'08 GP base 3800. back in early fall I did a coolant flush and decided to replace the tstat along with it. temp went from running halfway on the gage to 1/4 on the gage. in cab heat when from blaring heat to "meh." broke down earlier this week and thought possibly defective tstat. without testing it I dropped a new tstat in. same issue but temp gage is a bit lower than 1/4 and heat is still "meh."
what could be possible issues?
temp sensor?? water pump?? although when I've had a water pump goin it leaked or gage would start to skyrocket.

Its chilly here in Michigan, I'm old(er) and want good heat, dammit!