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EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / 36 Fuel gauge repair

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Discussion Topic: 36 Fuel gauge repair

norge46

11-17-2010 @ 8:40 AM

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Would appreciate any suggestions on how to get fuel gauge working for a 36 Ford passenger car. Have replaced tank sending unit. Gauge still reads empty when tank is full. Where do I go from here? Thank you.

TomO

11-17-2010 @ 8:53 AM

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Test the dash gauge by grounding the wire going to the sending unit with the ignition switch on. The gauge should move towards the full mark. If it doesn't move towards the full mark, attach a jumper wire to the gauge on the side that does not have the strap to the oil pressure gauge. Ground the jumper with the ignition on. If the gauge needle does not move towards the full mark, your gauge is bad.

If the gauge checks out, then your problem is at the tank end. It could be that your sending unit is not correctly grounded through the tank, your float is saturated and will not move the sending unit arm or if you have an after-market sending unit, the arm is adjusted incorrectly.

I prefer the original sending units as they are more accurate and reliable. If you have an original sending unit, they can be repaired and then will work many more years.

Tom

norge46

11-21-2010 @ 10:08 AM

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Thanks Tom. It works now, thanks to your instructions. When I removed the reproduction sending unit, I found a small shiny spot on the brass float that proved to me the float was sticking on the inside of the tank in the down position. The float arm on this unit is on the opposite side of the unit from the one I took out. I bent the arm sideways slightly and also bent the arm down to give me a more accurate reading. I still want to purchase an original type unit. I am not sure if the unit I removed is an original type as the float appears to be made of plastic. Thanks again for your help.

supereal

11-21-2010 @ 10:26 AM

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It isn't unusual to have to relocate the "universal" type senders to provide clearance for the float. It can require redrilling the mounting holes in the sender flange. The original King-Seeley gas gauge sender is quite different from the repros and is not, to my knowledge, being made. Similar to the heat gauge senders, they contain a heating coil around a bimetal contact arm to establish a base line. Be cautious about buying these on eBay or other source, as many have been repaired or are inoperative. The common universal type is just a variable resistance coil with a wiper moved by the float. They probably are not as accurate as the K-S, but are acceptable if properly installed and adjusted.

39 Ken

11-22-2010 @ 5:20 AM

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TomO, You mention that the original sending units can be repaired. Do you do your own? If so a tutorial on the subject would be helpful. I have one out of a '51 that I would like to try and repair myself. Ken

TomO

11-22-2010 @ 7:31 AM

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Most of the original sending units have dirty contacts and cleaning the contacts is all that is needed to make the sending unit operable.

Another common problem with the sending units is a broken wire. These wires are thinner than a hair and repair should be left to someone that has the facilities to repair the wire. Common soldering techniques will just result in a cold solder joint that will fail.

Some units are very rusty and the diaphragm is rusted out. These units cannot be easily repaired.

To check for dirty contacts, connect an ohm meter between the terminal on the sender and the case of the sender. Your meter should read less than 5 ohms and remain steady as the arm is moved from empty to full. Large variations in readings indicate dirty contacts.

To clean the contacts, pry off the top cover and spray the contacts with tuner cleaner available at Radio Shack, while operating the float arm.

Tom

39 Ken

11-23-2010 @ 3:56 AM

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Thanks TomO. A good project for a Snowy day this Winter. Ken

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