[Xtreme70SS396]

OK, I have a functioning '70 SS Temp gauge, stock setup. Reads accurately.

But-

When I stop the car, the needle starts to swing over to the hot side, like a G-Force meter.

Harder I stop, further and faster it swings to the right.

Other than this quirk, I have no troubles with it.

Anyone else's do this? Or do I just have the rare "G-force" metering option?

 

[1Fast7D]

Some possibilities, sender wire is lightly shorted to ground, when you brake the wire soft shorts causing the higher reading, voltage drop from the brake lights, ( does it do this at any other time and worse, ie... headlights on? ) , low coolent level, could also be the gauge.

 

[bisjoe]

Are you sure it's not just that the engine temp goes up when you stop and no longer have the pump running it thru the radiator? I know when I had a heat soak problem on my starter it only happened after I stopped and it sat 5-10 minutes, getting hotter without the air blowing by.

 

[Xtreme70SS396]

Thanks for the replies, guys.

I have full coolant, plus with the sensor located up front I would think as I stop the fluid would move toward the sensor rather than creating a hot air pocket.

Loose wire is certainly a possibility, have to check into that.

I don't think the pump stopping is an issue. I have a high-flow pump, and this happens at any speed. So the engine rpm's could still be above idle and this will happen if I brake softly or hard. And it's level of intensity is directly proportional to how hard I stop, and the effect is instantaneous.

This ONLY happens when I brake. No other combination of things, like headlights on, etc. has an impact on the temp gauge. However, I do have an issue with turn signal lights when I brake, so maybe there is an electrical connection to the brake wiring or brake switch.

Good ideas, I'll have some checking to do.

Thanks!

 

[Ark68SS]

Sounds like a bad ground on the brake/turnsignal bulb circuit. It's backfeeding through the cluster to try to get to ground through the temp gauge and making the reading go up. Make sure the rear bulbs are grounded properly.

BillL

 

[Xtreme70SS396]

Bill, makes a lot of sense. I'll check that also.

Thanks!

 

[Xtreme70SS396]

Update:

I couldn't find this problem for the life of me. I spent a lot of time tracing the brake circuit, etc. thinking that was the problem.

Then I checked the obvious - you know, like when your computer stops all of a sudden, you check that the power cord is still plugged in.

I found that the wire on the sender was loose, slipping around while the car was moving. For whatever reason, it did this worst while braking. Tightened up the sender connection and all is good now.