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Old 08-12-2003, 05:59 PM   #1
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Gas Gage

Howdy from Texas, I'm a new member with a 79' 28' Excella.
Our gas gage stopped working and the Chev dealer says these are no longer available, any ideas out there?
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Old 08-12-2003, 06:39 PM   #2
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It's a pretty simple circuit, 12v to the gauge then to the sender. Pull the gauge panel and check for voltage, ground the gauge then open it and the needle should go between full and empty. The wire snaps on a brass connector on the top of the tank, but you have to drop the tank to get at it. There should be 12v at that connection. Most of the time it isn't the sender or gauge but corrosion or a broken wire. The sender is only 90 ohms max so it doesn't take much resistance to stop the gauge from working.

John
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Old 08-12-2003, 06:56 PM   #3
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I doubt it's the gage. I would be more inclined to think it was the sender. Is it reading empty or full? If it's reading full then the gage works and the sender or the wire to the sender is a open circuit. A quick test would be to find the sender wire and gorund it to the frame. That should cause it to read empty. GM pretty well uses a 80 ohm set up. If you have a VOM meter check the sender connection between ground and see what the meter say's. 80 ohms is full and near zero is empty.

FOlks have had luck pulling the sender and cleaning it. Varnish sometimes forms and causes a poor connection on the contact strip. Mineral spirits will disolve it.

If you do confirm it's the gage there are alterantives to the dealer. www.yearone.com and http://www.lmctruck.com/ carry gages for convention GM trucks and they may have a suitable replacement. Most of the gage manufactures such as Stewart Warner, VDO and other do make a aftermarket gage that will work with a GM 80 ohm sender.
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Old 08-12-2003, 06:58 PM   #4
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Oppps John beat me to it. I thought it was 80...it may well be 90....Split the difference and if you get between 80 and 90 then it's a full tank. LOL
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Old 08-13-2003, 12:22 PM   #5
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It is 0-90. My gauge isn't hooked up and I use an ohm meter to check the level. Right now I have 53 ohms; it is going into the 90's by Friday so I know I have enough gas to run the generator to run the air while I work.

John
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Old 08-13-2003, 05:08 PM   #6
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Sooo, with my 80 gal fuel tank and a digital Ohm meter in the dash, I could have an almost precise read out of gallons left in the tank. Now wouldn't that be fancy.
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Old 08-13-2003, 05:34 PM   #7
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My yet to be hooked up gauges read like that, % instead of 1/4, 1/2, etc. Have to wait and see how well that will work as opposed to a glance at a needle.

John
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Old 08-13-2003, 07:27 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally posted by 74Argosy24MH
My yet to be hooked up gauges read like that, % instead of 1/4, 1/2, etc. Have to wait and see how well that will work as opposed to a glance at a needle.

John
Now you are talking.
Officer, I only was going 47%
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Old 08-14-2003, 07:22 AM   #9
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Gas Gage & About Us

Thanks for the great response, no voltage at the gage. More digging for voltage ahead.
Since we are new to the group I thought I would tell you a little about us and our 79' 28' rear bath motorhome.
We have owned our MH for 6 years, gradually restoring and upgrading. Interior is done, mechanically much has been done to insure reliable, safe, smooth performance. Starting to formulate a plan for the exterior, any restored units out there for inspiration?
We tow a restored 67' Beetle.
We are headed to the Minnesota Airstream Park the end of August for two weeks.
It is a Fantastic place!
I look forward to further discussions with the group.
Dean
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Old 08-14-2003, 07:30 AM   #10
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Dean,

Voltage is not what you are looking for. The wire from the sending unit feeds a lower potential ground to the gauge. You need to check the resistance (ohms) from the wire to a ground souce. As mentioned above it will be less than 100 ohms so you will need to use the lowest setting on the meter.
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Old 08-20-2003, 07:29 PM   #11
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Re: Gas Gage

Quote:
Originally posted by deano
Howdy from Texas, I'm a new member with a 79' 28' Excella.
Our gas gage stopped working and the Chev dealer says these are no longer available, any ideas out there?

Hi,
Let me join Deano's thread with a different twist. My gage (on a P30 AS300) is solid as a rock when full. After it starts moving off of full it starts bouncing around and as it gets less full it really bounces and is almost useless. Its almost like the sender had a very light float making it supersensative to very small movements.
Any ideas?

Ebert Steele
La Marque,
Texas WBCCI #1083
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Old 08-21-2003, 08:19 AM   #12
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welcome to the club. the tanks dont have baffels in them. and as a result gas will slosh around in the tank plus your guage might be in same condition as mine worn. and lots of luck on finding a new sensor . the tank is not gm it is a airstream product. a piece of trash some farmer put on his tractor . havent been to the farm supply store yet. still loking for a sensor. lol
al
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Old 08-21-2003, 08:33 AM   #13
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Quote:
the tank is not gm it is a airstream product.
But the sender is, or at least a 0-90 ohm which has been GM's standard for 30 or 40 years. As long as you don't care if you have to do some redneck engineering you can go to the junkyard and get one out of a Vega and the parts will work.

John
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Old 08-21-2003, 07:33 PM   #14
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one exception . i will not use a sensor out of an old vega. and i can red neck with the best. as for junk yards now i dont think so. mr snake might want to keep that gas tank he is sleeping under. lol
al
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