I just installed a Dakota Digital Oil temp gauge in the air temp hole and mounted the sending unit in oil drain plug hole. I could move it over next time to the other plug. It reads about 185 with outside temp at 85. Going through a little traffic it goes up to 195.

 

When I'm moving in these 85° temps we've been having, it settles in at about 180-190°, but will go up rapidly in traffic, up to about 210°. I've seen it as high as 220°, but no higher. When moving again after heating up in traffic, it goes down a bit, but very slowly and never down to the original 180-190°. I also have the HD Premium Oil Cooler with a thermostat that kicks in at 185°. It's interesting watching this gauge and what oil temps do in various conditions. For example, it is higher when riding in a tail wind, lower in a head wind, which you would expect.

If you're seeing a big disparity between your two gauges, test them in some boiling water, which should read 212°. The dipstick gauge would be easy to check, not so for the fairing gauge without removing the sender and boiling the water in your garage.

You didn't say how your sender was installed, in the pan or near the filter as HD specifies.

 

Bob

Could I get you to list the material it took for you to do this job. I like the layout of the underside and it has eased my worry on the aforementioned issue I spoke of.

Thanks

 

Taterdog/iclick: I have the HD gage with the sensor mounted in the "pipe plug" in the oil pan. I also have the HD premium oil cooler. Temps seem to be consistent with yours, iclick. Everything seems to be OK except for my gage sticking on zero at times on start up. Again, I hope this gets better with time!

Jim

'07 Ultra

 

iclick, did you put heat shrink over the sending unit? Nice pic, looks way out of the way. [sm=smiley20.gif]This is on the "Harley do list".

 

Basically, it was just the HD kit (#75324-05) and a brass adapter purchased at Napa. My memory and notes say it is a 3/8NPTM-1/8NPTF, but someone on this forum recently said his used a 1/4NPTM-1/8NPTF. Probably the best thing to do is to take the plug from the oil pan and sender to Napa and match it up. Then tell us which is correct, please.

As for wiring, IIRC everything needed to adapt to the old air-temp gauge harness was included in the kit. If not, it would take no more than common blade connectors and wire to make a harness to connect the gauge to the old air-temp connector. The sender has two wires, signal and ground, and ground can be connected anywhere. I used the ground in the cranny in front of the battery, then snaked the signal wire under the tank. Remove the back tank bolt and prop up the rear of the tank for access. I used a coathanger wire and taped the signal wire to it, then once routed just remove the coathanger wire.

The other two wires are only 12v to power the guage and ground, and they can be connected to the old air-temp harness. Just find out which is 12v (switched) and ground, the locations of which are in the service manual. If in doubt, turn the ignition on (no need to start the engine) and find the connector on the harness that measures 12v, then 0v when igntion is off. Ground is almost always the black wire in the harness, and you can check that with a continuity tester (ohmeter). If you don't have a manual I'll look it up for you to eliminate the guesswork.

 

No, that little protective sheath came with the kit. The sender is about 1/4-1/2" higher than the cases to the front and rear and 1/2-3/4" above the frame members to the left and right. There is the possibility something could get up there and break the sender or damage the wiring, but it would be a freak accident. If it broke the sender you could loose oil rapidly, but I don't consider this much of a risk. After all, a meteor could also land on my head while riding, but I calculate that into the total risk of riding.

 

On my 07 Ultra the exact brass bushing from NAPA was #"3220x6x2" which was 3/8" MNPT - 1/8" FNPT. To keep it simple, I just routed the sender cable along the clutch cable to the flairing. I also used the 12v power and ground from the existing air temp gage. The ground was black and the 12v was orange. You could also use the power and ground from the air temp light connector (same colors). I put a spade connector on the ends of the cable from the oil temp gage and just plugged it into the connector.

Jim

07 Ultra

 

Iclick's installation used a 3/8"MPT X 1/8"FPT; my '04 installation used a 3/8"MPT X 1/8" FPT.[EDIT: I originally posted that I used a 1/4" male NPT X 1/8" femaile NPT; Iclick's information was correct.]

 

Just make sure it straightens up before 90 days is up, as that when the warranty expires. If you have a good relationship with your dealer you should be able to have the gauge replaced even though you installed it. I've done this type of thing with my dealer a few times over the years, as I have them fooled into thinking I know what I'm doing and if the item breaks there isn't any fault in my expert install procedure. It's a good relationship, and as long as I don't break too many parts, they stay clueless.