Long story short my car was overheating. Overflow tank was empty and had bit of a leak from the hose going to the radiator. Fixed that, added coolant to the tank and all was well. Couple days later all of a sudden my Temp Gauge is reading high but it was also intermittently twitching so to speak. So I put in a new Sender but that didn't fix that problem. The car is definitely NOT overheating so I got a gauge from AAP.

Question is:

This gauge can be installed as a mechanical gauge or wire it. Since I suck at even the simplest wiring I'm wondering if maybe using it as a mechanical gauge is better than wiring it or does it matter?

I'm gonna be scratching my head wiring the light bulb to it... lol

 

Most of the guy's I talk with would use the mechanical gauge. This way you get a reading with or without power. You need to be careful not to crimp or kink the tube coming from the gauge to the motor. This is how the gauge works, by expanding gas trapped in the tube.

 

Okay that's cool. No pun intended. Instructions say to make a 3" loop also when putting it through the firewall. I'm assuming that "loop" would be next to the firewall in the engine bay or just anywhere? And I'll probably use some zip ties like I usually do to keep it clear of things but I'll do them somewhat loosely. The instructions kinda suck. I'll probably just wire the light in it like my fan switch to the fuse box but to the lights and not worry about the dimmer stuff. That sh*ts to complicated for me. If the bulb burns out IDC they're cheap right... lol

 

Yes you would put the loop inside the engine compartment after running it thru the fire wall. This is for expansion and contraction caused from the engine warming up and cooling down.

 

thanks man...

also the only good place i see to mount the gauge is with the housing it comes with screwing it right underneath the two main center vents left justified and having it face towards me. then run the lighting wires and the capillary tube between the gauge cluster panel and bottom of the dash if i loosen those lower panel screws i can get the tube with it's adapter fitting through there and tighten it back up. there's just enough space there right in that upper left corner atop the radio and controls panel. idk if that makes sense or not.

So then.... there's usually some existing holes in the firewall of cars to route stuff through but i don't see any on this car . do you have any ideas where to route this Capillary tube through the fire wall? has to be about a 1" hole to get this through. OR... maybe smaller if i disconnect the tube from the back of the gauge then run it through from the engine bay and reconnect it to the gauge but i'm kind of scared to remove that.

 

Don't do that with the tube if it is anything like the ones I have installed it will ruin the gauge.

 

You might have to drill your own hole for the bulb of the gauge to fit through. Don't forget to run the bulb and tube through the mounting bracket first.

 

Don't do anything like that with the tube! If it is like the ones that I have installed it will ruin the gauge. You might have to drill one whole in the fire wall for the bulb of the gauge to fit through. That

 

alright well the good news is i found the wire harness that goes through the firewall right underneath the steering column. took the grommet out and it's a split grommet so just gonna be a matter of getting the grommet back in around the wires and the capillary tube once everything is hooked up.

think i got it now.

thanks bro!