Amp meter gauge, anyone add an amp gauge?

[jjs2800cs]

Putting our 2800cs back together. Thinking of adding a few extra gauges. Car has been upgraded to an internal alternator.

Just wondering besides the usuals, oil prz, temp, voltmeter, if an amp meter could provide any useful info.
VDO makes one similar to their voltmeter in style

Comments

Jjs2800cs

 

[adawil2002]

if you have room for 4 gauges I'd add a water temp before amp meter.

 

[HB Chris]

Doesn’t an amp meter require you to run all power thru it to other consumers?

 

[Mike Goble]

Doesn’t an amp meter require you to run all power thru it to other consumers?

The ammeter shunt is normally connected in series with the charging wire to the battery. It monitors the direction and amount of current flow from the battery into the electrical system. It normally reads a small current going to the battery as a trickle charge, but if the alternator fails to produce the current necessary to operate the various loads it will indicate that the battery is discharging.
Most modern cars use a voltmeter as it is a much simpler installation and less likely to cause a fire.

You can buy a voltmeter that plugs into the cigarette lighter you never use.

https://www.amazon.com/Jebsens-Charger-Battery-Monitor-Voltage/dp/B07TM8VWX8/ref=asc_df_B07TM8VWX8?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80882904378430&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584482463815581&psc=1

 

[teahead]

Ammeters are dangerous

 

[deQuincey]

Putting our 2800cs back together. Thinking of adding a few extra gauges. Car has been upgraded to an internal alternator.

Just wondering besides the usuals, oil prz, temp, voltmeter, if an amp meter could provide any useful info.
VDO makes one similar to their voltmeter in style

Comments

Jjs2800cs

use a voltmeter

 

[jjs2800cs]

We do have a VDO volt meter which would like to use.

Reading about amp meters indeed reflect they can be dangerous if not installed correctly as has been pointed out. So I suspect we will pass. Just thought sitting next to a voltmeter it would provide a true indication of the charging system as accessories are utilized.

We already have VDO oil prz and temp gauge pods installed under the steering wheel. Was thinking of additional gauges (2) in the speaker area as many have done. I'm old school and just love analog gauges. Thus the thought of adding a voltmeter and something else. The amp meter was one candidate. Another under consideration is an outside ambient temperature gauge, similar to what some Porsche 356's had in the dash as an option. VDO does make one but its very expensive. There are cheaper Chinese gauges but look like junk. Living in FL, a temp gauge would be an indicator as to how well the AC is working. I suppose a water temp gauge with numbers could work by supplementing the un-numbered stock gauge.

Any other gauge candidates?

Some funny ideas.....
- Mach meter
- Boost meter - but would have to add a turbo onto the Zeniths
- Geiger counter
- Decibel meter
-Accelerometer
-Altitude meter
-Barometric pressure

Thanks

jjs2800cs

 

[Mike Goble]

Along with the big 3, I have a vacuum gauge in my e3. It gives me a sense of the load on the engine.

 

[JFENG]

IMHO, the most useful things for our cars are a volt meter, oil pressure (augments the idiot light), and oil temp.

OT sort of tells you when it’s ok to push the motor hard (wait for at least 40-ish (C).

OP gives you something new to worry about, and is one of the few ways of seeing some indication of engine wear.

 

[Stevehose]

I agree with @adawil2002 - a water temp gauge, it is reassuring to have an accurate readout. I installed a 2nd temp sensor by the bottom output of the radiator and hooked it to the dash gauge so now I see the temp of the water going into the radiator on the new gauge and then out after cooling on the original gauge. Why exactly, I don't know, it just seemed fun.

Another option would be an AFR gauge.

 

[adawil2002]

Packards of the 1930s had oil pressure, voltmeter & speedometer.
Duesenbergs had oil pressure, voltmeter, speedometer & altimeter. In the larger phaetons & sedans they had a speedometer & altimeter in the rear seat as well.

 

[skk]

A clamp on ammeter measures current inductively without the invasive shunt circuit. It's the most effective way to track down parasitic drains, but for a dashboard solution, the voltmeter tells you what you need to know.

It's helpful to have resettable highest and lowest voltage seen function to help diagnose bad regulator, dying starter, or aftermarket device load type problems. There are cheap voltmeters with bluetooth enabled remote data phone apps that allow you to monitor voltage over time. Handy and fun. I discovered that the 50ma parasitic drain on a car was due to forgetting to remove a obd2 reader months earlier when working on a smog demon. talk about shooting yourself in the foot!

 

[Ohmess]

I have oil temp, oil pressure, voltage and afr. The temp gauges in our dash are very robust and, in my view, provide what you need for coolant temp. If you look into wiring in another temp sensor, you will find that the sender employed a VDO sender similar to the one already installed in our car. Thus, you are merely adding another display on the same, or very similar, information. As noted, oil temp is really only useful for monitoring when temps are sufficient to allow you to push. Otherwise, not that useful - I don't track my car, and our cars have so much oil in them that I never see elevated oils temps.

 

[Dick Steinkamp]

When I repurposed the heater air intake in the cowl under the windshield on my V8 MGB to become the cold air intake for the carb, the heater went away and I needed to fill the heater control holes with something. I chose an SW voltmeter and vacuum gauge that match the other gauges.

I hardly ever look at them. The car is stock with an idiot light for the charging system which I think is satisfactory for most of us. If it ever turns on, diagnose and repair. Not the same for an oil pressure idiot light, although it is a nice to have an idiot light in conjunction with the gauge. The light will get your attention. The gauge going to zero may not . The vacuum gauge is pretty much useless (to me) also. I would know when the engine is not operating correctly without the gauge telling me. So, the extra gauges fill the holes nicely, but do little more.

 

[jjs2800cs]

Getting some really great ideas and info. Also some nice installations.

After IAN, my power was out for almost a week. My portable generator has an hour meter on it. Don't know if I have ever seen a street car with an elapsed hour meter for engine running time. "To fill a hole" I might look at a hour meter. Since the car is being totally restored, might be an interesting item to track along with the mileage after the rebirth.

I also like the idea of some sort of voltage sensor to track max and min values.

THANKS
Jjs2800cs

 

[teahead]

one idea

 

[giannicsl]

Nice and interesting discussion.

Question ?

How do you operate your VDO instrument to measure engine oil temperature??
Where and how did you connect the sensor?
What sensor did you use?
Do you have a diagram or a drawing of how and where to put the sensor??
Thank you

 

[jjs2800cs]

My sensor for oil temp is a replacement oil pan drain plug that has a sensor compatible with the gauge. Bought so long ago suspect don't have any info. Should be easy to find from VDO.
Probably not very accurate, probably reads lower than the value you want. But easy install.

Jjs2800cs

 

[jjs2800cs]

one idea

Is this your car, if so how did you wire the amp gauge?

 

[jjs2800cs]

Here is a nice looking hour gauge. Goes up to 100,000 hours, or about 4200 24 HR days, 138 months, or about 12 years. So good for a long road trip!!!!

VDO 331-959: Cockpit International Hourmeter Gauge 100K Hours - JEGS High Performance

Buy VDO 331-959 at JEGS: VDO Cockpit International Hourmeter Gauge 100K Hours. Guaranteed lowest price!

www.jegs.com

Not too expensive.

Jjs2800cs