Jack writes...
>My TR3 fuel gage has always been optimistic, staying at Full for a long
>time, after a fill up, and being nearly empty at a quarter tank. (No, I
>don't know exactly when it runs out, but I put 11 gallons in the 12 gallon
>tank, with over 1/4 full on the gage)
This is bad...you rather have the error the other way. :-)
>This weekend I was under the dash with my VOM and found that the fuel gage
>runs only 0.4 volts below the battery voltage. Since I have much
>non-original wiring behind the dash and since many other listers have had
>problems with, or been missing, voltage stabilzers, I figured I'd ask. Do
>I have a voltage stabilizer problem with a 0.4 volt difference, or am I
>just measuring a typical Lucas voltage drop across the terminal connections?
>The readings were 11.8V - fuel gage and 12.2v - battery. (nearly full tank)
Well...if you say that your car has non-original wiring we can't
really be sure what components are in there. But assuming for a
second that the fuel gauge circuit is similar to say, a TR6, then you
should be seeing something close to battery voltage being switched on
and off at the gauge. If your's is a rock-steady 11.8 volts then
something is amiss. Possibly the contacts are welded together or it's
just been bypassed.
>I seem to recall, maybe from the list, that the voltage stabilizer was
>supposed to bring the voltage down to 8-10 Volts, which means I have a
>problem.
You'll never read a steady 8-10 volts from the stabiliser. I have to
assume that these numbers are guesstimates based on the on/off cycling
of 12 volts. They must be derived from empirical data as I've never
seen them documented anywhere. :-)
>The $20,000 question. Where is/was this device and what does it look like?
As used in the Spit, it's a little tin can, rectangular in shape,
perhaps 1 1/2" X 3/4". Two terminals. Located at the back of the
speedo. Original wires would have been green and green/LTgreen.
>Thanks in advance.
>Jack Brooks
Cheers!
Tom O'Malley in Southbridge Massachusetts
'74, '77 Spits
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