temperature gauge?

i think my temp gauge is reading wrong, b/c it always seems to be running cold but when i pop my hood its hot as hell. when it gets really hot my car leaks, what appears to be water. but when i look to see where its coming from the only place i see that is wet is the "radiator coolant" fillup jug. this monday im going to flush my entire coolant system and look over all that i can. does anyone know whats goin on? or how i can test to see if my gauges are reading right?

If you think you have a leak, hook up a pressure tester. Works great. I'd also suggest to replace the stat while your in there.

which stat should i get? a 180 or a 160?

stock replacement! I believe HiFlow covered this subject on how cool low temp stats actually cool. You'll see more power at the stock temp cause thats what it was designed for.

aight thanks