I have this 'Autometer Temperature Gauge install using your air bleeder screw' write up, I made about a year ago and totally forgot about it. Going to try and get some pictures for you guys. But it's pretty descriptive.Hooking up your Auto meter Water Temp Gauge using the air bleeder screw hole.
Things that should have came with you Kit:
1 Gauge
1 Light bulb with green and red bulb covers.
One sensor with thread size 1/8-27
And some mounting screws
Things you will need:
The sensor which came with the auto meter gauge
The thread size on the sensor is 1/8-27
Electrical wire to run from the sensor to the gauge, and also to wire up your gauge
A Drill with a good set of drill bits
A decent powered vacuum cleaner
Vaseline
Teflon tape
About two jugs of coolant.
And a Tap Kit
The Steps
First you want to drain your car of coolant. MAKE SURE the car is PROPERLY COOLED DOWN and there is no HOT coolant because that could lead to a big owie.
1. Now how to start draining: Locate the Air bleeder screw on your car. On the SOHC its right by the intake manifold and has a warning label next to it; it’s also next to the stock temperature senders for the stock gauge and ECU. It is a 10mm screw, on the DOHC it should be in the same general Idea. Open that up.
2. Now locate the coolant bleeder screw on your radiator and unscrew that and let the fluid drain, it should be a little butter fly screw on the lower right side when looking at the car from the front.
3. After all the coolant has been drained; take off the top radiator hose from the side it’s attached to the engine you might want to take the whole thing off for better access.
Now the fun begins, you took off the radiator hose so you can stick your vacuum cleaner hose in there; because once you start drilling there will be some shaving bits. What you want to do is get a drill bit that’s one size bigger then the bleeder screw hole and start drilling until it gets bigger also don’t forget to dip the drill but in some Vaseline as this will greatly reduce the amount of shavings going everywhere.
You will repeat this using one size bigger drill bit until the hole is big enough for the 1/8-27 tap bit to go in so you can make the threads.
The Vaseline technique worked perfectly with catching all the shavings but I had the vacuum cleaner as a back up. I don’t remember what size drill bit I used at the end. But the size of the tap bit I used was 1/8-27 that’s the exact same size the auto meter sensor threads are. Now with the thread made your auto meter sensor should go right into the hole up to the threads.
5. Once you tap your hole and the sensor is ready to be put in. Test it out if your sensor screws in, but make sure you take it out. You will leave the hole open to refill your system with coolant. Double check that you don’t have any metal shavings inside there. Now start pouring coolant back into your radiator, with the bleeder hole open (sensor unscrewed) Make sure you put the drain plug back on the radiator, and you reconnect any hoses you took off. Now keep pouring coolant into the radiator until you start seeing coolant in the bleeder hole you just drilled and tapped. Once you see coolant in there you can put your sensor into your brand new tapped hole. Go to next step to see how I did it.
6. If you look at your sensor it has two nuts on top of it with a washer in between. Take those off for now, now put some Teflon tape on the threads of the sensor and screw it in to the new tapped hole you have. You don’t have to make it too tight but tight enough.
7. Now remember those two nuts and the washer you took off. Well put one of the nuts back on and then use a nice tip to put on there and secure it with the washer and nut. Now all I did for this part was use a 14 gauge electrical wire to run it from the sensor to the gauge. I have my gauge set up underneath a switch in a car because that’s how I like it. How ever you decide to wire your gauge electronically it’s up to you. Just make sure that the gauge it’s self has a ground all by its self. If you don’t you will freak out like me and have the gauge pointing way past 250 degrees heh.
Now after everything is complete and you’re ready to test you gauge out, make sure you turn your car on with out the radiator cap on for all the air bubbles to come out. Also add coolant as you see it go down. I did this on my car for approximately 10 minutes, until all the bubbles stop coming up and the radiator stayed full.
