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Newbie with a few questions. Temp gauge and, ahem, tyres
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Author:  ronsurf [ Mon Oct 26, 2009 8:10 pm ]
Post subject:  Newbie with a few questions. Temp gauge and, ahem, tyres
Hi,
After searching for a while, I have finally bought a beautiful car - a 1987 2.5 8V 944 with 126,000 miles. It's in amazing condition - head and shoulders above everything else I've seen. :D

There are a couple of things though, of course. One is the luggage shade, which I've fixed.
The other is the temperature gauge. The gauge is stuck at halfway. Ignition on or off, it doesn't move. The car doesn't overheat and the auxilary fan cuts in if left to idle. So I guess the gauge is faulty, rather than a sender or anything. Is this easy/possible to repair? Do I have to remove the steering wheel to remove the gauges? (the odometer reset doesn't work either btw)

And that's all that's wrong with it. Everything, absolutely everything works. It even has the petrol protection flap thingy, and the cassette dividers!! it looks so well cared for! I bought an old car 'cos I miss working on old cars, but apart from the temp gauge there is nothing to do!

I also have a question about tyres. It's fitted with 225/60 15's. The manual says 215/60 15's (which are a bit cheaper). Which is correct?

I'll post pictures of it when I get a sunny day - I'm not driving it much as I haven't determined when the belts were last changed. Is there any way of telling when they were done?

Many thanks for your help, I love this car!

Darren
Author:  944 Man [ Mon Oct 26, 2009 8:15 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Newbie with a few questions. Temp gauge and, ahem, tyres
215/60/15. Id avoid 195/65/15s.
Author:  AlpineTurbo [ Mon Oct 26, 2009 8:17 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Newbie with a few questions. Temp gauge and, ahem, tyres
IIRC there are two sizes for the 15s. One set for the front, another for the rear. You are best off waiting for a reply off another 2.5 driver there.

As for the gauge, it sounds like it is goosed. You can get replacements off Porsche breakers. You'll need to take the pod out which I am afraid does require the steering wheel to come off (I think it could be done without but I also think you are much more likely to break the cluster.

As for the trip not zeroing, take those vents of and push the button (in the form of an electric pad) then. If it zeros then chances are that the facia of the dash has been off before and the pad was not positioned correctly.

Before you do this, have you tried to zero the car with the ignition on no.2? Mine doesn't work otherwise.
Author:  DavidL [ Mon Oct 26, 2009 8:41 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Newbie with a few questions. Temp gauge and, ahem, tyres
Ron,
I'm getting to be a bit of an expert on taking the gauges out! Its surprisingly easy. Take the horn push off ( be careful injuries have occurred here!)
Remove the screws from the oval dash surround - one far left, 2 to the left of the trip switch, 3 in the top of the instrument binnacle and one each side of the steering column.
Remove this and then there are 4 brass coloured screws on the gauge pod itself.
There are then 3 electrical connectors to remove - each 2 inches long - this allows the gauges to be removed form the car.
It is easy enough to remove the individual gauges from the pod so you should see why yours is stuck and whether it is fixable.
Cars being broken come up often enough - I have just paid £15 for a gauge.
Hope that helps
David
Author:  J.J. [ Mon Oct 26, 2009 8:53 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Newbie with a few questions. Temp gauge and, ahem, tyres
Good to see sombody bought a car on condition for once. Well done & enjoy. :)
If theres no reciept in the service record to show when belts were done. (should be with water pump so maybe look for that. New water pump every other belt change.) I would do them all asap. Cheaper than a new engine. Check all the front seals & the cam box seal first as if anything goes it's new belts again! Also check the rollers. If you take the covers off you can see if there are any teeth missing or any fraying or other nastys. But new belts the only way for piece of mind.
Author:  ronsurf [ Tue Oct 27, 2009 11:10 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Newbie with a few questions. Temp gauge and, ahem, tyres
Thanks for so many quick and helpful responses. See my recent post for developments. Things have gone a bit bad. . . .
Author:  MisterGT [ Tue Oct 27, 2009 2:24 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Newbie with a few questions. Temp gauge and, ahem, tyres
Darren

I had V rated Dunlop Fast Response 195/65/15 on my 15in teledials and found them to be very good. Approx £45 each from tyretraders.com. Highly rated at tyretest.com
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