1985-1998 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
>> Do you hapen to remember what size sender units you used?
Water temp: Mine is rigged with a tee arrangement from a C900 that fits on the top radiator hose. To my surprise, the hose for the 9K is slightly larger despite what I was told, thus requiring two clamps to ensure a tight fit. You can see the size disparity in the photo. I don't recall the C900 tee thread size, but it's in the neighborhood of 22mm, and needs to be reduced since VDO makes no senders this large. I installed a reducer to 3/8", I think it was, although it really doesn't matter, and then bought a 3/8" VDO temp sender. I took the tee to an industrial parts house and had them match up a reducer, then heliarched it to the tee and chrome-plated the assembly.
Oil pressure: I've been asked many times about the size of this sender, but the receipt (dated 1986) has long since disappeared from my files. Quasimotor recently added a gauge set to his '91 and I believe he told me it was a 14mm. I have used the same dual sender on three different cars, and it retains the use of the idiot light by having two electrical connections. A tee can be used, which would be cheaper since the dual sender is expensive, but I was afraid the copper tee would stress under constant engine vibration and eventually fatigue and break. But many people use these without incident.
Oil temp: Standard 14mm drain-plug replacement. Installation couldn't be easier, but do it when you need an oil change.
As for running the wires through the firewall, I drilled a hole near the shifter linkage, as nothing interfers on either side and is a good location. I have run wires through at the shifter grommet, but they must go OUTSIDE the grommet, not at a point where the moving shifter rod can abrade the wires. Drilling a new hole is the best idea, then filling with silicone. There's no need for it to be large unless you are running a boost-gauge hose. Remove the side carpeted console covers to gain access for drilling. It isn't difficult, at least wasn't on my '91 and '95.
Being a non-smoker, I employed the ashtray DIN slot for the 3-gauge panel, using the lighter connectors for all 12V and ground sources. The illumination for the lighter can be spliced into the number of gauges you have, as can the main power source and ground. I have five gauges, so for illumination I just took five wires and connectors for the gauges and hooked them into one connector to the car's harness. This must be done four times: 12V+, 12V -, illumination +, and illumination -. The boost gauge was the only one not requiring an outside power source, except illumination.
This isn't rocket science for anyone with a fundamental understanding of DC electrical systems, but is rather time consuming running the wires and splicing everything together.
Oh, one more thing: The oil-pressure sender may be a bitch to install if you use the dual sender. It is large with the nut portion UNDER the bulging body of the sender, making it accessible only with an open-end wrench. The hard part is getting such a wrench into that area, which is nearly inaccessible at the back of the engine under the intake manifold. You can't see what you're doing and must work by feel alone. My '95 was worse than the '91, and I had to go buy a 17mm crow's foot to access it with a ratchet and long extension. Nothing else would work, and even then it was a quarter-turn-at-a-time proposition, repositioning the wrench each time, taking at least 30 minutes of contortion and aggravation. I finally got it and it can be done, but it ain't easy.
Don't use any Teflon tape on senders!
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