Solution for Ralley instruments fuel gauge

[Jambon]

Hello to all Swedaholics (and semi-Swedaholics..)

I've recently been discussing this subject with a "gauge restorer", and he stated that this might be usefull information, to whoom it concerns.

For several years I've used a Ralley instrument cluster in my 144. That's the 1st and 2nd version, replacing the horizontal, pre "73 versions. The trouble with "extra's" like that is the obtaining the right senders belonging to the different gauges, more than often they are either broken or mostly missing. Nowadays part nrs. are to be found in a bunch of PDF files of the old brochures circulating the net, but that's also where it stops, non availabillity after all these years.

These Ralley gauges need senders for watertemp., oilpresure (with or without splitter) and fuellevel. The latter was the only one missing in my set. Is that different too..?! Yes indeed. So what I did first is investigate which fuelevel senders are available now, actually not many. Also, I finally received the information about the fuelgauge, more important, it's internals. Based on that I found out about a universal VDO fluid level sender with the right regulated resistance (totally different from what is in the car as standard)

Now this doesn't mean that it's all "plug and play", well in the end it is...

Some pictures you can find here... http://volvolvo.nl/smf/index.php/top...html#msg120245 and downwards . This is all in Dutch, but if these give not enough information, I can copy it overhere in Englisch...

The VDO part I used is this...

If there's is anyone who has found the right solution for other non available senders, do share that info in order to stop looking for it one after the other. (on my list still is a replacement for the 200/700/900 series ambient temp sender..)

[doucheNozzle]

So what sender should be used for the water temp?

[Jambon]

I have the original sender that came with the set, a different one also. I can probably manage to find the partnr on my car. The problem is that although it's VDO, Volvo gave it their own nrs., if adressing VDO, they don't recognize these nrs. Volvo doesn't with VDO nrs., it's all protected.

Again a similar investigation will be needed. But as I asked, anyone who has found any working solution, do reply..!!

When I started the search, my thoughts were simple (as always.. ) , Volvo, or any other brand, orders VDO to come up with a particular gauge, internally just another VDO example, but with, in this case a Volvo facia. And how many different mechanical or electric versions are there anyway..?!! Currently I can find about 2 from VDO.

But combinations are to be made for instance with senders by Bosch or Lucas etc. At this moment someone is looking up the posebillity to hook up a 200 series ambient gauge to a sender normaly used in climate control for building installations, the brand I can't even remember right now but if it works, a lot of these can be in use again..

So the message in this is, not only look within the brand, for I'm surely am not the first, but look to other brands and even outside automotive..

I'll reply with everything I can come up with...

Oh and just another tought, I have no access to the US or UK market, but what can be simpeler than take a particular gauge, hook it up to a different car and see what it does...