oil pressure gauge - Benzworld.org

02-23-2001, 05:51 PM

Hello everybody I would like to install an oil pressure gauge on my 85 280 GE SWB , but i do not know if i should order a mechanically operated one or the electrical one, where should i hook it to on the block? what pressure gauge dials is sufficient for the G to accurately read the pressure? any info regarding this subject would be greatly appreciated. John.

02-23-2001, 06:33 PM

I too am interested in the group's input on some of John's questions. The dash-top pad to the left of the instrument binacle on my 1980 280ge is pretty trashed, so I thought that would be a good place to put a 4-gage cluster with oil pres. water temp, volt meter, and electronic compass.The only part of John's question I'll speak to is which type of gage. Especially with oil pressure, there is only one way to go, in my opinion. Electical gage and sending unit. I prefer the full 270 degree travel of a mechanical gage, but the risk of losing oil pressure with a line or gage failure is just not worth it to me. I'll settle for the 90 degree travel of an electrical gage to get the security of keeping the oil INSIDE the engine.When I instrument the G, I will use Datcon gages. One weakness of most gages (vs "idiot lights") is that gages aren't very good at getting your attention when something's going wrong. Datcon sells a line of gages that have integral warning lights that illuminate when the gage reading goes outside of a pre-determined range.You can see their entire line at http://www.datcon.comI'll use their "Illumaseal" "Smart Instruments". As for the compass I have a friend that is using one that he says goes for about $100 and works really nicely. Totally compensated for the steel of the vehicle, and self calibrates by driving in a circle. When I get more info, I can update anyone who's interested.-Dave G.PS if you absolutely MUST have 270 degree travel from an electical gage, there is a company selling through Summit Racing that makes a line of stepper-motor gages. Too gimmicky for me, and definitely not proven technology, especially for off road environments, IMHO. But, some might be interested.

02-24-2001, 05:18 AM

Dave The instrument in mind is a VDO Pro cckpit black series the pressure level go as high as 150psi also the sender unit on elctrical has two pins to allow for the hook up of the warning light with the gauge, The price is about $35 + 35 for sender unit, web address is : http://www.bugsandbuggies.com/vdo_mult.asp?Type=Elec_Engine_Pressure&Series=Pro_ Cckpit_Black Now if you know wich sender would work on the G-Wagen it would realy help. John

02-24-2001, 05:22 AM

: Dave : The instrument in mind is a VDO Pro cckpit black series : the pressure level go as high as 150psi : also the sender unit on elctrical has two pins to allow for the hook up of the warning light with the gauge, : The price is about $35 + 35 for sender unit, : web address is : : http://www.bugsandbuggies.com/vdo_mult.asp?Type=Elec_Engine_Pressure&Series=Pro_ Cckpit_Black : Now if you know wich sender would work on the G-Wagen : it would realy help. : John

02-24-2001, 06:40 AM

Hi John,The VDO C*ckpit (damned cda!) series are nice gauges. I know lots of guys using them with great success.So much of gauge selection is asthetics and personal preference. I prefer to have the numbers on the gauge outside the sweep of the needle, so they aren't obscured by the needle as it travels. I also like the idea of the integral warning light drawing attention directly to the offending parameter. But, there are lots of ways to aproach it.I was going to pull my sender to measure the threads for you, but I found I don't have a proper tool to reach it. If your sender is like mine, you can see it coming out of the top of the oil filter mounting housing by looking between the intake manifold pipes near the rear of the engine. On mine, the sender looks sort of conical, with a screw on top holding the wire for the warning light, and then tapering outward to a 24mm hex at the base. The sender is quite close to the intake manifold. I'd think that a short 24mm box wrench would get it, or else a 24mm socket and "wobble" extension. You'll want to check the overall length of the VDO sensor to be sure it will fit in under the intake maifold. If it's too long, you might need to use a "street ell" (elbow with male thread on one end, female on the other) in the housing, and then thread the sender into the elbow.Sorry I can't help with the thread size, but if your sender looks like mine, then the MB part number is very probably 004-542-59-17. (I also have a 280GE with the 110 engine, though mine is a 1980) If you'd like me to check for sure, send me the first six digits of your chassis number and I'll look up the part number for the sender on your vehicle. I say all this because one alternative for finding the thread might be to see if a local dealer stocks this part and go look at the one he has.Regarding the choice of range for the gauge, it's a good idea to have the needle pointing straight up under normal opperating conditions. That way you can tell at a glance if all systems are normal. This is why you see gauges twisted at all sorts of funny angles in race cars, so all the needles point straight up when everything is normal. In order to have the gage sitting straight, and the needle pointing nearly straight up under normal conditions, I'll choose an oil pressure gage with a 0-80 psi range for the G.Best of luck, and let me know if I can be of further help.-Dave G.