Date:         Fri, 26 Apr 1996 00:55:17 +0000
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         "Aaron J. Wood" <afn32620@freenet.ufl.edu>
Subject:      Re: Oil Press. Sender location(T4)

Kirk wrote:

> I have a 2.0 liter type IV engine in my pea green 1977 camper, and a
> package from RMMW containing an oil pressure gauge and sender arrived
> on my doorstep today.  I don't know how similar our engines are, but I
> also have the "hole too small" problem.  I'm not sure, but it looks to
> me like there is not quite enough clearance to pull the tin shroud,
> install the new sender, and reinstall the shroud (I'm not even sure
> how to pull the tin).

Kirk, doing this is a real pain, the bolts that hold on the tin are BEHIND 
the breat tin(firewall tin).  If you have a single carb of fuel 
injection you will have to remove the intake tubes.  All this adds up 
to its not worth it.
 
> What have you decided to do?

You are right, the threads on the sender are 1/8 in tapered National Pipe 
Threads(NPT).  This means that the sender could screw right into the 
existing hole.  Wouldn't that be oh so nice, but that is not the 
case.  On my engine, I found that there was not even enough room 
between the distributor and the existing hole to screw the sender 
in(it bumps the dist.).  So on to plan B,  I went to the harware 
store and bought a two inch piece of brass pipe and a brass "T", all 
having 1/8 in NPT.  I screwed the pipe into the existing hole, 
screwed the "T" onto the pipe(so that there was on horizontal and one 
vertical hole), screwed the original idiot switch into the top hole 
and the new sender in the horizontal hole.  Everything fit just 
great.  As I looked at the setup my brain began to think on its own, 
hmm, the pipe makes the two senders the highest point on the engine.  
Air flows to the highest point.  Damn, air will get into the pipe and 
screw up all the readings.  On to plan C.  Not knowing what else to 
do I went to the store again and bought a short nipple(get your ming 
out of the gutter) that has two male sides to it, and another "T", 
and a draincock.  I screwed on the second "T" in the same exact position as 
the  fist one(one hole vert. one hor.).  I then screwed the idiot 
switch into the hor. hole and the draincock into the upper hole.  
This way I can bleed the air out of the system when the engine is 
started and oil pressure has built up.  To sum it up it looks like 
the strangest contraption in the world.  The new sender mounted 
horizontal, the old switch mounted horizontal, and the bleeded valve 
on top.  The problem is that I don't know how often air will build up 
in the line, or even if it will effect things that much.  I will have 
to bleed it every oil change for sure, but I don't know how often 
after that.  I plan to watch the gauge when I know that there is no 
air in the line then when or if it gives some odd readings go back 
and bleed it. It only takes a second but is a little messy if not 
done correctly.

Hope this help
Write back if anything is unclear.
Aaron J. Wood
Student at University of Florida
Email: afn32620@freenet.ufl.edu
Home Phone:(352) 376-2330