Oil gauge?

[Mr. Man]

Saw a post here a while back that said the oil pressure gauge was real and all that is really needed to make it really work was to just swap out the sending unit in the block. All other info I see suggests you need to swap the sending unit and the gauge. Is there any truth to the former? It sure would make the swap a lot easier.:)

[RF Overlord]

Sorry, Eric...you need to replace them both. If you replace just the sender, the gauge will respond more like a real one, but it will be way off.

If it helps, I cut off the connectorised pigtail flush at the factory gauge, and used it to connect the new gauge. That way you don't need to cut into the wiring harness at all.

[Mr. Man]

Sorry, Eric...you need to replace them both. If you replace just the sender, the gauge will respond more like a real one, but it will be way off.
Had a feeling that was the answer. Thanks for the quick response Bob. Putting 2 gauges on the list:)

[RF Overlord]

For the record, the voltmeter is real...

[Mr. Man]

Sooooo.... just for my clarification people who change the face plates on the real (aftermarket) gauge with the original (OEM) faceplate are not reading proper pressures.

[Blackened300a]

Sooooo.... just for my clarification people who change the face plates on the real (aftermarket) gauge with the original (OEM) faceplate are not reading proper pressures.

No, its the guts inside the OEM gauge and the OEM sender that make it read different. I changed the OEM sender with a aftermarket one and the OEM gauge swept very slow. The new gauge sweeps up and down instantly.

[Mr. Man]

So the face plates are basically the same. It's the precision of the gears or whatnot inside the gauge. That makes sense. Thanks

[RocsMerc]

Sooooo.... just for my clarification people who change the face plates on the real (aftermarket) gauge with the original (OEM) faceplate are not reading proper pressures.

If I'm understanding you correctly, your asking if you swap the OEM face plate to the aftermarket gauge, if the numbers still align correctly to the needle. The answer is yes they do. This is what I did. The hardest part is sticking the needle back on in the correct position. Be sure to take a picture of the gauge before hand to do this. I skipped this step and to put the needle back, I had to power on the gauge with the glass cover off and the engine off and stick the needle on pointing to "0".

[DOOM]

What are you looking to do?

[Mr. Man]

If I'm understanding you correctly, your asking if you swap the OEM face plate to the aftermarket gauge, if the numbers still align correctly to the needle. The answer is yes they do. This is what I did. The hardest part is sticking the needle back on in the correct position. Be sure to take a picture of the gauge before hand to do this. I skipped this step and to put the needle back, I had to power on the gauge with the glass cover off and the engine off and stick the needle on pointing to "0".
This is the basic concern. I know people do it . I just want to be sure I'm not going to do something that "looks" right but is not accurate.

[Mr. Man]

What are you looking to do?
Just thinking about true accuracy instead of the on/off mentality that Ford gave us as far as oil pressure goes.

[Blackened300a]

This is the basic concern. I know people do it . I just want to be sure I'm not going to do something that "looks" right but is not accurate.

Personally I like the aftermarket looking gauge over the OEM. I also put a green boot over the bulbs so they match the rest of the instrument lighting.

[RF Overlord]

Eric, the aftermarket (real) AutoMeter gauges, both the UltraLite I and the UltraLite II look almost identical to the OEM gauges during the day. The differences are at night. The UL I has perimeter lighting vs. the OEM green back backlighting, while the UL II has white backlighting. If your aim is to maintain a totally stock look at night, then go ahead and swap the faceplates...many members have done it that way. No worries.

[fastblackmerc]

I'd replace both the voltmeter & the oil pressure & sending unit. Other than the the look at night there are subtle differences between the the OEM and aftermarket gauges.

Here are the part numbers for the gauges & sending unit:

Autometer (2 1/16)
Oil Pressure – 4327
Sending unit – 2242
Voltmeter – 4391

I'd replace the incandescent bulbs with green LED bulbs. Your gauges will look like this.

Lit
http://i167.photobucket.com/albums/u133/fastblackmerc/MM%20Mods/Gauges/DSCN1141.jpg

Unlit
http://i167.photobucket.com/albums/u133/fastblackmerc/MM%20Mods/Gauges/DSCN1140.jpg

LED bulb
http://i167.photobucket.com/albums/u133/fastblackmerc/MM%20Mods/Gauges/DSCN1128.jpg

[Mr. Man]

So the Ul 2 w/ a swapped faceplate and the condom over the bulb would be the closest to OEM?

[fastblackmerc]

So the Ul 2 w/ a swapped faceplate and the condom over the bulb would be the closest to OEM?

Yes, but it's the most work and you'll run the risk of damaging the gauges.

Unless the OEM and aftermarket gauges are side by side you'll be hard pressed to tell the difference.

Most people won't know the difference.

[TFB]

Unless the OEM and aftermarket gauges are side by side you'll be hard pressed to tell the difference.

Most people won't know the difference.

My car has the "real" oil pressure gauge and the orig volt meter, so far no one has commented on the difference... Maybe one of these days I'll swap the volt meter, but it ain't real high on my priority list...

[myrodr]

i changed face of the oil gage easy after you get started look stock and read true

[Dragcity]

I just replaced them both with Phantom II series. The match we'll and have black outer bezels that match better than the silver bezels in my opine.