help with fuel gauge

[flyweed]

Hi all,

I have a 1990 4 winns 170 Freedom with the OMC Cobra 4 cyl engine in it. I have owned this boat for 7 years now and love it...HOWEVER...ever since I have owned it...the fuel guage has never worked. the boat place I have do my winterization and repair work looked at it for me once...and said they had it fixed and it worked for about 1 day..and then stopped again. I told them, and they just kind of Poo Poo'd it and said you don't need a fuel gauge anyway..they never work.

So....I just sort of blew it off. Anyway...year after year goes by and I always tell myself I am gonna fix it myself and be done with it.

SO.....what do I need and how do I do it? Right now the fuel gauge goes from E to 1/4 back and forth constantly and that's it.

I know there is a fuel "sending unit on the tank under the floor, and the gauge in the dash..but that's about it.

If anyone can help me out and help me get this fuel gauge working properly that would be awesome

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Dan

 

[seabob4]

Re: help with fuel gauge

Dan,
Your sender should be under an access plate in the cockpit. Take a short length of wire, stripped at both ends, and touch one end to the ground wire (black), and the other end to the sender feed (pink), located in the center of the sending unit. The gauge should peg to full. If it does, then th problem is your sender. If it doesn't, then the gauge, and the connections on the back side of your gauge are the issue. I'm betting it's the sender.

BTW, your sender sends a signal via resistance, not voltage, to the gauge, so don't worry about touching the black to the pink, you won't blow up...

 

[Silvertip]

Re: help with fuel gauge

Here is all you need to know. Sender resistance is 33 ohms full, 109 ohms 1/2 full, and 240 ohms empty. The electrical looks like this.

 

[flyweed]

Re: help with fuel gauge

thanks guys..I appreciate both the info and the photo. I am going out to figure it out now.

dan

 

[flyweed]

Re: help with fuel gauge

thanks guys..I pulled up the access hatch and turned the key switch on to acc. then touched the black over to the pink..and sure enough my needled pegged on the fuel gauge on the dash.

Now, just a couple questions...since I know it's the sender....where and how do I find a sender that will work with my guage already in the dash?

Second...my sender had three wires......pink off the one side..and then a black AND a green off the other side..all running back into the wire loom into the back of the boat. So what is the green wire for???????

THanks again
Dan