Fuel guage stopped working ????

[neilmw]

Sea Ray Seville 1987 merc 165hp 4 cyl,<br />Turned ignition switch on, all guages ok except fuel, needle doesnt move at all. has been working fine up until now.<br />Any help appreciated.

 

[moderator1]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

Moving to Boat questions. Fuel guages are not engine specific.

 

[DJ]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

Most likely you have a bad connection somewhere.<br /><br />1. First off, check the connections on the back of the guage.<br /><br />2. Find the wires on the fuel tank itself. If the fuel tank is in the floor, there is probably a plate covering the sending unit.

 

[neilmw]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

Cheers dj, will have a look.

 

[chuckz]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

First make sure that you're not out of gas.

 

[Don S]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

Below is a troubleshooting link for both Teleflex that may be of some help. The ohms readings may be different on your style sender, but as long as it does change from empty to full, it should be ok.<br /><br /> Teleflex

 

[Solittle]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

If the connections does not fix it odds are that the sending unit needs to be replaced. Not a big deal.

 

[trog100]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

a quick test if u can get at the sender in the tank is to pull the wire off and touch it to earth.. if the guage goes straight over to full its a bad earth at the sender.. either a bad connection or a bad sender..<br /><br />the sender is the ground/earth for the guage.. its a simple wire-wound variable resistor.. there is a float (which can leak and fill up with gas and not float he he) which goes up and down with gas levels.. this moves a metal arm which rubs along the side of the wire-wound resistor thereby altering the resistance the earth from the guage sees..<br /><br />full tank is the same as a direct short no resistance.. empty tank is the maximum resistance the resistor is cabable of.. <br /><br />the sender units are simple devices and very often can be disassembled.. the little arm rebent to give it some more spring cleaned all put back together and carry on working for a long time..<br /><br />course how easy this type of thing is to fix is governed entirely by how much access u have to fuel tank and sender..<br /><br />if earthing the sender wire dosnt send the guage over to full its a problem at the guage end.. either bad connection or faulty guage.. mostly its the sender that gives problems thow..<br /><br />as i say.. easy to fix assuming u can get at it..<br /><br />trog100

 

[neilmw]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

Thanks for the posts guys, have the boat in the water now so shall start the trouble shooting, i did check the earth on the sender and it seemed fine but will do the rest as well.

 

[Boatist]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

I think here you are required to also have a mechanical. On my tank under the inspection plate will find the mechanical guage and the connections for the electronic guage.<br /><br />On my fuel guage if I let the fuel get below about 1/4 tank the guage itself will stick on empty. On the water it will break loose or if I tap the guage it will break loose. At that point it fine untill I turn the key off again. At a half tank or above it will come right up. I probably should fix it but since I only let it get below a half of tank when trying to use up last years fuel before refueling it is just not a big deal to me.

 

[neilmw]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

thanks to trog100 i have now narrowed it down to a faulty sender unit, only problem is that i am not sure where i can get a replacement, the one i have is made by medallion instruments........any ideas??

 

[Lowranger]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

Hi Neil, I believe all senders use a standard bolt hole pattern. You can go with a mechanical one like Tempo http://www.boatersworld.com/bm/FuelFlowInstruments/Tempo/348500281.html or an electronic one such as Centroid http://www.centroidproducts.com/nintro.htm

 

[Solittle]

Re: Fuel guage stopped working ????

Neil - Most marine supply shops carry generic senders. They come with detail instructions. The screw pattern for the sender is an industry standard so it is a simple job. The instructions will tell you how to calibrate the sender to your tank. <br /><br />You can also call the manufacturer of your tank and get their recommendation specific for your tank. There is a data plate, usually close to the sender of filler neck, that gives the name of the manufacturer, the model of the tank and the capacity. I went this route a couple of years ago and am more comfortable that the reading is accurate.