I have finally gotten my '68 rebuild project drivabe and noticed that the fuel gauge on my original instrument cluster is not working. I turn the engine on and the needle does not move. I have added 10 gals of fuel to the tank. I also took a bulb tester to the wiring connector at the rear, unclipped the tan wire connector to the fuel tank and (with the engine running) get no light at the connector. Am I checking correctly? Any ideas?
No, you are not checking it correctly. The sending unit is a variable resistor, it has zero ohms resistance at empty and about 90 ohms resistance at full. That is why, as the good doctor stated, if you have a break in the ground from the frame to the sender you will have infinite resistance and the reading will be past full. If you have a break in the sending unit tan wire anywhere it will produce a over full reading. The fuel metering circuit is measuring the ohms in the sender, not sending hot full-voltage to the sender which could result in KA-BOOM! If the gauge needle does not move at all [stays on empty] it is most likely a break in the circuit from the ignition switch to the fuel gauge.
Henry, I noticed in your post 13/7/15 you have the dash out of your car and a picture posted of the backside. You can see the ground strap from the gauge to the high beam socket then to the center mounting hole. That ground must be good for the gauge to work correctly. Seems to me there have been other posts concerning the gauge ground in the same area. You may be able to search the archives for an explanation from someone who knows more about this than I. I'm not an expert.
On the side, I notice you are in Katy, I have a friend in Sugar Land that I visit every year or so, perhaps you can show me your car next time I'm there. I've been promising myself I will make the 2500 miles trip in the non a/c Firebird but as of yet haven't found the time. It's a bit faster by air.
Al, thanks for the note. If the high beam indicator is working, then would it be safe to say that that whole ground strap is good? I think they share that plate strap. I checked the ground wire at the gas tank and that one seems good. The sending unit is new.
You are always welcome to stop by and visit. I am indeed out in Katy. If you are ever in the area, call me at 713 516 8284.
Don't know, but some guys run a wire from the gauge ground to a known good ground spot on the dash.
Thanks, next time I'm in Houston I'll give you a call. Are you one of those that does the Firebird run from Houston to Corpus each year? Seems I've heard mention of that.
I have not made the run and I don't know what type reception I would get. The person who had the car before me had converted it to a Camaro by welding in a replacement light panel in the back and installing Camaro fenders and front end. I decided due to cost restraints to leave it that way for now and maybe switch it back in the future. So, it looks like a Camaro now. Thought about adding pics, but might get shunned by the community. :-)
Post them! Everyone has their idea of what the limit of modification is. Some are strictly stock, some are non visual mods and some go hog wild. Most don't judge, if they do, that's their problem. I'm a mostly stock appearance guy, I like the look of the first two years and although I don't mind small modifications, little things like large diameter wheels and low profile tires drive me nuts. I think to myself, how could anyone do that to a classic car? But that's just me, I'm not going to criticize anyone who doesn't think the way I do. I have a rear spoiler on my 68 and I'm sure that drives someone else nuts just like the big wheels drive me. My car doesn't look too far away from stock but open the hood or read my engine build sheet and it's another story. You didn't try to make the Firebird into a Camaro, someone else did. Each to his own. From what I've read the Houston guys are a pretty good bunch, I'm sure they'll give you a hand if you need. Might give you the gears about the fake Camaro but roll with it.
Hank, 2 things 1) we have about 20-25 FGFs here in Houston...many are part of HALF ((housto0n Area Legendary Firebirds), some live in Houstron, some up in Woodlands, Tomball, Magnolia, Pattison (out west of you)...all around town...email me and I will put you in contact with the group... my email: bsefeldt@mhinc.com
2) when I had problems with my gauge, it was the printed circuit...and every time we fixed something there, something else stopped working...I ended up buying a new printed circuit and all was fine after that...this was about 13-14 yrs ago.... (sold car 2 yrs ago)
Henry, I noticed in your post 13/7/15 you have the dash out of your car and a picture posted of the backside. You can see the ground strap from the gauge to the high beam socket then to the center mounting hole. That ground must be good for the gauge to work correctly. Seems to me there have been other posts concerning the gauge ground in the same area. You may be able to search the archives for an explanation from someone who knows more about this than I. I'm not an expert.
On the side, I notice you are in Katy, I have a friend in Sugar Land that I visit every year or so, perhaps you can show me your car next time I'm there. I've been promising myself I will make the 2500 miles trip in the non a/c Firebird but as of yet haven't found the time. It's a bit faster by air.
Al, you been here and not visited HALF? who`s your friend in Sugarland? one of our HALF members live there , has a 67 - 326 coupe...and we recently had Brent Block (from Alberta) visit us here...he comes every so often...
Yes I've been to Houston quite a few times, I don't know why I haven't tried to find a local Firebird/Pontiac club and at least go to a cruise night they frequent. Don't have any clubs like that around here so I suppose I just never thought of it. I've been to a few cruise night locations down there but only once did I run into Pontiac guys. Mostly the usual Camaro and 567 chevs. My buddy, George, is an old skydiving friend of mine. We were members of the Calgary sport parachute club in Alberta back in the 70s and 80s. We both had careers in the aviation industry, him a pilot me and engineer. Years ago, as an engineer he worked for Fluor in Calgary and managed to get himself transferred to Houston, now an American citizen. He belongs to the Houston 442 club, but I don't hold that against him. We are both avid fly fishermen and used to guide on the Bow river in Calgary, so once he discovered inshore flyfishing for redfish he got me to start going down to Houston to visit and do fishing trips to Corpus Christi and South Padre Island. We've gotten our share of redfish and a few snook, tarpon and whatever else we can hook.
Next time I'm down there I'll be sure to look up some Firebird owners, check out some cars and maybe have a couple beers.
Yes I've been to Houston quite a few times, I don't know why I haven't tried to find a local Firebird/Pontiac club and at least go to a cruise night they frequent. Don't have any clubs like that around here so I suppose I just never thought of it. I've been to a few cruise night locations down there but only once did I run into Pontiac guys. Mostly the usual Camaro and 567 chevs. My buddy, George, is an old skydiving friend of mine. We were members of the Calgary sport parachute club in Alberta back in the 70s and 80s. We both had careers in the aviation industry, him a pilot me and engineer. Years ago, as an engineer he worked for Fluor in Calgary and managed to get himself transferred to Houston, now an American citizen. He belongs to the Houston 442 club, but I don't hold that against him. We are both avid fly fishermen and used to guide on the Bow river in Calgary, so once he discovered inshore flyfishing for redfish he got me to start going down to Houston to visit and do fishing trips to Corpus Christi and South Padre Island. We've gotten our share of redfish and a few snook, tarpon and whatever else we can hook.
Next time I'm down there I'll be sure to look up some Firebird owners, check out some cars and maybe have a couple beers.
Sounds good....over the years some of our Firebird guys, me included, have sold their FGFs , and bought other marques , or added...and as you know we typically have an annual spring cruise to Corpus... Since I no longer have the bird, I am not on this site as often anymore (even though I am still an admin per Geoffs request) so if you are coming here email me at bsefeldt@mhinc.com so we can get together with some of the group.....BTW ,do you know Brent Block?
Well the temp in the bird house finally got up above freezing so I went and took some measurements. My battery voltage is 12 .56 volts, car has been sitting with no charger since the beginning of October. My gas gauge shows 5/8+ of a full tank. I disconnected the Tan wire where is goes to the sender the gauge showed over full, needle at three O clock. By disconnecting the wire the resistance goes to infinity and the needle move correspondingly. Voltage from the guage measured at the sender is 8.16 volts. Amperage at the sender is 0.254 amps. It would not light up a test light I have. It would slightly [ very slight] illuminate a GE 57 mini lamp.
I hope you are not suffering any personal or property damage due to the flooding in the area.
Here is a nice write up I followed in testing my gauge, just to make sure it worked before I put it all back together. You may be able to use the information from this procedure just to see if it's gauge or sending unit issue.
Thanks to everyone for their help with my fuel gauge issue. To close it out, I dropped the fuel tank and found the sending unit strap was contacting the pick-up tube. Pulled it away and resecured. Fuel gauge working well.
Thanks to everyone for their help with my fuel gauge issue. To close it out, I dropped the fuel tank and found the sending unit strap was contacting the pick-up tube. Pulled it away and resecured. Fuel gauge working well.
