David,
Here's a test that will cost you about $30.
Buy a "calibrated" mechanical guage. One that reads temperature in
degrees, rather than nebulous hot /cold.
Stick the probe in a pot of boiling water. Unless you live someplace
like Denver, that's 212F or 100 C.
Remove the bonnet and install the mechanical guage in place of the
electric sender and mount the guage some place that you can see
it. Note that if the mechanical sensor has a different thread than the
electrical sender you may have to go to the hardware store and buy or
make an adapter. I forget which brass adapter I ended up using, but I
did have to drill out the hole in it so that the sender would go
through.
Now go for a test drive. with your "calibrated" guage, you will be
able to tell just how hot your car is running.
Here's a question for the list:
It seems to me that the temp, fuel level etc. guages work by measuring
the current through a resistor. The higher the resistance (like the
rheostat in the fuel level sender, or the PTC resistor in the temp
sensor) the lower the current and the less the bimetalic strip in the
guage will heat up. The problem with this is that higher output from
the alternator/generator will result in more current and look like
lower resistance.
I know that some cars which have "real electrical systems", have what
is known as a "voltage stabilizer". I'm also certain that there is an
IC that costs less than $3 that'll take the varying 12-15V that comes
off the alternator and regulate it down to a constant 12V. Has anyone
done something like this to "feed" their guages, so that they work
consistantly (i.e. the apparant level of your fuel tank doesn't vary
with the mood of your alternator)? What parts did you use?
--
I've found something worse than oldies station that play the music I used to
listen to. Oldies stations that play the "new" music I used to complain about.
lrc@red4est.com http://www.red4est.com/lrc
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