Overheating
I've been working through a bunch of overheating issues on my '99 2.0. Had it for a couple of months & am still sorting stuff out.
First question--is it really overheating, or are you getting a spurious flashing light? Ck your owner's manual, but I was under the impression that the coolant level sensor can throw the red flashing ligt--so if the sensor or wiring is bad, that might do it. A Vagcom check will tell you the actual coolant temp.
Does the radiator feel hot top to bottom?
Re: the thermostat, take the old one and put it in a pot of boiling water. Hold it off the bottom of the pot with a wire so you don't fry it. If you have a digital kitchen thermometer, stick the probe in the pot (off the bottom). T-stat should hold water when it's cold, and it will drain through when >87 C if a tstat is good. So even without a thermometer, should open in boiling water as long as you live below about 6500' altitude.
BTW, Prolly not your problem, but I had a heck of a time getting the air out of the heater core and lower radiator when I changed coolant. Lower radiator air was causing the fan switch to stay cold even though the coolant was hot. Finally ended up jacking up the right side of the car, massaging hoses, changing engine speed, and bleeding the lower radiator valve. Strange that there would be air low in the radiator, but there must be a baffle in the side tank to separate the upper and lower chambers.
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