1086 fuel gauge

Zeb Klein · Jun 4, 2013

I am not sure where to start with the checking of the fuel gauge on my 1086. I replaced both sending units last year and the gauge worked flawlessly until I changed the batteries at the end of last year. I have roughly 4 volts at both sending units and the tank is full of fuel. I have continuity at the ground on the upper sending unit but I don"t at the lower sending unit. The gauge is pegged below empty and does nothing when I ground the center terminal on either of the sending units. Is there a way to check the gauge or do I just need to run a new ground the lower sending unit? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Zeb Klein

pete 23 · Jun 4, 2013

The gauges often stick on one end of spectrum or the other. I would take bezel off and move needle by hand just to be sure it is not stuck. If you ground the wire coming into lower tank sender center terminal, the gauge should read full. If not you have bad gauge or wiring to gauge from there. The senders are hooked in series so bottom one is not grounded. It seeks ground through the rear sender. If you are reading some voltage, I'm kind of thinking stuck needle. I have glued little stop pins on lots of volt meter due to this but very few fuel gauges.

Zeb Klein · Jun 5, 2013

It appears a connection on the back of the gauge was not making a good connection. I did pull the cover off and move the gauge needle which moved fine. I am not sure if the gauge is totally accurate but it did come up to 3/4 of a tank. I need to check the fuel level in the tank but I am pretty sure I filled it up a while back and haven"t driven it much since. Thanks for the help Pete. I didn"t realize the bottom sender wasn"t directly grounded.

1086 fuel gauge

Zeb Klein

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pete 23

Well-known Member

Zeb Klein

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