Temp goes up and down, whats up?

I got a 97 Rs and the temp needle goes up after 5 min while the car is sitting, not high enough to be considered over heating but a bit above normal? it usually goes down after i hit the gas or sometimes on its own. when i drive its ok. My concern is that its winter now and once summer comes it will over heat. is it a serious problem or just a faulty gague? Thanks -Rob

I would check the condition of your radiator, make sure it has fluid and it's still good. Check the thermistat aswell.

the waterpump may be having trouble as well.

yah i would start with the thermostat first and make sure it is opening properly, if thats not the prob then u could prob get your radiator flushed and tested for not to much, the last thing i would look for is the water pump seeing is its prob harder of the posible solutions to do.

dude if i was you I would check all the this answer, this guys gave u good answers. Last week my car blew the head gasket
Is was working fine. Out of no where the temp. shot up high i stop as soon as i could but all the oil had spill already

yea, and if that water pump goes your screwed if you dont catch it immediatly, just like talon96 i blew my head cause the water pump suddenly just stop working, no warning whatsoever..........

If you are sure the temp goes up when stop and goes down when the car runs,
i think the problem is pretty much the radiator fan is not working right.

The fan should kick on to when temp goes to a certain level.
If the fan is not working, the temp will go up for sure.
When the car is moving, the air flow is much faster than it's stop.
That's why the temp goes down when you hit the gas.

That's my opinion, just FYI.

It just needed a coolant flush. Thanks for the help -Rob