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Oil Gauges


Guest danny_samb

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Guest danny_samb

Hi all after a gauge for the car, don't know if I should have an oil temp gauge or oil pressure gauge, which would be the best thing to know, thanks

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The three gauges I would recommend are oil pressure, oil temperature and voltmeter. All are highly informative and are great early warning indicators potentially saving you money and from having to be trailered home! I'm currently putting my gauge panel together so I can get it on my car ASAP. Just need to get the oil temp sender replaced as it has gone open circuit sat in my garage for last 15 years unused!

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Guest danny_samb

I'm 100% getting a volt gauge and a oil pressure gauge, I want a temp gauge but don't know how I will get the 2 oil gauges onto the engine, I am running a standard 2 litre pinto engine

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Oil temp gauge sender could be a dipstick one, or fitted to the sump plug but the most common is connected to the engine oil galleries via a t piece to feed the pressure gauge/switch unit and the temp sender. I'm going the sump plug route.

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My view is that oil temp sender needs to be in main bulk of oil.

Fitting it to a T off the blind end that is the pressure sender will not give a reading that helps at all.

Fit to either the dip stick or the drain plug.

 

That said I believe that in a water cooled engine oil temp only gives any indication long after you could do anything about it other than a complete engine rebuild.

 

Ian

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Guest big kev

Time for a bit of a ramble! :blush:

I think an oil pressure gauge is a must.

Lost the whole contents of the engine on Bottom Bend at Brands, and switched off before the engine siezed, although the lead idium on the shells was spread like butter.

That saved a lot of dosh!

 

 

Oh so it's your fault our reserve bag of old nails fire engines keep blowing the bearing

Temp gauges are a different matter.

I have both oil and water temp gauges, but then I live in a warmer climate (generally) than the UK.

Also, the temp gauges tell you the same story but from differring perspectives.

An old guy (he was in his 80s when I was in my 20s) I knew, was a lecturer in automotive engineering and did his apprenticeship making bearing shells for Dennis fire engines, by hand; he told me the folowing (if my old grey cells recollect correctly) -

The principal of conventional internal combustion engine cooling is two fold:

The block, and usually the head, castings are cooled by the pasage of a coolant (usually water based), through galleries in the castings.

The temperature of the coolant gives a general indication of the mass of the engine's operating temperture.

The moving bits of the engine, and the bearing surfaces between those moving bits, are cooled by the lubricant (an oil formulation), so the oil temp indicates the state of the functional parts.

So, if all is going like it should, after an initial warming up period, the readings displayed on water and oil temp gauges should be close.

Where they might differ is when a problem occurs and one of the gauges gives you an earlier indication than the other.

How you interpret it and what to do other than stop, I'll leave others who may know more than I do about automotive engineering.

But if you have got both, like I have, you may get an earlier warning!

:hi:

 

Nearly forgot - air-cooled engines need an oil temp gauge!!! :rolleyes:

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If you don't have an oil cooler then there are 2 ways to get oil temp sender on a Pinto.

A sump plug adaptor that an oil temp sender goes in or an oil filter sandwich plate that is threaded for senders.

To work properly both methods will need an earth wire from the body of the sender as the sump seal and take off seal electrically isolate the sender.

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Guest danny_samb

I will eventually be getting an oil cooler so can't go down that route, so to fit the sender for the pressure gauge I could remove the original pressure switch in the side of the engine and fit a t piece andbfit the original pressureswitch and new sender to it, now for the temp sender I'm unsure how to fit to the dipstick or sump plug, could someone help me with that please

Thanks

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Guest mower man

I will eventually be getting an oil cooler so can't go down that route, so to fit the sender for the pressure gauge I could remove the original pressure switch in the side of the engine and fit a t piece andbfit the original pressureswitch and new sender to it, now for the temp sender I'm unsure how to fit to the dipstick or sump plug, could someone help me with that please

Thanks

To be honest an oil temp gaugeon a normal road car is not a lot of use ,if you had an all singing and dancing 10,000pound engine its worth the hassle. if the oil is getting warm enough to cause lube probs you have other issues , is the normal cooling system efficient ? is there enough capacity in the sump ? .For me, time spent ensuring air flow through the engine bay i.e. radiator ducting ,bonnet louvres etc is vastly more important than oil temp in our climate, fit acooler if you must but most road cars do with out.Pressure is far more imp, an engine will last quite a while with even hot oil but lasts no time at all with no oil pressure. Not everyone will agree these points but I back my opinions with considerable experience, spend your money as you will but the only engines to me worth putting an oil temp gauge would be air cooled HTH mower man :good:

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Guest danny_samb

I was thinking that you should be able to get a rough idea of temp from the pressure gauge, what connector would I need to connect the original pressureswitch and new pressure gauge to the engine, when I get the oil cooler I might get a temp gauge just to keep an eye on things,

Thanks

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If it a Pinto it 1/4 NPT, you will need the longer T piece as the presure sender is quite wide and only fits on the side of the T piece 1/8 NPT.

Oil temp despite what Mowerman says has been usefull to me, oil temp up with oil presure down means you are cooking the oil.

If you fit oil cooler later you can fit the oil temp sender in an adaptor.

I have recently re plumed the whole oil cooler system with larger bore pipe so have a complete Pinto setup, take off plate, inline thermostat, inline oil temp takeoff and 13 row cooler. If your interested send me your email.

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