Gauges?

[denveratsun]

Anyone know what the thread pitch/count is on an L16 motor oil pressure switch? I WAS going to slap in some VDO gauges before I left for Cali but it appears that the threads are different than the NPT VDO sending unit I have. Anyone got any info? Also...while we are at it...anyone ever installed aftermarket gauges in a 521...with an L series engine? Got pics? How about the water temperature gauge sending unit? Is that NPT? Any info will help...Searched for a long time and got nothing here, on Google or at Bing. :huh:

 

Heres what I was hoping to have all wired in today...looks like it's not happenin. <_<

 

[datzenmike]

1/4 BSP thread. That's British Standard Pipe thread and not anything close to North American NPT National Pipe Thread. This is a quirk of Nissan that they have kept this type of thread on the oil pressure senders well into the production of the VG and KA motors and maybe beyond yet use metric for most everything else. BSP thread was first used by Nissan when they 'joined' with Austin of Great Briton to build Austin cars under licence using many British patents in the '50s.

 

Here's a handy piece of info for connecting BSP to NPT fitting. Thank you Hainz!!

 

 

 

 

.

[denveratsun]

Thanks Mike...thats really great info man. Once again you came through for me...thanks for real!

("Edit"...just saw the pic above...thanks Hainz...now...where oh where does on find that piece?)

 

So at this point....I am left with one of two options...

 

1. Leave it all alone and do nothing...drive to Cali with the "idiot light" and let that be good enough as it has been for years. This is a less than ideal option since I have ALWAYS belioeved that iol pressure is the most important thing to keep track of. This comes from my years of running VWs that had no need for water temp gauges. ;)

2. Find a BSP to NPT adaptor........crickets..............silence............. :blink:

 

Right. so anyway. What are the odds of you knowing of a Nissan motor/car combo that:

1. Ran an oil pressure gauge instead of a pressure switch

2. would be BSP threads

3. if that would get me anywhere close to functioning with my VDO gauge.

 

Variable input gauges are great because they allow such a range of operating perameters...but this idea here would be a L...O...N....G...shot! :rolleyes:

 

I just buckled it all up for the night...I will have to revisit this tomorrow...Sunday...most REAL pipe thread adaptor, motor hardware, gauge interface, miracle stores are closed on Sunday right? ;)

[Iowa Mark]

Look on page 25 of the McMaster/Carr catalog and find an adapter fitting between BSP and NPT. For some reason I'm not able to drop in a direct link for you tonight. I've only had one beer too, honest!

[datzenmike]

Right. so anyway. What are the odds of you knowing of a Nissan motor/car combo that:

1. Ran an oil pressure gauge instead of a pressure switch

2. would be BSP threads

3. if that would get me anywhere close to functioning with my VDO gauge.

 

 

The odds are very good!

 

Get the oil pressure sender from any '80 -'90s 280zx, 200sx, 720 4X4 (there are likely others, maybe in the '90s too) Any Nissan car or truck with an oil pressure gauge will have one. The oil pressure sender looks like this and has two wires:

 

 

I like the 720 4X4 as the gauge is an option and is mounted in the center console. It's round and self contained and will mount on any flat surface. I traded a Canadian metric gauge for this beauty that reads in PSI. The 4X4 gauge looks like this:

 

 

The sender has two wires. One is for the gauge and varies with oil pressure. The second wire is for the low oil pressure RED light in the dash. So you have both warnings.

 

Remove the sender with a 12mm (I think) wrench slid down between it and the block. Do NOT grab the sender and twist it off. This will work, but I did this once and it leaked.

 

 

.

[denveratsun]

A...mazing! :o

I'm not worthy!

 

 

Thank you! Thank you thank you...

 

There are one or two of those sending units then...at the JY locally....I'm on it! I will wire the "idiot" light and the new gauge...it's perfect!

[nismo dr]

Nissan still uses that thread, I have a Titan VK56 oil switch screwed into mine.

[datzenmike]

I know the KA24DE guys have puzzled over this, didn't know for sure they still use it.

 

On the 720 sender get the plug and several inches of wire so you can join your RED 'idiot' light and extend the other to where you mount your gauge. The plug is somewhat like the alternator plug with the terminals arranged in a T pattern. The top one is the Yellow/Blue and works the gauge. The vertical one is the Yellow/Green and goes to the RED low pressure light in the dash. Other senders use different color wires but the positions and the senders are the same.

 

Power goes to the gauge, through it and to the sender and to ground. Let me know what you get and I can give you the wiring for the gauge and the ilumination lights in it.

[denveratsun]

Off to the JY...since they arent open on Sunday! Here goes nothin! :blink:

[banzai510(hainz)]

a good part store will have them in the fittings bins.

Most adapter in thos eoil gauge kits will not have the BSP.

autometer sells these BSP adapters also

PS use a good line. Dont use those taiwain plastic ones. Autometer ells the better nylaflow ones. and carry the stock sender in the car incase a line cracks and left with no oil in motor.!!!!!!!! My cheap one cracked on me. the hot cold will kill these lines.

[denveratsun]

Well...after all the time it took to get the freegin thing off the Zcar...only to find out that it had already been mangled by channel-locks and the connector housing was broken...I went and yanked one off of a 720. Now I'm all out of time and need to be on the road. Man I feel crappy not having it done...I will be bringing the sending unit with me and am bringing all that I need to do the job some afternoon if I have time in Cali.

 

Oh, and Hainz....I am going to be running an electric gauge. No oil tubes running into my cab.

 

Thanks so much guys for all the help. I will let you know how it goes and post pics from along the way...my daughter is a great photographer:)

 

Peace...I'm off to California via Flagstaff :D

[zerow]

The odds are very good!

 

Get the oil pressure sender from any '80 -'90s 280zx, 200sx, 720 4X4 (there are likely others, maybe in the '90s too) Any Nissan car or truck with an oil pressure gauge will have one. The oil pressure sender looks like this and has two wires

 

The sender has two wires. One is for the gauge and varies with oil pressure. The second wire is for the low oil pressure RED light in the dash. So you have both warnings.

 

Remove the sender with a 12mm (I think) wrench slid down between it and the block. Do NOT grab the sender and twist it off. This will work, but I did this once and it leaked.

 

I always thought it would work - thank you datzenmike for the confirmation.

Now, to find the gauges that I want for the car...

[banzai510(hainz)]

Denveratsun

 

I bought a extra VDO/oil gause set with eleltric. I just never got around to install it as a I have a Stewardwarneer oil gauge in there right now

[datzenmike]

I always thought it would work - thank you datzenmike for the confirmation.

Now, to find the gauges that I want for the car...

 

The Nissan sender may only work with a Nissan gauge. There's no guarantee an after market gauge will read or read correctly with the Nissan sender.