oil gauge

[colin mee]

My oil gauge goes all the way to the red when I turn the ignition on and stays there when its running. But the warning light goes out any ideas.colin

[ElvisWedgely]

Oil gauge sender failing. New oil gauge sender is needed but before replacing make sure the wire on the back of the oil sender is not earthing directly to an earth (shorting).

Tony. TCB.

[KKson]

Also make sure it's the correct sender for the gauge as there are a few variants and one type of sender will not work with a dissimilar gauge.

[mrzigazaga]

Hi Colin...Are you saying it goes straight up to max when you put the ignition on...Not started?...Does it come down at all once warmed up?...Have you had an oil change recently and what oil did they put in.?...It could be a short but they are normally indicated by the needle reading nothing...Are any other gauges doing it or flicking?...Check the wires on the oil pressure sender..

Ziga

[colin mee]

It stays in the red when the engine is warmed up.going to check the sender tonight.

[TVRleigh_BBWR]

the sender for the gauge and the sender for the light are are different, so look like one is broken and the other is working ok. you could have the sender wire being shorted to earth also, this can cause this.

[colin mee]

It looks like the sender to the clock is the problem. Anyone have a part number for it.colin

[ElvisWedgely]

colin mee said:

It looks like the sender to the clock is the problem. Anyone have a part number for it.colin

How did you come to that conclusion? When you remove the wire from the back of the sender, does the gauge stay on zero with ignition on? When you earth the wire from the back of the sender with the ignition on, does the gauge shoot up past maximum? if the answer to both of these questions are yes, then it's most likely the sender itself is faulty.

When you do buy a sender, it may not necessarily be calibrated with the clock and may need calibration by the use of external spike resistors.

Tony. TCB.

[colin mee]

Bit simple I know but if I hit it with a screw driver the gauge goes normal for a second or two then back to max

[ElvisWedgely]

colin mee said:

Bit simple I know but if I hit it with a screw driver the gauge goes normal for a second or two then back to max

A primitive test but does sound as though it could be the sender.

Tony. TCB.

[mrzigazaga]

Hi Colin...You should be able to get one that is for use with VDO gauges...
Give Neil a call at ML performance...
http://www.mlperformanceparts.co.uk/product/oil-pr...

[colin mee]

I will try my local suppliers if no luck I will ring him.do we have a part number

[KKson]

I've got the new one that I got from David Gerald supposedly for a VDO gauge but now think my gauge is a Stewart Warner unit. When I tried it the gauge reading was only just registering. I thought the sender was faulty but never sent it back. In reality it might be that it's just not suitable for my gauge? Happy to post it over for you to try as a new one off Neil is around £60. Let me have your address via private message or just email it to [e-mail]. Cheers. Keith

[colin mee]

Just pm you.colin

[KKson]

colin mee said:

Just pm you.colin

Just messaged you back. Cheers.

[colin mee]

Just a update. Still no luck with the oil gauge showing max all the time.just ordered a new gauge if no luck I am going to convert to the pipe gauge instead. Any one else converted .been told they are more reliable

[KKson]

Colin, just been sat in the bath pondering life and TVR related issues. I doubt it but could it be the oil pressure relief valve stuck? Mine reads low and sometimes zero, even though the warning light goes off immediately. I bought an oil pressure testing kit and plugged it in. Pressure is fine from cold start and when warm. Might be worth asking a local garage to plug a tester in or even buy one yourself. It was only £17.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/0-100psi-NEW-Oil-Pressur...

[ElvisWedgely]

colin mee said:

Just a update. Still no luck with the oil gauge showing max all the time.just ordered a new gauge if no luck I am going to convert to the pipe gauge instead. Any one else converted .been told they are more reliable

Does the gauge still show maximum if you pull the wire off the back of the sender?

Tony. TCB.

[KKson]

Colin has tried the sender I sent him and gauge still reads high yet the same sender on mine read low. I looked through the wiring diagrams and it's a common feed to all gauges (fuse 9) so I'm assuming that if the other gauges are okay then there's certainly power to the gauge. The earth connection to the gauge I'm guessing is just for the illumination light. I wonder if the wire to the sender unit is frayed and earthing out anywhere?

[ElvisWedgely]

What most people don't seem to understand is that with any electrical measuring device the gauge has to be calibrated to the sender if you are going to get any kind of sensible reading. This can easily be achieved by the use of an in line spike resistor. I have done this on mine and it works fine. It's easy and cheap. What more can I say.

Tony. TCB.