"Normal" running temperature question

[MattPro]

Always in the past my temp gauge would be stuck right in the middle, the temperature would hardly ever change once it was warmed up. Recently, after a while the car would start to run just a hair on the warm side, and if I gave it some gas is would go a click on the cold side then warm back up. Even though I guess there was really nothing wrong with that I decided to replace the thermostat, and it basically just flipped the behavior.
Now the car runs just a click past cold, and if I'm not moving it'll move up to the center line until I start driving again. It holds it stable at a click on the cold side when driving and holds it right in the middle when sitting.

Is this normal? I'm just a little worried because for as long as I can remember the car always ran right at the middle line.

Thanks.

[UserError]

Perfectly normal. The normal operating range is between the two ticks to the left and right of the center tick on the gauge. As long as it stays in there, and the coolant level is good, there's no problems. Wouldn't hurt to take a quick look for leaks all the same, though.

[MattPro]

Perfectly normal. The normal operating range is between the two ticks to the left and right of the center tick on the gauge. As long as it stays in there, and the coolant level is good, there's no problems. Wouldn't hurt to take a quick look for leaks all the same, though.

Thanks, good to know I shouldn't be worried about this anymore. I guess I'm just not a big fan of change.

[jlevie]

The needle resting a bit above the first tick mark while driving is normal. Some rise when idling can be expected, but that could also be a sign of a failing fan clutch.