Hi again.
I've got a strange question for you all.
I removed my temperature sending unit from my stock 352 Bird this weekend and, using a thermometer loaned to me by JohnG, I calibrated my stock temperature gauge.
That is, I immersed my sending unit in boiling water, connected it to the wire feed for the gauge and recorded where the gauge needle was at different points of heating/cooling. For instance, now I know that if the needled reaches the edge of the "P" in "TEMP", it is running at 200 degrees, the middle of the "M" is 180 degrees, and so on...
Anyway, before I did all of this, my needle ran in the middle of the "M" when the car was warmed up (according to the thermometer that should be about 180 degrees). After I wiped off the sending unit and installed it back in the block, my needle now runs on the right edge of the "M" in the space between the "M" and the "P" (about 190 degrees).
My question - did cleaning the sending unit (i.e. soaking it in boiling water) change the way it reads - is it more accurate now?
My opinion is that it had some build-up and was therefore reading incorrectly - now that it is clean, it registers the temperature more accurately.
Is this crazy? I checked my coolant level and everything is same as before - why would my needle read hotter than it did before I performed this test?
Also, if it is accurate, is 190 degrees too hot for this engine to run consistently?
Any ideas?
Casey
'60 hardtop
I've got a strange question for you all.
I removed my temperature sending unit from my stock 352 Bird this weekend and, using a thermometer loaned to me by JohnG, I calibrated my stock temperature gauge.
That is, I immersed my sending unit in boiling water, connected it to the wire feed for the gauge and recorded where the gauge needle was at different points of heating/cooling. For instance, now I know that if the needled reaches the edge of the "P" in "TEMP", it is running at 200 degrees, the middle of the "M" is 180 degrees, and so on...
Anyway, before I did all of this, my needle ran in the middle of the "M" when the car was warmed up (according to the thermometer that should be about 180 degrees). After I wiped off the sending unit and installed it back in the block, my needle now runs on the right edge of the "M" in the space between the "M" and the "P" (about 190 degrees).
My question - did cleaning the sending unit (i.e. soaking it in boiling water) change the way it reads - is it more accurate now?
My opinion is that it had some build-up and was therefore reading incorrectly - now that it is clean, it registers the temperature more accurately.
Is this crazy? I checked my coolant level and everything is same as before - why would my needle read hotter than it did before I performed this test?
Also, if it is accurate, is 190 degrees too hot for this engine to run consistently?
Any ideas?
Casey
'60 hardtop
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