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OIL GAUGE
- Thread starter 80spit
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sparkydave
Jedi Knight
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Hi there, I have a '77 Midget, on which I had to replace my dual gauge. The oil pressure line attaches to a fitting at the base of the distributor pedestal, and the temperature probe fits in the thermostat housing. By the way, in case you don't already know, the line connecting the temperature probe is a capillary tube, not a wire, so don't ever cut it because it's very expensive to repair. Hint: The P.O. broke the one on my old dual gauge.
dklawson
Yoda
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Go to Advance or a similar auto parts store and look for the copper tubing oil gauge installation kit (figure around $10). They will also have a less expensive nylon tubing kit. You can use the nylon but it will harden over time and has been known to burst when old/hard. It's also not good around hot things like exhaust.
The back of some Smiths gauges will look like an NPT thread but in fact is a face seal type male thread where a fiber washer gets sandwiched between the gauge and the fitting that screws on. Fortunately the fittings supplied with the copper tubing kit and a bit of Teflon tape on the male threads will work just fine.
When you route the line from the block to the gauge, you'll need to make provisions for a little bit of engine motion. I do this by taking the copper tubing and looping it around a cylinder (like a large socket) a couple of times to form two or more coils. This acts like a spring between the engine and the firewall to help absorb some of the rocking/twisting motion of the engine and prevent fatigue of the tubing.
The back of some Smiths gauges will look like an NPT thread but in fact is a face seal type male thread where a fiber washer gets sandwiched between the gauge and the fitting that screws on. Fortunately the fittings supplied with the copper tubing kit and a bit of Teflon tape on the male threads will work just fine.
When you route the line from the block to the gauge, you'll need to make provisions for a little bit of engine motion. I do this by taking the copper tubing and looping it around a cylinder (like a large socket) a couple of times to form two or more coils. This acts like a spring between the engine and the firewall to help absorb some of the rocking/twisting motion of the engine and prevent fatigue of the tubing.