modifying the padded temp gague to be accurate
modifying the padded temp gague to be accurate what im tring to do is figure out what id need to do to make the temp gague im my 02 t\a be fairly accurate... ive heard their intentionally in accurate on the 99 and up modles so can i just buy a 98 's gague and slap it in to fix this problem??? im kinda lost on this one what do i have to replace to fix the gague it seems pritty dumb to have a dummy gague in our cars and id really like to know my coolant temp.... or can i modify the current gague to be more accurate???
Launching!
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 293
Likes: 0
From: TX.
Originally Posted by Jpr5690
what im tring to do is figure out what id need to do to make the temp gague im my 02 t\a be fairly accurate... ive heard their intentionally in accurate on the 99 and up modles so can i just buy a 98 's gague and slap it in to fix this problem??? im kinda lost on this one what do i have to replace to fix the gague it seems pritty dumb to have a dummy gague in our cars and id really like to know my coolant temp.... or can i modify the current gague to be more accurate???
in 98 they ran the gauge strieght off of the temp sensor, in 99 and up they ran the gauge off of the pcm that runs off of the temp sensor.
you mite can disconect the signal wire from the pcm to the gauge, and conect ( T- it off )that wire to the wire off of the temp sensor that conects to the pcm from the temp sensor.
Launching!
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 293
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From: TX.
Originally Posted by Jpr5690
to the top again! cant anybody chime in on this one? am i the only one bothered by a faulty gague? can anybody seccond cueball's idea of shed some light on the install
to slow gauge movement, and to not show fast temp fluctuations.
i have not tried it yet but i will look in to it, it kinda just popped in my head as i was reading your post.
i will pull out my schematics and go over it to see if it can be done.
i think it mite work just will probably have to use a diode to prevent the resistance of the gauge to alter the ohms reading from the temp sensor.
i am off work now so i will do it tonight.
thank you ... i am suppose to be running in the 170s according to what most post up but mine reads 210 id like to see if flucuate the idea of a dummy gague really makes me mad (id expect it in a caviler but the fbods are peformance cars we want to see realtime stats.. or atleast i do)
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cueball before you go too far i got a guy whos lisening in and he says the gauge is digital therefore wont be able to be modifed as easily ay you say SLOW mabye you wanna chime in and you 2 can put together your think power and we can work this out theres gotta be a way i know the good ole boys at gm didnt go too far to make this change its gotta be something simple i mean common were talkin gm!
Launching!
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 293
Likes: 0
From: TX.
Originally Posted by Jpr5690
cueball before you go too far i got a guy whos lisening in and he says the gauge is digital therefore wont be able to be modifed as easily ay you say SLOW mabye you wanna chime in and you 2 can put together your think power and we can work this out theres gotta be a way i know the good ole boys at gm didnt go too far to make this change its gotta be something simple i mean common were talkin gm!
i know, the gauge is not digital, the serial data module in the gauge cluster is.
i am bypassing that, i have a schematic of the 98 f- body gauge cluster, and
ect circut.
i also have the schematics of the 99 and up f- bodys gauge cluster, and ect circuts ( v6, and v8 ).
when i am done i will do some test runs and keep you posted
and if all is good i will post the mod and what / how i did it.
hell yea i cant understand what you just said but keep at it if ya solve this you da man i mean hell many have tried to fix this problem with no luck... ive been doing some searching and this is a long standing problem
Launching!
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 257
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From: Fort Carson, CO
I installed an Autometer temp gauge(electric) in my t/a. It really isn't that hard, you need a special fitting to screw into the head (i forgot the size now). There is a spot you can tap into on the head by the #8 cylinder. (far back, passenger side) My gauge is mounted nice and pretty next to my TCS button. We actually cut out a hole where the pontiac symbol is on that little plate. Looks nice and clean.
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,889
Likes: 1
From: Lincolnton, NC
There isn't any way to rig the factory gauge to read real time. You cannot bypass the pcm. The pcm needs the input from the sending unit to know what is going on. Additionally, the the factory gauge is not accurate in it's movement. It is programmed to stay at 210 and not move up unless the pcm gets a reading from the sending unit that exceeds preset limits. It will never go down from 210 unless you turn the car off for a prolonged period of time. If you want an accurate reading from your factory guage you will need to either have a pcm whiz reprogram your computer (which I doubt is doable) or change your pcm out with a '98 unit which is not desireable too. I just put a gauge pod in with a water temp meter and said screw it. The real time readings that I get indicate that I run around 190deg mostly and 200deg stop and go rush hour. This is while the factory guage stays at 210deg. I have only hit 210deg once and that was on dyno day.
humm hopefully cueball can solve this he says hes close so i for one am gonna just wait it out my next best alternative will be a 3 gague pillar with an autometer phantom gagues but i just hate the fact of having to add another gague to read what the stock one should ..... common cueball !!!!!
Launching!
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 257
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From: Fort Carson, CO
Originally Posted by BigPlanTransAm
Drew, the thing with that is who wants kick out the $$$ to buy a new temp guage when they already have one with the potential to be just as good?