I have a 1988 Mercury Tracer, 2 doors with a hatch-back, automatic transmission. I purchased it new, and it has about 120,000 miles (I don't drive much!). I recently had the timing belt replaced, as well as the spark plugs, plug wires, and valve cover gasket. After this, I noticed that the temperature gauge was going up higher than normal. Normally, the gauge would only go up about one-fourth of the way, and now it goes up half-way, and this is when the weather is cold, and after only driving less than 2 miles. I told this to a friend of mine, an auto mechanic, and he then replaced the fan switch, thermostat (180 degrees), and the temperature sender. None of this has made a difference. He said I shouldn't worry unless the gauge goes three-fourths of the way up or more, and that the engine may be running hotter due to the replacement of the timing belt. I don't know anything about cars, but I'm really paranoid about the car overheating when the weather starts to get hot. Should I be concerned? What is the normal placement for the temperature guage? Is it normal for it to be half-way up when only driving less than 2 miles? Jean

Optional Information:
1988 Mercury tracer 1.6L