My how-to: Water Temp gauge.
- Thread starter FL_PR5
- Start date
blueprotegelx
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- 2003 Mazda Protege LX-T
mines in the middle, so it's best to ground it to the head? freakin awesome if it works. i may try this before i order a new sensor. haha
Ground it to a big chunk of metal- the engine block, cylinder head, unpainted portion of the frame, negative battery terminal.....
You can probably pick up an existing stud on the engine block that's already being used to ground other things and attach another ground strap there.
You can build a new ground strap for pennies. Try that before ordering a new $10 sendor plus another several dollars for shipping and handling.
You can probably pick up an existing stud on the engine block that's already being used to ground other things and attach another ground strap there.
You can build a new ground strap for pennies. Try that before ordering a new $10 sendor plus another several dollars for shipping and handling.
blueprotegelx
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- 2003 Mazda Protege LX-T
consider it done! i'll be going home for spring break in a couple weeks and i'll try to complete this! i've had the gauge for almost three years and has never really worked! so it'll be exciting to see my "Water Temp" gauge work. haha, very sad read that I just said it'll be exciting to see that gauge work! 
blueprotegelx
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- 2003 Mazda Protege LX-T
do u think you can get some pictures of the wire to the sensor?
blueprotegelx
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- 2003 Mazda Protege LX-T
maybe a pic sometime soon so i can get more of an idea of the ground to the sending unit etc. i noticed some have the sending unit in middle of top radiator hose. i have mine on the hose in the back, pretty much right below the throttle body. is that ok?
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I have mine in the same location described in the first post of this thread. WHY? I don't really know. I kind of regret putting it there because the access to it sucks.
So with that said, getting a clear picture of it isn't all that easy. What I did was a stripped the insulation off a speaker wire about 6" from the end. I wrapped that around the brass fitting block (the tee adapter that the sending unit sits in) and used electrical solder to secure it. Then the other end of that wire is attached to the ground lug on the right side of the engine block (when standing at the front of the car and looking back into the engine bay).
So with that said, getting a clear picture of it isn't all that easy. What I did was a stripped the insulation off a speaker wire about 6" from the end. I wrapped that around the brass fitting block (the tee adapter that the sending unit sits in) and used electrical solder to secure it. Then the other end of that wire is attached to the ground lug on the right side of the engine block (when standing at the front of the car and looking back into the engine bay).
blueprotegelx
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- 2003 Mazda Protege LX-T
i ran a wire from the wire that i have tapped into sensor to the block and nothing happened. actually it's not the block but to where the original grounding point is on the stock temp sensor. should the wire be touching the sensor itself or is it ok where i have it? i have it tapped in a couple inches into the wire before sensor. i think i may just need a new sensor.
blueprotegelx
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- 2003 Mazda Protege LX-T
i do not have a pic....does yours still work ok? what type of sensor do u have?
yea, mine works fine. its back to normal. i'm using the stock sensor that came with the temp gauge. i have a single wire coming from the gauge to be used as the ground only for this gauge so i know if it works or not. i have the ground at the loop behind the engine right above the IM. i believe it is a engine hoist spot? not sure though.
Nice write-up and pretty easy way of getting the sending unit installed. Much easier and user friendly than drilling, tapping, and JBWelding the sending unit into the thermostat housing. Guessing that hose you tapped into is the heater core hose. Any ways, subbing just in case I do this down the road.
blueprotegelx
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- 2003 Mazda Protege LX-T
maybe it's my sensor then. to me it sounds like i have everything hooked correctly, correct me if i'm wrong!
-i have a wire coming from my gauge to a spot along the wall for ground.
-i have a wire coming from the gauge that goes directly to the sensor.
-i have a wire tapped into the ^^^^above wire a couple inches before the sensor that is grounded to where the "Stock" water temp sensor is towards front of engine.
well what you can do, this is what i did and it helped out a lot. it would be easier with a friend, but i did it by myself since it was a last minute project.
start your car up and when you see the gauge isnt reading right, move the ground to other spots that you know are grounded such as the block and all of that.
i dont know about the wire you tapped into, that could be it if you got the wires mixed up or not. but to eliminate any possible mistakes, just use individual wires to direct connections so you can eliminate the mis wiring.
start your car up and when you see the gauge isnt reading right, move the ground to other spots that you know are grounded such as the block and all of that.
i dont know about the wire you tapped into, that could be it if you got the wires mixed up or not. but to eliminate any possible mistakes, just use individual wires to direct connections so you can eliminate the mis wiring.
