oh, by the way: Naturally the reading i got was at idle with engine running after I drove around a while.
While driving it does go lower than the guage reading i discribed...fluctuating between exactly the 180 mark, to what I now know is the 185 mark.

I also noted that when I turn the engine off, and the needle goes to 220 degrees, that nowhere on the engine or radiator can I register such a high temp...except on the exhaust manifold.

This sounds right yes?