I am looking for a fuel tank level sending unit for an 86 Cougar with the 5.0L. I recently purchased said item at gastanks.com, but what they sent me was the fuel pump mounting bracket. Can anyone help me, or direct me to the proper vendor? Does the Mustang unit fit in our cars? Thanks in advance!
:rollin:
Ya need to specify whether you have digital or buttstuffogue. The digital fuel gauge used a different sender than the buttstuffogue (including the buttstuffogue gauge in the base digital dash)
I have a digital dash. When I called Ford for the part number, they never even asked me that question...little details maybe?
:deal:
As far as I know, they don't make them any more.
sorry, mines for buttstuffogue, I'll check around for you though.
Thanks man, I havent given up yet...
Is your dash all digital, or just the speedometer? If it's just the speedometer that's digital, the buttstuffogue sender is the one you want.
A Lincoln Mark VII sender might work for you...
Naw, the entire dash is digital...
you are saying the sender out of a Lincoln may work, or that the sender from that car will only work with buttstuffog dash?
Linkin's had both digital and buttstuffogue gauges available, so you should be able to get a sender out of a Mark VII with a digital dash.
I know how you feel about needing a sender - I just today had to jerry-rig my own because they can't be bought new anymore...
Tell me about it - mine is rusted to the tank so I am stuck with it. Stupid Fuel Pump sender didn't seal because little tabs are all rusty and mangled and I can't get enough pressure when I twist it in - so it leaks. I figured I get a new tank - ain't worth it if I end up with no fuel gauge :nono: :flip:
I am considering a repair job on this thing. It will take some time and patience, but I think I can do it. I will keep yall posted.
they are still availiable from ford, what is the problem in finding one??
they are still availiable from ford, what is the problem in finding one???
Because they want like 350 dollars for one.
funny, either your not explaining what you want good or you have some not very good parts people there. my price book says $110.82 RETAIL price for that unit. i've heard things were higher up north, but thats a little pricey... :giggle:
Well, , can we make a deal? :deal: :D
just for correctness, this is a '86 cougar, 5.0 v8 with a electronic (digital) dash. if this is correct, pm me with your full name and address, with a credit card # and experation date and full card name, and i will order one and have it drop shipped to you, for $100.00 including shipping.......
Are you talking about the fuel pump bracket or the gauge sending unit? I was able to get a pump bracket but was told that the sending unit is unavailable. I was told this by the dealership and by the place I get my aftermarket parts.
I can't see anyone giving out their credit card info, but if you could post a part # he could order his own...
ok, i'll bite. what is a fuel pump bracket on a fuel pump and sending unit mounted in the tank??? :giggle: or better yet, is it to cold up north for any of the ford dealers to look up or sell parts? if i was ya'll, i think i would find me another dealer or contact for parts....
oh, mine is THE sending unit...
Not quite sure what you're asking here, but when you go to a parts store and ask for a sending unit they will open up their parts locator program and then ask you "which one"? And show you a picture of the tank with two sending units - the large one that is the fuel pump bracket (and still available) and the small one that is the gauge sender (that, according to their parts program, is discontinued). They are both referred to as "Sending Units". Now this may be different for an '86, but for my '88 the small (gauge) sending unit was unavailable. The large (fuel) sending unit was $114 Canadian.
If you can still get the small sending unit I'd buy one on the spot - I did manage to repair mine by bead blasting and soldering the holes in the rusted out top, but I'd feel more comfortable with a new one. Mine is an '88 T-Bird with the buttstuffogue fuel gauge. A part number that I could present to the Ford dealer would be greatly appreciated if you can get one...
Actually, on second thought, I think I now see the source of the confusion. According to Mitchell OnDemand (which has been wrong on occasion, of corse) the pre-87 models used only one sending unit on the right side of the tank (under the "home plate" hump in the trunk floor), with the fuel pump and gauge sender attached. The 87-88 uses two. The pump is on the right side of the tank, the gauge sender is on the left.
you are correct on one part, the sending unit for buttstuffOG guages IS discontinued, however, the one for a electronic (digital) dash is NOT. but , all birds/cat from 85-88 used seperate sending units/fuel pumps. earlier cfi cars & later 89-up cars used 1 piece pump-senders in tank.... :D
Ahh, ok... good to know. Still, it's odd that they would discontinue the buttstuffogue sender when that's the more common one (all base, sport and TC clusters have an buttstuffogue fuel gauge while only the relatively uncommon full digital cluster has a dogital one)...
I still may get a digital sender then - the electronic part on mine is fine, it's the metal plate at the top that is rusted out. Got a part number? If so I'll make this a sticky :D
-e5ly-9275-b-
Well, I just ordered that part and it is valid for a sending unit, so I will let you guys know tomorrow what the deal is!
Thanks again for doing the research for us shorangerbird. It helps when somebody knows what the hell they are talking about!
BTW, it was 110.82 +tax from the Ford parts dealer. :deal:
-that's affirmitive, that is SRP, whatever price i gave you was wholesale, which is what we sell them for....
Now this thread is stickyworthy, but I'm gonna move it to another section :D
If I am interpreting the '84 EVTSM correctly, using the wrong sending unit will make the gauge read backwards.
On the buttstuffog sender the resistance increases as the tank empties.
On the digital sender the resistance decreases as the tank empties.
Don't know if this applies to the newer models.
You are correct. It applies to all 83-88 T-Birds and Cougars
Well I picked up the part today and immediately checked the resistance on it. My fears were confirmed: 14 ohms empty, 160 full. It is a unit for a 87-88 car. Very pretty and very useless to me. Anybody want it? $100. :mad:
shorangerbird, what do you suggest?
-well i'm no electronic expert by any means, however, i have double checked myself, and even went to microfische and they all state the same...86-88 birds and cougars use e5ly.9275.b. it is the same unit used on 85-92 mark 7s with digital dash and 85-87 linc contenintals.
now were you to actually have a '85 or a 86 with a 85 tank and unit , the 85s were a year unto their own. it was a one year offering that is different than all others. of course the are discontinued. however,armyguy, mohr ford in plainfield, in. shows to have on in stock. part# is e5sz.9275.e. you might want to call them and see if they still have it and maybe would take it out in the shop and have a tech check the resistance on it if that seems to be the problem. and on you existing one, if you don have :crazy: for parts people up there, you should be able to return that one for a refund, as they can send it back to ford on a 30 day return. however i did say if. hopefully, you know them well. hope this helps... :sorry:
-sorry, armyguy, the phone # to that dealer is 317-838-3934....
I hear what youre saying. What I am using for reference is this:
http://www.coolcats.net/tech/troubleshooting/gasgauge.html
Now that seems to be correct because when I purchased the car and found out the gauge wasnt working, I dropped the tank and replaced the fuel pump and it had junkyard markings on it that said 87 T-bird on it. What is happening is the fuel gauge goes up when I use the fuel in the tank. At full it says the tank is empty-at empty it says I have approx 6-7 gallons left in the tank. This totally coresponds with Eric's website. Did the 85 have a full digital dash? Could I possibly have one installed in my car? I believe the hard work and research you have done, I am just not sure which way to go on this.
Mitchell OnDemand's advice:
1987-88 T-Bird/Cougar, buttstuffogue gauge (88 Sport/XR7, 87-88 TC, and base cluster):
Full: 8-12 ohms
Empty: 60-86 ohms
1987-88 Bird/Coug, digital gauge (full digital dash ONLY);
Full: 154-161 ohms
Empty: 9-12 ohms
1985-86 Bird/Coug buttstuffogue (base digital, TC, XR7):
Full: 8-12 ohms
Empty: 60-86 ohms
1985-86 Bird/Coug full digital:
Full: 143-161 ohms
Empty: 10-18 ohms
I checked, the specs are the same for 85-86. According to these numbers, an 85-88 sending unit should work for you, provided you get the proper one for your dash. If you install an buttstuffogue sender in a full digital dash you'll get opposite readings. If you install a digital sender in an buttstuffogue (or base digital) dash the same thing will happen.
Also according to these numbers, if you measured 14 ohms empty, 160 full you've got the correct sender for a full digital dash (the one with the built-in fuel computer on the right and multi-gauge on the left). If your dash has the buttstuffogue fuel gauge (either a sport/buttstuffogue cluster or the base digital cluster that has buttstuffogue fuel and temp gauges) this would be the wrong one for you.
Now where you say that when your tank is about empty your gauge is showing 6-7 gallons, it would seem that you have an buttstuffogue gauge sender in the car - the fact that the gauge only shows 6-7 gallons coincides with the fact that the buttstuffogue sender only goes up to 86 ohms resistance, not enough to trick your digital gauge into thinking that you've got a full (18+ gallon) tank.
Did you try the new sender in the car? Seems to me it should work...
I am going to give it a try this weekend if I can...
Hmmmm... we can rewire half an I-4 car to put in a V8, modify a speedo to show whatever we want, put sequential signals in a car that never had them, install GM alternators in Fords, run 10,000 watt stereos without blowing anything up, but we can't design a small circuit to take a downward-curve ground signal, and create an adjustable artificial upward-curve signal to drive a "wrong" gas gauge? Where's all the electrical engineers when you need one?
LOL, I wish! I gonna try it when the gas tank is a little bit less full. SHoud be tommorrow (Sunday)
UPDATE!
After wrestling with the tank (still had too much fuel in there) I finally got it installed. It immediately said I had 7 gallons. I was skeptical at first and then the sucker never moved, so I really got skeptical. I decided to fill 'er up and I'll be ed that sucker didn't say full for the first time since I owned it! Not to mention accurate too! Said I had 7 gallons in there and I put exactly 13.9 gallons in. Almost 22 gal. anyway. :crazy:
So, kudos to shorangerbird, and ThunderChicken and Eric (CoolCats guy) thinking maybe coolcats.net needs to be updated? You guys helped me tons! :america: :bowdown:
Glad to hear y'all worked it out. I will definitely update my site with the new info. BTW Carm, do you have faith in the Mitchell's info about the resistance of all those sending units?
My sending unit is on crack,
Its reading something but sure not the amount of gas thats in the tank LOL.
After seeing 4 pages on a sending unit i'm going to sump the tank and get a Auto Meter fuel gauge and sending unit from summit for less the 100 and ford can go stuff there sending unit were sun dont shine!
Eric: Mitchell gets their info from Ford, so I'm quite confident. They can sometimes be wrong in wiring diagrams (wrong wire colors), but then again, so can Ford. Mitchell was right with this digital sender anyway...
Chirpalot, that would be a fine idea, but for us folks who try to keep the car somewhat unmolested and unmodified, what you suggest was never an option for me.
I have a full digital dash, so throwing whatever up in there certainly wouldnt work either. Unless I hacked up my dashboard to install a new gauge.
To each his own... :hick:
That's what A-pillar pods are for. I see some of those in my own future. :D
My car is not molested, Its just built the way FORD didn;t have the balls to do right the frist time.