xupkid2

Ive tried searching for threads on this but had no luck. I want to install an oil temp gauge but am not sure about a few things. I currently have a gauge but no sensor so I am thinking I should just buy a new gauge kit.

1) What gauge is recommended
2) Where does the sensor get mounted and how

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks
Brian

Jeff N.

I installed a VDO cockpit series I sourced from Egauges.com. For a sender, I got a cheap replacement oil pan plug from Napa and then had it drilled and tapped to a receive a 1/8 NPT sensor. Ran the wire carefully back up and thru the firewall.

Works well. Not too difficult of project.

Techno Duck

For my car, i picked up this drain plug from WRXTra. Its the same size as the one used on the 944 and tapped for the typical 1/8 NPT.

http://www.wrxtra.com/catalog/produc...products_id=29

The particular gauge i used was from SPA, they are dual readout digital gauges. There are a few different combonations, i chose the oil temp / water temp. They are very nice pieces of equipment, the resolution is pretty good and will tell you temperature to the tenth of a degree up to 200*F and to the whole number from there on. It also updates very quickly, basically in real time. They feature programmable high temperatures which will flash a very bright built in LED and can be setup to trigger an external action, be it audio or some relays. They will also record the highest values registered. The gauges are backlit and you can change between red or green illumination. Brightness is adjustable and they are no problem to read in direct sunlight and not overly bright that its annoying at night.

Installation and setup is very easy as everything you need to hookup the gauge is included, senders, wire harness..etc. All senders have weather sealed connectors and the main harness uses a molex connector for connection to the gauge for quick setup. The real nice thing is if you want to run seperate gauges you can go 2 in 1 and save some space, and installation is easy as you only need to tap into 1 12v source and 1 ground, no need to do separate connections for each gauge.







Personally i think these are a great option for temperatures. I like to have an analog gauge with a needle for values which are going to change over a wide range such as oil pressure, boost..etc because its easy to interpolate where you are quicky with just a glance. But for temperatures i think these digital gauges are the way to go, its no problem for me to do a quick glance at them to figure out where i am when i get to a straight portion of track. These gauges are much more expensive than the typical VDO / Autometer types, but you get a little bit more functionality from them which i think is worth while. If your interested in them, check out ScienceofSpeed.Com ... they have by far the best prices i have found.

edh

The problem with replacement sump plugs is that they don't have the tapered portion after the threaded piece that the Porsche one does - so you don't get such a good seal. I tried one & it leaked, so I got a standard sump plug tapped for the sender.

I also used a Greddy sandwich plate under the filter - fits easily & give you post oil cooler temps (I have the 2 senders switched to the same VDO Vision gauge).

xupkid2

Techno

Do you have any issues with leaking around the oil pan. I like that setup that you have but am concerned about th sealing that EDH mentioned?

Thanks for all the help

Jeff N.

I would agree that they tend to weep a bit. I solved the problem with a little teflon tape on the plug. My porshe plug has a magnet in it and I didn't want to drill that one.

Never checked if I could get one without the magnet - that would be the best source plug.

Techno Duck

I actually do have some leaking but its not from the drain plug around the pan, its the temp sender in the plug . I used Teflon tape which i do not think is up to the task.. i am going to use a high temperature / pressure thread sealant when i change the oil next. I had the same problem with teflon tape on my custom turbo oil feed line, the thread sealant fixed the leak.

hp18racer

I've done the same thing on two different cars, both work great, no leaks.

xupkid2

Excellent. Thanks much for the info. Sound slike I'll be going wih the WRX plug and then trying to find a sender unit and wiring for my existing gauge

Owain

The other place you can put the sender is drill and tap the banjo bolt for the oil return line from the turbo. That way you can keep the magnet in the sump drain plug. I haven't done much investigation into this yet, just read it in several threads on this board, but that's the way I'm leaning at the moment.

eyeball kid

EDH where did you source the greddy sandwich plate? Any downside to using post cooler temps?

Bri Bro

Did it both ways and I like the banjo method best. I had issues with the drain plug fit and I didn't like loosing the magnet in the drain plug. It was also a lot easier to route the sense wire to this side. I get slightly higher temp readings from the bango bolt side since the oil is coming out of the Turbo.

If anyone wants a drilled drain plug, just drop me a PM.

xupkid2

Hmm the banjo bolt is an interesting way. Does the sensor mess with the flow there at all? That would be my only concern. I have to remove that banjo anyways as Im doing a turbo swamp and replacing all seals and gaskets so it would be pretty easy to do

royj

For me, I used a VDO.

fortysixandtwo

I have mine installed in the banjo bolt. The thought of having to deal with unpluging the sensor and worrying about damaging it during oil changes seems like too much of a pain.


The problem with taking a post cooler temperature is that it does not give a full picture of the oil's condition. Sure, you'll know the oil's temperature going back into the engine but you won't know it's max attained temperature. Taking a reading from the pan, samples the oil after it's just been pushed and sheared through all the bearings and is at it's hottest state.