Strange temp & fuelgauge behaviour

[Basoline]

Hi,

This morning I drove my car to work. Tempgauge was fine, fuelgauge stated about half-full.

Car was parked outside, nice sunny day. When I drove off, tempgauge went to "very hot" and fuelgauge went close to "full".

I have a extra Autometer tempgauge and that states 180F and I know nobody donated fuel so there's something wrong here...

Anyone has a clue? Earth problem?

Thanks!

 

[evanbrendel]

is your temp guage electrical or mechanic?

 

[69 Runner]

My first guess is the voltage limiter stuck. When it sticks it allows 12v to the gauges...which makes them peg.

 

[evanbrendel]

lol sorry i didnt read very good i saw autometer and it went strait to the autometer was reading wrong

 

[5wndwcpe]

My first guess is the voltage limiter stuck. When it sticks it allows 12v to the gauges...which makes them peg.

'Tis the first place I'd look .
:bunny:

 

[Basoline]

I had a new one placed from AC-Delco and it's an electrical. How can it stuck? Does this mean it's broken?

Oh, wait a minute...there's actual a seperate voltage regulator in my dashcluster?

Anyone know where to get these?

Thanks!

 

[69 Runner]

Yep. A small metal canister behind the cluster. It's a crappy mechanical device just like the regulator under the hood. And when the points stick.....BOOM....12vdc to the gauges. Usually it sticks for a few seconds then returns to normal. But if it sticks and STAYS stuck, it will burn up your gauges

 

[Basoline]

Well, everything working (still) works, it only states wrong values...Also, my indicator light are blinking fast.

My uncle is into stage-lighting and he helped me out getting some parts to convert it to full-electric voltage regulator (found it here:http://www.allpar.com/history/mopar/electrical2.html). Now I have to remove the dashcluster and I immidiatelly found myself stuck in this process, because how can I remove the knob from the temp lever? Aaargh!

 

[5wndwcpe]

Check underneath the knob, there may be a very small set screw holding it on to the lever.

ALSO The voltage limiter Runner is talking about knocks the voltage down to 5v from 12v. If it's not working properly you will fry your gauges. Swap it out pronto for a solid state piece such as this:

http://www.rt-eng.com/mediawiki/index.php/RTE_ABlimiter

 

[Basoline]

I know i know...

How come everything is still working then? I mean...if the voltage regulator is really broken, my gauges should've died yesterday when I drove home from work? It can't be half-broken...

Ok, it's a singlefield alternator and electronic ignition. Maybe the ignition needs a lot of "voltage" so my dash isn't getting the full 12v but less? Is that plausible? Heck I don't know...I'm just guessing and trying to understand.

 

[69 Runner]

I have never had one go completely dead or stick closed. They will usually stick and release. Stick and release.

(back, and to the left....back, and to the left...)

 

[Basoline]

So...soldered the components to the dash, put the dash back in (which is far more easy then removing it) and...it works!! Pictures below show how I attached the compontents to the dash:

 

[Basoline]

Damn. I was so happy everything worked out smoothly, I took the Coronet for a spin today. Backed up from the garage, drove around the corner and "pop" came from behind the dashboard, followed by a strange smell...

Don't know what happend exactly, but I think the voltage regulator exploded because of the heat. I don't know what else it could be, because everything was working fine...

What's the main-power-supply-line that goes to the dash and, what's the maximum voltage that could enter there?

Thanks.

 

[Basoline]

I talked to some people and it seems like there's been a shortcircuit. Take a look at the picture. There's a hole in the voltage regulator:

And yes, I used plugs to connect everything to the dash so it would be easier to remove than soldering... :grin:

Funny thing is that the first time it took me about a whole evening to figure out how to remove the dash. Now, it only took me 20 minutes (I learn every day).

I did the whole thing over again and now isolated the ends of the voltage regulator (should've done that in the first place). Haven't tried it yet on the road, but it works fine now. Keep you posted!

 

[Basoline]

So I drove a few miles today. Temp gauge works fine. Fuelgauge works fine...until you start driving. The needle goes with the flow of the fuel in the tank.

How can this be explained?