Capri Fuel gauges - Need a new one or adjustable
Discussion
Hi there,
I'm looking for a Capri fuel gauge, I'm however not sure which size tank its for.
I assume that I'm gonna have to go through a process of elimination.
The other option is a fuel gauge that can be adjusted i.e. calibrated to the sender unit.
The reason for it is this, at the moment my kit car has a SW fuel gauge, unfortunately the original sender unit was left in the Capri tank
The gauge reads only between quater & 3/quarters (Really annoying). Real shame (Original Builders mistake.) The other option is pulling it apart i.e. wood etc....
Therefore I'm looking for a gauge that can be calibrated or a matching Capri or aftermarket Gauge
Any ideas Folks
Regards
Chris
I'm looking for a Capri fuel gauge, I'm however not sure which size tank its for.
I assume that I'm gonna have to go through a process of elimination.
The other option is a fuel gauge that can be adjusted i.e. calibrated to the sender unit.
The reason for it is this, at the moment my kit car has a SW fuel gauge, unfortunately the original sender unit was left in the Capri tank
The gauge reads only between quater & 3/quarters (Really annoying). Real shame (Original Builders mistake.) The other option is pulling it apart i.e. wood etc....
Therefore I'm looking for a gauge that can be calibrated or a matching Capri or aftermarket Gauge
Any ideas Folks
Regards
Chris
Hi Corax,
Why not just buy a SW sender unit to go with the gauge?
Actually, are you really sure you need to? Was once building a custom Anglia with SW qauges, and the fuel gauge worked fine with the Anglia sender.
Thing to do if you can is to remove the sender from the tank and 'bench test' it with the gauge. In other words, wire them up to a battery and see what the gauge reads with the sender arm fully up, half-way and fully down.
You may find the problem is that the arm can't move through its full range in the tank. In fact this is the only part of the system you can adjust, by bending the arm or changing its length to suit the tank.
Why not just buy a SW sender unit to go with the gauge?
Actually, are you really sure you need to? Was once building a custom Anglia with SW qauges, and the fuel gauge worked fine with the Anglia sender.
Thing to do if you can is to remove the sender from the tank and 'bench test' it with the gauge. In other words, wire them up to a battery and see what the gauge reads with the sender arm fully up, half-way and fully down.
You may find the problem is that the arm can't move through its full range in the tank. In fact this is the only part of the system you can adjust, by bending the arm or changing its length to suit the tank.
grahambell
Thanks foe the comment, however I can't get at the sender unit without pulling half the car apart.
Hence my reluctence to change the sender unit. Trust me I'm tempted but I really don't want to pull all the back section out.
I want to solve the problem at the end that I can get at with ease i.e. the gauge.
Another idea was to use a bridge circuit to actual boast / balance the feed from the sender unit to match the existing gauge
Regards
Chris
Thanks foe the comment, however I can't get at the sender unit without pulling half the car apart.
Hence my reluctence to change the sender unit. Trust me I'm tempted but I really don't want to pull all the back section out.
I want to solve the problem at the end that I can get at with ease i.e. the gauge.
Another idea was to use a bridge circuit to actual boast / balance the feed from the sender unit to match the existing gauge
Regards
Chris
Hi Chris,
Suspected that might be the case, but unfortunately it's the sender unit that controls the gauge by means of a potentiometer operated by the float arm.
If the float won't go from proper full to proper empty positions in the tank then you'll never get a proper reading on the gauge no matter what you do.
Suspected that might be the case, but unfortunately it's the sender unit that controls the gauge by means of a potentiometer operated by the float arm.
If the float won't go from proper full to proper empty positions in the tank then you'll never get a proper reading on the gauge no matter what you do.
grahambell
The sender unit is fine, its the origianl Capri sender unit therefore the arm moves the full swing.
It should read 20 omhs Full and about 75 ohms empty
The gauage seems to be set up for a range from 5 ohms to 100 ohms +
In fact now I think about it neither unit is wrong there just mismatched.
Regards
Chris
The sender unit is fine, its the origianl Capri sender unit therefore the arm moves the full swing.
It should read 20 omhs Full and about 75 ohms empty
The gauage seems to be set up for a range from 5 ohms to 100 ohms +
In fact now I think about it neither unit is wrong there just mismatched.
Regards
Chris
Hi Chris,
You've obviously gone into this in some detail! If you're happy that the sender is operating OK then as you say it's probably down to a mismatch between sender and gauge.
Don't know if this'll get you anywhere, but worth a try. There are a few tiny companies that specialise in working on gauges, usually for the classic brigade, so maybe one of them can recalibrate your gauge to suit.
For possible addresses check out the small ads in the back of the classic car magazines. Good luck!
You've obviously gone into this in some detail! If you're happy that the sender is operating OK then as you say it's probably down to a mismatch between sender and gauge.
Don't know if this'll get you anywhere, but worth a try. There are a few tiny companies that specialise in working on gauges, usually for the classic brigade, so maybe one of them can recalibrate your gauge to suit.
For possible addresses check out the small ads in the back of the classic car magazines. Good luck!
Success at last!
I've found an American company that has shipped me a 10-73ohms ford fuel gauge to match the capri sender
www.xks.com/SW%20Pages/swgauge2.htm
Great range
I've found an American company that has shipped me a 10-73ohms ford fuel gauge to match the capri sender
www.xks.com/SW%20Pages/swgauge2.htm
Great range
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