[TRobinson6]

it doesn't appear that anyone has installed an analog temp gauge. what about putting the sensor in place of the engine drain plug and run power to the gauge. if an "A" pillar pod is made i'd like to put a volt meter in there also (i can't afford a scan gauge pkg).

please let me hear your feedback

 

[Huronlad]

Ultragauge.

 

[jimvw57]

The drain plug is almost the lowest point under the car, putting a temp sensor there could end up hitting something on the road, plus the fact that it is the lowest point, and heat rises, that is probably the worse place to put it. better putting it somewhere on the head. Then you would also have to run wires to front... An ultragauge is much easier.

 

[mattwithcats]

Not sure what the threads are on the coolant drain plug, but I think they are 12 X 1.25.

Adapter to 1/8 npt is here...

Motorsport, Styling & Performance Products From LMA Autoparts

 

[TRobinson6]

coolant temp gauge

i cant really afford a scan or ultra gauge but what is everyones opinion about pulling the engine drain plug putting in the right adapter and installing a temp gauge sensor and mounting it on an apillar pod if they exist or under the dash if they dont. it scares me to want to change the coolant and no way to monitor the temp

thanks for your input guys

 

[jimvw57]

http://www.smartcarofamerica.com/forums/f361/temp-gauge-133386/

 

[albertlastsmart]

OBD/wifi plug??..............

If you can't afford Scangauge or Ultragauge, a wifi enabled OBD plug will send coolant temp straight to your smartphone.
Cheaper than other types,and no mods to car. Just wireless plug and play.....................

 

[Rustedwrench]

i cant really afford a scan or ultra gauge but what is everyones opinion about pulling the engine drain plug putting in the right adapter and installing a temp gauge sensor and mounting it on an apillar pod if they exist or under the dash if they dont. it scares me to want to change the coolant and no way to monitor the temp

thanks for your input guys

The coolant drain plug is not the hottest part of the system. The sensor would need to be in the cylinder head or in a fitting spliced into the heater hose leaving the cylinder head going to the heater core.

 

[Jo e Lefors]

i cant really afford a scan or ultra gauge but what is everyones opinion about pulling the engine drain plug putting in the right adapter and installing a temp gauge sensor and mounting it on an a pillar pod if they exist or under the dash if they don't. it scares me to want to change the coolant and no way to monitor the temp

thanks for your input guys

In answer to your question.... 'What is everyones opinion about pulling the engine drain plug putting in the right adapter and installing a temp gauge sensor and mounting it on an a pillar pod if they exist or under the dash if they don't.' Forgetaboutit
I understand your budgetary constraints.

Albertlastsmart hit the nail on the head above with post # 7 a wireless OBDll reader.

For $21.99 I ordered a BAFX Products OBDll Diagnostic Interface. (There are cheaper ones under $10 !) on the internet. I spent a little more because it came with a 2 year Warranty and I wanted to deal with a company that had U.S. based offices.

I had a old small android smart phone that had WiFi and bluetooth. Cost $0.00

For $4.95 I got the Torque Pro App. OR you can use the FREE version of Torque Pro if yo need to save even more.
I have different screens for each of our 4 vehicles. I just unplug the OBD reader and plug it into another car.
Why go through the hassle of having to wire something that may or may not give you the right info, when for under $30 you can plug something into the OBDll port and it will give you a whole lot more that just the coolant temp. Plus you can use it in whatever car you want.
Check out the pictures.
You can have Gage, Graph or Digital display...
Remember BIGGER PHONE = BIGGER DISPLAY Mine is a little harder to read because I have a convertible with the top down, thus more glareon the screen. I'm sure I could put a small visor on the top of the phone to provide shading.

 

[Miss Mercedes]

You can get matte screen protectors that eliminate glare. There are also visors for phones too. The problem comes forth when it's an older or not-popular phone though. Either such accessories won't exist or they'll be silly expensive.

That's a genius setup you have there!

 

[ArthurRW]

Another option, a heads up display for cars,sits on your dash but puts the info on your windshield, plugs into the ODB port and takes info from that. Costs vary but are comparable to a good gauge set. https://www.amazon.com/Arestech-Multi-color-Speeding-Consumption-Temperature/dp/B00VHSFG1M

 

[Miss Mercedes]

The only problem with those things is that depending on how the glass is manufactured you may see aggressive "ghosting" of the display. Some of them get around it by using a semi-transparent mirrored plastic sheet that you apply to the windscreen. The problem with those is that they're useless (if not dangerous) in direct sunlight.

I've been looking into HUDs and have been too afraid to pull the trigger on one. It's weird though, it seems the 453 has an area where a factory HUD could have been mounted. I still wonder what's under that flap.

 

[Jo e Lefors]

You can get matte screen protectors that eliminate glare. There are also visors for phones too. The problem comes forth when it's an older or not-popular phone though. Either such accessories won't exist or they'll be silly expensive.

That's a genius setup you have there! .

Thank you for the kind words.
I'm in my 60's, and I remember as a kid running wires and mounting gages on some cars I owned that didn't have gage packages. Something I wouldn't want to do today.
This OBDll plug in play stuff is so cheap and easy it's a no brainier. Add to that, one of the neat features is that you can set alarms that will sound if say coolant temp starts heading toward critical mass meltdown before the idiot light goes on. Maybe some analog gages can do that nowadays, I don't know. But I'll bet the price of that one gage is more than my whole setup.

PS. It is so portable, you can use it when looking for a used car, plug it in and check out the systems.