy to replace and cheap. Good Luck tracking down the
problem.

On 16 Aug 2006 12:38:47 -0700, "TTU" > wrote:

>Hello.
>
>Okay so this started yesterday night. My wife and I were on vacation
>and had our 2001 Explorer parked over at a friend's house after being
>dropped off at the airport. We came back and it was covered with
>sawdust (my friend had been doing a little wood cutting).
>
>So, we get in and drive home. About 1/4 home I notice that the temp
>gauge warning light comes on and the gauge itself it just about over as
>far as it can go. Now, I'm just about to look for a place to pull over
>when the thing starts dropping back down to the middle range.
>
>Okay, that was weird. It stayed there the rest of the way home (about
>another 30 minutes or so). So, this morning I get up to drive to work
>and about 4 miles from home it begins it's climb again. This time I'm
>watching it pretty carefully, of course. It hits the same point and
>after staying there about a minute, drops back down to the middle and
>stays there for the rest of the trip to work.
>
>It does climb a little when stopped at a light or something, so I'm
>guessing the wind from driving on the highway is cooling it a bit.
>
>So, my question is: Why does it climb to the high point in the first
>place?
>
>Sawdust? I'm guessing that's most likely the case and will clean it
>when I get home, but could the temp sensor?
>
>Any ideas suggestions are greatly appreciated.
>
>Thank you.