1962-67 Fuel Gauges/Sending Units, the continuing drama....

[glutamodo]

Okay, I finally put that Wolfsburg West tank unit in yesterday...

- First of all, the float rubbed against the fuel filter "sock" screen in the tank and would get snagged by it. I had to remove, bend the float arm, and reinstall the sender a couple of times before I got it halfway decent.

- I will have to do more bending I think to get it so that it will register in the right spot at the bottom. I actually ran it dry and then dumped in the spare gallon I carry in my trunk - and it still won't register that - no even sloshing the fuel around by hard-braking would make a blip on the gauge needle. So it's the same-old, same-old story here. I don't know if I'll be driving the car much in the near future though, so not sure when I'll get to it next.

- Otherwise it seemed to be a decent unit. I had to deal with the arm binding as mentioned in the last post, but that was simple enough to fix. It came assembled with the float already on the arm, which you don't often see. The screws and plastic washers are nice. The metal cap was decent. BUT, why do they include all of that stuff but NOT a new sender-to-tank gasket??

-Andy

['69Custom]

You really have to love the VW world! Where else can you basically say, "It doesn't work, but otherwise it seems to be decent."?!
_________________
-Tim

1969 Frankenbug
1965 Ford Mustang
:2gunfire: F-U-M-P!
~"I thought I was wrong once, but I was mistaken." ~The Boss
Please excuse any typos as my iPhone doesn't speak English very well. 

[McGuirk]

Andy-- I had the same problem with the WW float hitting the sock. How well does yours seal against fumes? I'm using one of the rubber (or whatever it's made of) gasket. I had a cork one as well but I thought the solid one would seal better.

[glutamodo]

I'd avoid cork gaskets. The one I used was rubber as well. I noticed no fumes/leakage with it.

Yeah, that is a bit contradictory. I've played the "bend the float arm" game a little bit in the past, but I don't really like to - in this case, I had no choice. Too bad you can't see into the tank as to how well it's lining up every time you make a bend. I wonder how well (and how safe to use) one of those mechanic's inspection cameras would work there)

[62ItalianRagtop]

So the best is an og Magura sender ?
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LOOKING FOR 62 ENGINE WITH NUMBER FROM 6.904.xxx TO 6.915.xxx
http://tettodistraccio.blogspot.com/

[glutamodo]

Maybe - at least, the Magura tank unit I just pulled out of there wasn't rubbing on the filter sock! But... it didn't register at the bottom either.

[glutamodo]

Okay, figured out what was up with that WW tank unit hitting the filter sock - I don't know why I didn't see the reason sooner!

This is what it looked like before I installed it - how it came out of the box - note the direction of the float - pointing to the left when viewed from this direction (right side of car as installed). That is how it was assembled.

Now, I'll bring back this photo from a page or two back... Look at the three Magura sending units. The two with the float, as pictured, pointing to the right have a straight arm. The one with it pointing to the left has an arm with a double bend in it.

I didn't notice this until today... I took out that WW unit and was comaring it to all of those in that photo. So it appears that WW assembed the thing wrong, with the float going to wrong way. Either that, or they needed to bend the float like the later-Magura style was. I went and looked through the classifieds, and found some other examples of left (right of car) metal floats - and one of them was old enough to be a riveted-on style, so you know it's not just someone changing the float around on the snap-in style.

So that left me two choices - either reverse the float, or try bending the arm to match. I don't like to remove the floats if I can't help it, since it can loosen the hoop it sits in, and also, I've broken one or two floats over the years in trying to get them off. So... since I'd already done some bending on that arm already, I just decided to do some more, tried to get it about the same angle over as that 1969 Magura was. The result - compared to that 1969 sending unit.

Now, I'll probably have to take it out and bend it some more before it registers down low like I want it to - I'll have to drive it and see what it does and go from there.

-Andy

[62ItalianRagtop]

Good report glutamodo
_________________
LOOKING FOR 62 ENGINE WITH NUMBER FROM 6.904.xxx TO 6.915.xxx
http://tettodistraccio.blogspot.com/

[glutamodo]

Actually, you replied before I found the error in my post above - I forgot the first image! It's in there now though.

[dantrefethen]

My new WW sender was the same way, with the float pointing to the left rather than the right. Only I hadn't installed it yet

After reading your post, I went ahead and reversed the float and bent the
hook down so it was tight again.

Hope I didn't bugger something up, but it seemed to be the easiest thing to
do.

Dan

[glutamodo]

I might have reversed the float too had I not already bent that arm a couple of times already. Also, I remember one of the various senders I've messed with over the years, the float never did fit tight again after taking it off - you'd bend the hoop down and snap it in there but it wasn't ever quite as good as it was initially. But you'll probably be just fine.

Did you have a look at your filter sock? I got a flashlight and checked mine - it got a bit bent by contacting the float. I reached in there with a long screwdriver and tried to bend it back in proper shape.

-Andy

[McGuirk]

So I pulled my new WW sender out...yep, the sock was bent. Can't believe I didn't compare it to my old one first and notice the float direction. I picked up a Magura sender from the classifieds, I'll see how that works. My 64 originally had a VDO sender (with the boot now ripped, as all of them seem to be now).

Weird. It looks to me like WW copied the magura pivot mechanism and the VDO arm & float...and then reversed the float for some reason. Think I'll email them and point them to this thread.

[glutamodo]

An update, maybe the last one for a while regarding my 62.

I think I'm "done" with messing with tank sending units now. I drove my 62 for the first time in quite a while today, and got it down to the point where the needle was just under the bar of the reserve section. Still bouncing around nicely on acceleration when I stopped to buy fuel. Topped off, was 9.6 gallons, so one gallon left. Much better than any of the others I'd talked about in this thread over the years. This was the new-WW-bent-to-match-the-69-Magura-sender shown a few posts back.

Now, I will probably put in a different gauge, because of the dust building up inside the one I have now. But I'm happy with that WW tank unit now and will keep it for the forseeable...

-Andy

[Goshen]

Don't say "Done" yet glutamodo

I am a little late in this thread...

My cousin who owns TTM VW WERKS has taken my '67 and made some modifications to make it appear like a '65 to even make a kit so i would have two handles on each door panel.. one to lock and the other to roll the windows.

He is also making a one complete self contained AC unit the size of a betamax.. yes , I am an old timer.. this unit will fit under the hood with two batteries and one 110 am alternator.

My question is with an electric vdo gauges like the one pictured here have you been able to locate a good sending unit that will work. Perhaps one out of a '68 bug or vanagon... I dunno but maybe you have an idea..

My VDO Fuel Level Gauge is a 301-303

Egauges does have a universal one # SN39 but I didnt want to pay that much for it or maybe locate one from another later model car that may work...

Anyone know which one would work ?

Here is the egauges link:

http://www.egauges.com/vdo_indS.asp?Sender=75_10ohms&PN=SN39

I was able to locate a good sending unit that will work.. Egauges does have a universal one # SN38

This is the VDO 301-303 that i am using and specified 0-90 ohms:

Here is the egauges link:

http://egauges.com/vdo_indS.asp?Sender=0_90ohms&PN=SN38


Part Number: SN38
Range: Fuel Sender - 0-90 Ohms
Thread:
Warning Contact:
Compatibility: 0-90 Ohms
Notes: Tank Sender - 0-90 Ohm - Adjustable 6-24”. By Classic Instruments.
List Price: $41.00
Our Price: $34.85

[glutamodo]

LOL... yeah, I am done messing with the tank sending unit on my 62. (now watch, that float on the WW sender will spring a leak... )

The purpose of this thread was mostly relating my experiences regarding stock mechanical fuel gauges and sending units. The whole point here has been to retain a stock looking square fuel gauge on the dash. If I wanted to stray from that, I'd have done as Bill said after my first post, and put in a 68 speedometer, vibrator and tank unit just like I have in my Baja bug.

So this has been about the stock mechanical gauges, plus my experiment with an old accessory gauge and putting the guts out of an old Ghia gauge into it and trying out a Ghia tank unit. And my little side-trip in checking out the VW-specific VDO 301-020 and VDO 3020 with the very "maybe" thought I'd try to stick those guts into that same old accessory gauge.

While it never really made it into this thread, It has been suggested to me before to go and gut that old accessory gauge and put the innards out of some other non-VW VDO gauge and use a universal sending unit, which I think is what you are talking about - but I had no real interest in doing that. Just dealing with the VW stuff is bad enough!!! I don't know how much trial and error in setting up that universal float before it gets a decent range inside the odd shaped VW tank, and then there's the issue that I already know about - the calibration on that old accessory faceplate won't be the same as the one on the new VDO gauge. Just too many potential buggers there!

It might work though, but it's not going to be me doing the experimenting. I don't know how many more times I can unbolt my sending unit before the threads in my gas tank strip out!!

-Andy

[obfuscurity]

Curious what sort of boot/ring the WW unit has to prevent leakage on a full tank. I've just come across this with my 66 and the sender doesn't appear to have any sort of rubber seal to prevent leaking on an overfill. Thinking about replacing it...
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66 Sedan L456 "Ramona"

[McGuirk]

Like the old Magura units, the WW just uses an O-ring (or a couple of them, I haven't taken one apart) to seal off the sender. In the meantime since I posted my pictures of my sender saga, I realized that the vintage Magura sender I picked up was missing the stop that prevents it from banging against the roof of the tank when full. While I was thinking about ways to rig something, I contacted WW about the wrong-way float. They said it was an assembly error and sent me a replacement. I put that in and so far it seems to be working, and by the way seals better than the first one (no fumes).

[obfuscurity]

Good to hear. I just spent the last half hour siphoning excess fuel out of my tank using a turkey baster. Looks like I'll grab one of the WW units.
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66 Sedan L456 "Ramona"

[glutamodo]

It is just one O-ring - I took my WW unit apart to check.

[shaved65]

So I just bought a 1961 patina monster bug and it currently has a fuel gauge with an un matching color grill, my question is did 61' bugs come with a gauge or is it supposed to be a blank grill on the right side of the speedo??? Any knowledge of this topic would be appreciated... thanks Tyler