I've had problems with my oil temperature gauge from the day I bought it and thought I'd ask here as I'm lost now. I'll try to explain as best as I can.
Initially I fitted the sender above cylinder 3 as suggested everywhere using the fitting kit from Scooby Parts. Once it was all hooked up I wasn't getting a reading on my gauge, no matter how long I drove the car. I figured it was a duff sender, so I fitted a new one. Still no reading. I tried a third sender, this time a 2 wire one and still no reading.
Guessing that it wasn't a sender problem I tried a new gauge. Still no reading. I borrow a third gauge, just in case. Still nothing.
I then tried one of the single wire senders in a sandwich plate. Presto, a reading!! Only problem was that the gauge was reaching temperatures of 130 degrees!! This is obviously ridiculous, but left it there until my next oil change as I figured any kind of reading was better than no reading at all.
Come oil change time I whipped the single wire sender out of the sandwich plate and fitted a 2 wire sender. When the engine was started it leaked quite a bit, so I tightened it a little but went a bit too far and snapped the sender! Oops!!
I obviously removed the sandwich plate and have binned it as I chewed the thread up with the new sender.
I've now tried the sender above cyliner 3 again (as it's still there!) and this time the gauge went up to max temp straight away! After about 15 minutes the needle moved, very quickly, back to 0 degrees and didn't move from there.
Here's the sender above cylinder 3:



Does anyone have any idea at all as to why it refuses to work above cylinder 3?
I'm thinking of getting a sump plug adaptor if I can't get it working from cylinder 3, is this a good idea or not?

 

It takes a good 5/ 10 mins to start moving on a gauge, is it wired in right?

 

I drove for about an hour today and got nothing. It is wired in right, yes.

 

Connections OK? Tried earthing the sender body to the engine block?
Sender OK?

 

Connections are good, I haven't tried earthing to the block but can give it a go (I assumed that the sender would earth itself is the adaptor?)
Not sure on the sender being ok, but it's had three different senders in there, none of which worked.

 

More importantly, what gauge is it?

You wont be able to mix and match sensors and gauges unless the scaling etc is right...

 

Really? I never knew that, I thought a sender was a sender!
It's a Prosport gauge. It was the Prosport sender that broke in my sandwich plate, it felt a bit pants before I fitted it!

 

Unless you get one with the same scaling etc it wont work, as you found out with it reading 130degrees, or not at all....

The one reading 130degress you could put a resistor in to match if you knew the scale of the gauge and the sensors.

Just to add - you can find out by getting a pan of engine oil and a camp stave and a calibrated thermometer gently heat the oil with the sensor in while reading the resistance readings at certain temperatures.

Once you know this, plug it into the gauge, and see what the gauge reads while checking the temperature, you can then correlate the two and work out what resistor you need

 

Unfortunately, I started reading that and just saw Matrix code!!
I think the easiest thing would be to get another Prosport sender and not be so violent with it this time!

 

My advice?

Ditch the prosport gauge, they arent the best anyway....

 

I only got them at Christmas, I'm not going to replace them all already.

 

That's your choice mate ☺

The fact you are struggling to get them to work properly already is wrong imo and decent kit should work straight from the box

 

As above, most senders are gauge specific.

You've done the hard bit, fitting it where it should be, get a new sender.

 

Sorry if that came across a bit ****ty, I'd just woke up and had a moany wife going on at me when I replied!

Anyway, I've ordered a new sender and will fit it when it turns up. I've not tried the Prospothegauge with a Prosport sender yet, so hopefully this will be the end of my oil temp gauge woes!

 

You would be surprised. The sensors aren't gauge specific, most are actually exactly the same. Assuming the scale is correct you just cut the plug off and join it to your gauge


Greddy and defi sensors are exactly the same, the only difference is the final plug into the control unit for example....

 

I suppose...but when I said gauge specific, I meant for the average Joe. Plug and play.

Most folk shy well away from soldering.

 

This is true, and most wouldnt even own a low ranging multi meter

 

I can't believe that the wrong sender was my problem all this time!! I fitted a new Prosport one today and not only is it working, but I'm getting a proper reading!!



Thanks for the help peeps, I'm well happy now!

 

There you go.

Scoobynet strikes again.

 

It certainly does, I'll have to start posting here more often.

 

They're alright typically although I'll give the boost gauge a few months before the sender packs up - they are total ****, never had one last more than 7 months; the official resellers for Prosport now sell "water resistant" sensors - apparently the standard ones aren't designed to resist conditions in the engine bay I'm told.
Fit for purpose then...

 

My boost gauge sender is in the cabin, so will hopefully last a bit longer.

 

As is mine, just inside the bulkhead, Been running for a year now with no issues are all.