Water Temp Guage

[jimclemjr]

Well not on the bubble anymore. I would still like any thoughts on this matter, but when perusing on-line last night doing a little research, I found on Amazon a mechanical Autometer gauge originally $135 for $50 something...had to get it! It is a 270 deg full sweep 2 5/8" that will fit the space I left in the dash Other sites still had it for the higher price so go figure. I will just need to tap the water hose adapter out bigger and it should work fine. I plan on doing some pictures in near future if any interest.

[HillbillyStyle]

Hope it works out for you. Im interested if it is accurate since the fluid travels through a tube to the meter? is that correct?

[jimclemjr]

I viewed the Autometer site and watched a video. IIRC they said the mechanical gauge was actually a faster response and more accurate. The tube is filled with an ether gas and when the engine element heats up the gas exerts pressure at the gauge end to move the needle. Of course it continues to read the temp even when the power is off, but I am not so sure how relevant that is since the element will be in the outlet hose and the motor water jacket is on the other side of the thermostat. The sensor does take a larger install bushing than the electric one so I have to tap out the hole to a 3/8 NPT and got an extra $10 adapter needed. From what I can tell most racers prefer a mechanical gauge due to reliability and accuracy.