I am doing some preliminary work on my car yet and have been plotting out my gauges for the motor. I am going to install an Autometer oil temperature gauge to keep an eye on the motor oil temperature as the motor is 3/4 filled. Where would be the best place to install either a sender or one with a capillary type tube? Location will dictate which one of the gauges choices I'll purchase.
I guess I should have been more specific. I want to know where on the engine to tap in to hook up the sending unit. I have a TA oil pan but no provision to install a sending unit.
Oil pan would have the "hottest" oil sampling, (prior to pickup and back to the bearings) but you would need to pull the pan to install a sender with a nut on the back side (inside) of the pan. Unless someone knows of a way to drill and install a sender that won't leak or introduce metal shavings into the pan. Block might give you a good reading of hot oil, but not sure where that would be.
I drill and tappet my poston pan. If you have an external pickup or remote filter those location on tee into the hose wil work too. I did the pan since I run a heater also......but I still have to start it and let it mix to get a truly good reading when using the heater
I have the SRE pan on the T-Hawk which has a bung for a sender but my dilemma is where in the car to install the gage.
I run a Moroso heater pad that is glued to the bottom of my pan. (always use it especially on the first start of the day, and kept temperature hot in the staging lanes when racing). Capillary tube about 6 inches above the heater pad on the deep sump area of the pan. If I had to do it again today I would find a way to install a coolant heater also like a diesel has, to help it put temp on the oil faster. My ideal oil temp to race the car is 200*-215* at the starting line. Consideration must be taken at the water box. I never seen it go above 235 after a pass on return road. Your bearings will love you for the heated oil! I took apart my last filled race motor after 58 passes shifting above 6500 to rob the girdle for another build, (due to TA not having any girdles at the time), and the bearings still had all the black coatings, they looked like I had just installed them new. So it paid great dividends doing all that extra work. I still use all that on my street car today and the first start of the day it gets hot oil. Unfortunately at a carshow I don't have a way to heat it up again before the drive home. But at the track I used the generator. Hope this helps you Pat. Fernando
After some more searching,I found a cure to the problem. I can use an electric sender in the Earls 501ERL thermostat..Looks like I'll start shopping for an electric gauge now..I am mounting my gauges to my roll cage as well as my tach. I don't want to cut up my car any more than necessary.
I use the screw in heater.......but the 250w didn't seem to really heat the oil and 500 i have becareful because it will cook it, so I do keep it started often to keep it mixing. I thought about using a small 12 pump just to pump it around in the pan. I have a coolant heater too and I like to leave it plugged in at night on cool times ........you wake up in the morning and even the valve covers have warmth. My Poston pan will oil temp so fast in cooler months it actually is hard to keep the oil warm. The new 494 have the sre pan and I was thinking about the pad to keep oil contact to the heater away
we have experience that cooking of the oil with the screw-in type heaters too. It needs what you are saying of using a small pump to circulate the oil. Just a pain in the rear to have to deal with all that, and is probably why most people don't bother with it. But in the long run you are just protecting your investment. These race motors are not cheap anymore and I will give it every chance I can to help it live. By the way I got to see your runs at BG very nice, love your car. Never got around to say hi to you, busy trying to get my Concourse Gold award! Fernando
