Water temp gauge, oil pressure gauge no workie

[ltho98]

Okay, i've about lost my mind trying to diagnose my non working water temp and oil pressure gauges.

I have a jdm motor and instead of the oil pressure sender being located next to the oil filter, its located on the lower left hand corner of the head, looks like its tapped into some channel or something. So i just routed a wire from a broken one near the oil filter, assuming that wire is supposed to goto the oil pressure sender to the pressure sender up by the valve cover-- nothing.

Also, water temp doesn't work.. once in a rare while when i floor it, the gauge will spike to hot, but other than that it just sits at cold. I've checked the voltage output from the ecu on the temperature sender in the t-stat housing when the car is on.. and it reads 0V.

When i have the car hooked up to a data logger it shows coolant temp and looks normal, but the gauge doesn't seem to be working, is there a temp sender for the gauge?

 

[GTM]

Originally posted by ltho98
Okay, i've about lost my mind trying to diagnose my non working water temp and oil pressure gauges.
...

Also, water temp doesn't work.. once in a rare while when i floor it, the gauge will spike to hot,
...

but other than that it just sits at cold. I've checked the voltage output from the ecu on the temperature sender in the t-stat housing when the car is on.. and it reads 0V.
...
is there a temp sender for the gauge?

Yegads, what did they do to you?

First that oil sending unit is questionable if I understand it's location on the head. Someone correct me if I'm wrong but the oil to the head is metered to max of 37 psi and not crank oil pressure at 70(?)

You can test it with an ohm meter to see if its working but I'd try to get one in the proper location on the filter housing.

There are both sensor and sender on the tstat housing, you want the sender which controls your gauge, it will be a single wire with a spade lug terminal.

Using a test light to ground and the terminal wire off, key on, probe the wire. The light will glow and get dimmer as the gauge will slowly climb to max. If this does not happen you have a problem with the gauge or the circuit. Hooking test light to + you can test the sender though less reliable than an ohm meter and the unit off the car.

Using the test light to ground you can check the oil pressure gauge just as you did with the water though the light may be brighter but will dim as the gauge climbs.

Almost forgot, have you checked the water level in the engine and does your heater blow hot air?

Let us know your findings.

Cheers,
GTM

 

[ltho98]

Yes, i am getting hot water through the heater core, as it keeps me warm on those sub-zero nights and i know i have water in the system because i have to check and fill it up every few days.

Yet another problem-- my car leaks coolant when its stopped. Looks like around from the resevoir area, might be lower coolant hose too-- i have no idea though. One nightmare at a time

Edit:
So i pop my hood and look at the t-stat a bit closer.. there's one sender w/ two wires green/yellow and black/grey. I look a bit lower and there's a second sender, but there isn't any wires but four vacuum lines that come out and goto the throttle body.. now i'm confused.

 

[GTM]

Originally posted by ltho98


Yet another problem-- my car leaks coolant when its stopped. Looks like around from the resevoir area, might be lower coolant hose too-- i have no idea though. One nightmare at a time

Edit:
So i pop my hood and look at the t-stat a bit closer.. there's one sender w/ two wires green/yellow and black/grey. I look a bit lower and there's a second sender, but there isn't any wires but four vacuum lines that come out and goto the throttle body.. now i'm confused.

The water leak you can track down, put a piece of newspaper under the car weight with rock, catch it in the act. Or get bike pump and pressure test system to 15psi.

Hmmm, got to be a _single_ wire down in that mess some place. You just have to keep looking. Find where the other 2 enter the loom got to be there some place. If broken butt splice another piece.

Cheers,
GTM