With the IUP, do you get real gauges, or just dummy ones? I can't seem to find this out, and every time I post this question, my topic gets shunted to 'Interior Upgrades' or something, and no-one replies.

Maybe this is not important to others, but it is to me. I would like to have real, functioning gauges, not just on/off gauges. Does the oil pressure gauge measure accurate oil pressures, or just pressure/no pressure?

Thanks. I need an answer - besides, it's my birthday today!!!

:bang: :bang: :bang:

 

I believe they are "REAL" guages...............oh and happy birthday!!


Moderated Post

 

Here is a pic I found on this site. Not a very detailed representation of oil pressure:

 

It looks like that because the car is probably off.

Off course the gauges work.... why wouldn't they?? How could Ford put in fake gas, oil, and temp gauges in a car that they sell????

The IUP adds the silver trim and My Color feature, it doesn't take away functionality.

 

Isn't the IUP speedo supposed to go up to 140?
Also, I believe the gauges are the on off type. You know, if everythings ok, then the needle will be in the middle. If there's a problem, it will go into one of the extremes. Not sure, just guessing.

 

120mph -> V6

Also they are all dummy guages... IUP or not

 

it's not that they aren't working guages, there's just no graduation marked in them to see how many amps you're pushin', or how many psi your oil pump has, or how many degrees your water temperature is. I haven't seen that since the Fox body. They do work, by all means... you just have to assume that if you have a 185 degree thermostat, that when the needle sits at normal operating temperature.... that's 185. You're guessing from there.
It's probably because they got too many phone calls from people that weren't quite as smart as the oil guage..... so they had to dummy it down.
I have a feeling that one of the more reoccuring questions may have had something to do with the water temperature going over 210 degrees, and still not overheating the vehicle.... If you don't understand that the temperature can exceed the boiling point if the water is under pressure, then a temperature guage may have some people scratching their heads.

 

Dummy gauges? Hmmm, interesting because the oil pressure gauge does change. When I startup the car it is a little low then starts to climb. It does alter a little while idling compared to driving as well. If it is a dummy, it sure is smart.

 

To further talk about the above 2 posts....

In a real oil pressure guage, for example, when you rev the engine, the needle should rise with the rpms. Every non ford car I have ever owned, has done this. My Mustangs on the otherhand, have always just hovered in the middle.

I have read in other forums, that the oil pressure sending unit on these cars (and other fords) is a simple dummy on off switch, that is wired into the guage.

Simular thing for the volts guage. For example, in my pontiac, when I roll down the power windows, or turn on the rear window defroster, the needle points down a little lower on the initial power surge, before it goes back to where it was previous. Again, the Mustang doesn't do this.

 

Around here we call them "idiot sticks" or "idiot gauges". Same thing as idiot lights in a different package.

 

The gauges are real but not very sensitive to changes in pressure. I noticed the same thing on mine as adrenalin. It goes up and down just a little bit. Aftermarket is best if you are really interested in keeping an eye on those things. I'd still rather have it than and idiot light though.

 

when I said "dummy it down" I didn't mean that they didn't function, or that they were on/off type guages.... I just meant they took the graduation marks, or numbers out of them. They all still work like the had before, they just replaced the numbers with a "normal" range.

 

The Difference between "Real Gauges" and the Gauges in EVERY SINGLE DOMESTIC/JAPANESE CAR YOU CAN BUY TODAY is the fact that None of the Gauges on Modern Cars are Direct Reading. In other words they are like Idiot Lights! There is a Sensor or a switch at the Reading Location on the Engine.

Take the Oil Pressure Gauge for Example. A True Direct Reading Oil Pressure Gauge has an Oil Line that comes into the Gauge It's self and reads the Pressure etc. On Modern Cars There is just an Oil Pressure sensor that is set to certain limits, if Oil Pressure Drops below, or Goes Above one of these pre set limits, the Sensor tells the Gauge to Move Accordingly. The Big Issue is that sometimes these Sensors Go Bad, and the Gauge stays in the <span style='color:#FF0000'>\NORMAL/ Range on the Gauge. Which is exactly where all Modern Gauges Should Stay. When there is Actually something Wrong. That's where the Check Engine Light Comes In to Play.

Another Example, the Temperature Gauge. It has a Sending Switch/Sensor that tells the Gauge to Operate Within the Normal range, but New Cars can Read ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP of the Normal Range and Be Fine as long as it doesn't Go Outside those Hash Marks on the High End of the Normal Range.

My Mom's 87 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe is where I learned about Direct Reading/REAL Gauges, and Modern Idiot Gauges. Her Turbo Coupe Always Read Right to the top of the Normal Range which worried her. She took it to the Shop to have it checked, and they told here "As Long as it's in the Normal Range It is Fine" Just Like I said Above. So my Dad changed the Temperature Switch and it Dropped to the Middle of the Normal Range.

Now that I have Explained how these Modern Gauges are Different from REAL GAUGES, Let me say that I would still rather have a Full Set of Gauges, Direct Reading or Not, as I still feel more comfortable watching a Gauge and seeing it move, Rather than be Driving along and have a Red Idiot Light Just come on Blaring In My Face!</span>

 

Thanks for all the replies. As a driver of many old British sports cars (when I wasn't repairing them), I am used to direct reading gauges - an oil pressure gauge that changes when you rev the car, and has markings on it to measure the actual oil pressure. When the engine warms up at idle, the oil pressure drops, and the gauge indicates that.

"Hmmm, interesting because the oil pressure gauge does change. When I start up the car it is a little low then starts to climb"

Adrenalin: A real gauge would give you a high reading at start up, then would decrease once the oil warmed up, as the oil pressure decreases to normal reading.

Seems like these gauges are not complete 'on/off', 'good/bad' gauges, and they do give some semblance of a reading, but that they are just not as accurate as a 'real' gauge.

Better than an idiot light, at least. I think I'll spend the money and add some aftermarket 'real' gauges - water and oil at minimum. Gee, I can put them on the dash top, just like they did in the 60's

 

If it says 120 how fast can she REEEEEEEEEALLY go? Since I don't have the ***** to find out- someone who does tell me.

I only have gas and temp-
I hate the temp- 3 years of driving the olds with its dex cool issues have made me paranoid.

 

Unless the gauge reads high when you first start it, then eventually drops after the oil is hot, and then it will swing like a tach when you give it gas - it's not a real gauge that measures true oil pressue - it should be dynamic.

 

in my '88 my oil pressure guage did give me true readings, and there was no oil line to it.... that's what an oil pressure sending unit does. it reads the oil pressure by being tapped into an oil galley right off the pump, and then sends the corresponding voltage to the guage. That guage would go up and down with rpms. My water guage showed me a temp in degrees.... not just a normal range..... as did my amp meter. The only guage on the car that was an idiot guage was the gas guage.... it would tell me I was full right up until I was about to poop it, then it would drop to empty. I had to use my trip odometer to guess how much gas I had.
So... I can't speak for these new guages... but I would guess they're not just idiot sticks

 

Just a mechanical question here in regards to the oil pressure and the gauge reading, correct me if I am wrong, but I believe the oil pump has a fixed operating pressure ie it does not matter how fast the motor is "reving" the pump only produces a set pressure whether the motor is at idle or at WOT.

The flux in the oil pressure reading is really just surging of the oil through the system like when you get on it and then back off the throttle the oil surges in the system and dumps back into the oil pickup.

I could be wrong of course, but I am pretty sure that the oil pump puts out a fixed pressure regardless of RPM's.

 

I think it would have a range that it operates in, instead of just a fixed pressure. If you take the valve covers off and watch it at idle, you can see how it oils without making too much of a mess, but grab the throttle control and give it some gas.... you're gonna have a mess to clean up

 

If I can, I'll take a small vid of how an oil pressure gauge should act. I had a Ford Racing (Automer) gauge in my 96GT. I'm sure the present owner will let me take a small vid.