Mechanical Temp Gauge Install Help

[rsl0311usmc]

OK I will keep this short and to the point. I am looking to add a cheap mechanical temp guage so I can monitor my coolant temps because I have obviously no guage and no way to know what the temp currently is. I am not sure if the idiot light (low coolant) also functions as a running hot light? Anyway I searched on here as best I could and obviously suck at it. I am trying to find a picture of were exactly and what the fitting looks like were I can tap into and remove the idiot light if need be. From what I have read its up front on the driver's side head by the first glow plug I can put the mechanical guage fitting? Lastly I plan on just going to Autozone today and getting a cheap mechanical guage which I hope has the correct fitting I need if anyone has that information or picture it would be appreciated? Thanks

 

[Mullaney]

OK I will keep this short and to the point. I am looking to add a cheap mechanical temp guage so I can monitor my coolant temps because I have obviously no guage and no way to know what the temp currently is. I am not sure if the idiot light (low coolant) also functions as a running hot light? Anyway I searched on here as best I could and obviously suck at it. I am trying to find a picture of were exactly and what the fitting looks like were I can tap into and remove the idiot light if need be. From what I have read its up front on the driver's side head by the first glow plug I can put the mechanical guage fitting? Lastly I plan on just going to Autozone today and getting a cheap mechanical guage which I hope has the correct fitting I need if anyone has that information or picture it would be appreciated? Thanks

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Take a look at this... There should be a plug on the water neck.

CUCV M1009 temperature gauge

Hey guys, First time posting here but I’ve been reading the forums for a while now and I’m pumped to be able to reach to so many people with all kinds of knowledge. I’m taking a long road trip with my 1985 CUCV M1009 and I am concerned about overheating the engine during the summer heat. It does...

www.steelsoldiers.com

 

[rsl0311usmc]

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Take a look at this... There should be a plug on the water neck.

CUCV M1009 temperature gauge

Hey guys, First time posting here but I’ve been reading the forums for a while now and I’m pumped to be able to reach to so many people with all kinds of knowledge. I’m taking a long road trip with my 1985 CUCV M1009 and I am concerned about overheating the engine during the summer heat. It does...

www.steelsoldiers.com

I can definitely tap into that spot easily from that picture. It's right by the thermostat. Do you think most of the shelf mechanical guages will have the correct fitting to put in there?

 

[Mullaney]

I can definitely tap into that spot easily from that picture. It's right by the thermostat. Do you think most of the shelf mechanical guages will have the correct fitting to put in there?

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Thinking so, but I sure can't say for sure. If you haven't already headed to the store, draining some coolant and taking that plug with you might be a good plan.

 

[rsl0311usmc]

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Thinking so, but I sure can't say for sure. If you haven't already headed to the store, draining some coolant and taking that plug with you might be a good plan.

OK good idea I appreciate it

 

[rsl0311usmc]

OK so now I am confused I have no spot on the thermostat housing area unless I drill and tap and that's something I don't want to do. So can the sensor go down here by the front drivers side head? I have manual glow plugs and honestly I am not sure what this sensor is. There is also this spot by the water pump?

 

[adf5565]

There are lots of posts about this, here is a recent one which should help.

Adding an aftermarket coolant gauge to an M1008

Hey y'all, In my process of reworking the wiring in my M1008 back to stock 24V, I ended up tossing out my glow plug harness that was shredded to pieces. The coolant temp sensor at the back of the motor was busted, and I decided to replace it before I realized how bad the glow plug harness was...

steelsoldiers.com

 

[rsl0311usmc]

There are lots of posts about this, here is a recent one which should help.

Adding an aftermarket coolant gauge to an M1008

Hey y'all, In my process of reworking the wiring in my M1008 back to stock 24V, I ended up tossing out my glow plug harness that was shredded to pieces. The coolant temp sensor at the back of the motor was busted, and I decided to replace it before I realized how bad the glow plug harness was...

steelsoldiers.com

Only thing that is getting me is there are no pictures so I honestly don't know what I am looking for

 

[Mullaney]

OK so now I am confused I have no spot on the thermostat housing area unless I drill and tap and that's something I don't want to do. So can the sensor go down here by the front drivers side head? I have manual glow plugs and honestly I am not sure what this sensor is. There is also this spot by the water pump?
View attachment 908850View attachment 908851

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If I was laying under the truck - looking up from the bottom - the plug opposite the hose, I think I would be happy enough to fit a mechanical temperature sensor there. I see plenty of room for the wire (metal) to run safely there.

Only question is the sensor. Will it fit in that hole? Having it in your hand at the parts house will definitely be smart...

 

[rsl0311usmc]

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If I was laying under the truck - looking up from the bottom - the plug opposite the hose, I think I would be happy enough to fit a mechanical temperature sensor there. I see plenty of room for the wire (metal) to run safely there.

Only question is the sensor. Will it fit in that hole? Having it in your hand at the parts house will definitely be smart...

Yeah I may just remove whatever sensor that is on the drivers side head and put it there. Apparently it is a temperature sensor to some degree with everything I have read so far.

 

[Jeepadict]

Yeah I may just remove whatever sensor that is on the drivers side head and put it there. Apparently it is a temperature sensor to some degree with everything I have read so far.

I second this if you're going to abandon your dummy light, tho I'll add a piggyback.

IIRC there's a spot on each head for the factory temp sensor...I presume the TM should guide you to the factory temp sensor/switch in fairly short order. Based on the locations/access and your preferences, you could leave the factory light and switch as-is and run your mechanical gauge off the opposite head once you know where to look. At that point you could mount the gauge at the bottom of the dash as I've seen many do, you could even do a cluster adding a volt gauge etc. I starred in this movie with my first Squarebody running a second temp gauge since I was doing some troubleshooting on the cooling system and didnt trust the dash...tho I've slept since then. YMMV

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

 

[rsl0311usmc]

I second this if you're going to abandon your dummy light, tho I'll add a piggyback.

IIRC there's a spot on each head for the factory temp sensor...I presume the TM should guide you to the factory temp sensor/switch in fairly short order. Based on the locations/access and your preferences, you could leave the factory light and switch as-is and run your mechanical gauge off the opposite head once you know where to look. At that point you could mount the gauge at the bottom of the dash as I've seen many do, you could even do a cluster adding a volt gauge etc. I starred in this movie with my first Squarebody running a second temp gauge since I was doing some troubleshooting on the cooling system and didnt trust the dash...tho I've slept since then. YMMV

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

I ended up getting it all set up in the spot were the dummy light sensor was. One crazy thing I noticed last night here in the mountains with temps in the 40s is the truck wouldn't get warm. I thought the gauge was bad till I went up a mountain twice and it only got around 160 then back down to 130 were the guage starts. When the truck was off it sat at 140. I definitely think my thermostat is stuck open. I have had somewhat warm heat since I started working on it.

 

[Mullaney]

I ended up getting it all set up in the spot were the dummy light sensor was. One crazy thing I noticed last night here in the mountains with temps in the 40s is the truck wouldn't get warm. I thought the gauge was bad till I went up a mountain twice and it only got around 160 then back down to 130 were the guage starts. When the truck was off it sat at 140. I definitely think my thermostat is stuck open. I have had somewhat warm heat since I started working on it.

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My experience with these trucks is a piece of cardboard covering about half the radiator makes the old guy behind the wheel much happier in cold weather. Naturally it requires a functional temperature gauge - but in really cold weather - I never had to remove that cardboard.

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[nyoffroad]

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My experience with these trucks is a piece of cardboard covering about half the radiator makes the old guy behind the wheel much happier in cold weather. Naturally it requires a functional temperature gauge - but in really cold weather - I never had to remove that cardboard.

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For a more 'professional' job instead of using regular cardboard try a piece of plastic 'cardboard', it's weather resistant! In extreme weather I've covered the whole grill and never overheated.