Forum:
Randomly during driving my water temperature gauge jumps about and sometimes drops to cold, other times it behaves normally, sitting just below half way. I thought that it could be a loose connection but I have since noticed that when accelerating engine speed or opening the throttle, the dial comes back to life somewhat.
Any ideas what could be wrong, I have driven about 250 miles since I first noticed the problem, the rest of the car seems fine, but I don't want false temperature readings!
Thank you very much
Does the fuel gauage function correctly?
Does the fuel gauge function correctly?
I ask this as both the fuel and temp gauge are supplied by a voltage regulator on the dashboard PCB - it looks like a metal covered relay.
On my Fourtrak both gauges go erratic, and giving the dashboard a good thump fixes it for a bit!
1985 Veg oil burning Fourtrak "Rocky".
Fuel gauge behaviour
The fuel gauge certainly does not go bizerk like the temperature dial, and it seems to be reading correctly over 150 miles so I'm quite confident it is okay. I'll have a look at the wiring diagram for the sportrak, if I can understand any of it! I'm just confused that it seems to work better when the engine is working harder (the change is imediate, so cannot be due to more heat when worked harder)
Thanks
Check the wiring on the
Check the wiring on the temperature sender as these often come loose and the connection between the wire and push on connector becomes inhibited through corrosion.
The temperature sender is basically a variable resistor so if you pull the wire off and hold it to a clean earth the gauge should go right to the top of the temperature, as soon as you release it, it should drop right back to cold.
Thanks assassin, I'll have a
Thanks assassin, I'll have a go at this tomorrow, do you know if the thermostat is easy to locate?
Can someone tell me where to
Can someone tell me where to find the temperature sender on an EFI sportrak? It doesn't appear to be where it is on the diagram in the manual :s
Thanks
Thermostat
I suggest you first start at the obvious and change the thermostat. The wax could be sticking as it opens/closes. The changing coolant temp could be the fluctuating coolant temperatures.
Strange...
Just thought I'd update quickly. I thought I had fixed the problem by giving the engine earth contacts a bit of a clean. Following this the dial behaved normally for about 2 weeks but now it is back to it's random antics!!
Something I thought was interesting is that the dial sits pretty much in the middle when idling, and revving it makes little difference. However when put under load, just gentley letting the clutch up, it drops down. I wondered if any of you guys had any idea of what could be the cause of this strange correlation?
Thanks