HELP! '99 overcooling, 2.2L, 5-speed

[Ironman63]

I have a 1999 pickup with a 2.2L engine. When I drive,the temp guage will get up to around 195 then it drops back to 150-160. The heat is also cool. I have changed the themostat twice, the radiator cap, changed the coolant twice, all the hoses, and flushed it out. The fan clutch is not locked down. It also wants to skip at times when it has dropped from operating temp. I don't know what else to try. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[blacksmith76]

are you sure 195 is the correct operating tempature? I don't believe my 95 runs that hot. My temp gage always sits at 1/4 up and that is normal. As far as the no heat I'm not sure maybe the heater core(coil?). Does your fan clutch keep spinning after you shut off the engine?

[Ironman63]

I finally have it figured out. It had to be a plugged heater core. I replaced the thermostat again(with a Stant this time) and while it was getting warm, the heater was also warm. I drove it and the further I went, the cooler the air got and the lower the temp gauge got. I reread blacksmith's reply about the possibility of lack of heat being the core. So I did a search here and found one about a plugged core and how they flushed it backwards. I took the hoses off both sides, and flushed it from the outflow side until there was nothing but clean water running through then hooked everything back up. I cranked it and let it idle until the thermostat opened and topped off the radiator. The temp hand went up to where it used to stay(first time in a while) and I have better heat than the last 2 winters. I drove it again and it did great. Good, hot heat, and the temp gauge didn't drop back down. Thanks, blacksmith, for the help. I guess now my only question is how could a plugged heater core affect the temperature gauge? It seems to me that if it was plugged, it should run at temp or a little higher due to no water passing by it. If someone can answer this, I would appreciate it just to satisfy my curiousity. Thanks in advance.