I am trying to find out if I have the correct water temp sender in my 1983 EC. It is labeled on the box as TU65 and the maker is Wells (made in Mexico) and is labeled as a "temp switch" not a "temp sender". But this does not concern me too much since the Jaguar oil sender which is truly a sender is labeled by this same company as a "switch" But on the other hand it may mean I have the wrong thing....except that the gauge is NOT either full scale or negative pegged which I would expect a real switch to do. It does go full negative as the ignition is turned to start but then rises to 120F after the engine starts.

It came to me with a set of gauges and was supposed to be the right one to replace the water Temp Switch but when connected to my gauge it reads about 120 degrees after the engine is fully warmed up. That is too low to be real.

Now I should describe my setup because its not stock. The original switch was located on the side of the engine below the exhaust on the right side of the engine (229 V6). I left it there and just moved the wire to the new sender that I mounted in the top of the thermostat housing. This should be the optimal place to put it as it gets the water at its hottest, just before it goes to the radiator.

But as I said, it reads 120F when the car is fully warmed up on a warm winter day where the ambient temp is about 75F

Anyone know this part number?

So your setup is using aftermarket gauges? Then using stock application sending units/switchs wont work. Use the gauge company's specific sending unit.

-Anduh

Actually the stock location in the block is the optimum location as it is where the water will be at it's hottest. Most guys mount aftermarket senders on the manifold because it is easier.

No, No, I am not using after market gauges. They are original El Camino gauges from a late EC. When I purchased them the seller said he would include the senders.

But I went to the parts store this morning and by cross indexing we found it IS the proper sender so why it is reading 120 is still up for grabs. BUT the stock EC gauge has markings at 100, 220 and 240 so maybe worrying about what "two needle widths above the 100 degree mark" is in reality picking nits.

It's possible you have a bad guage, although resistance in the wire would alter the signal to the guage.

I think the gauge is ok since it reads both Zero and full scale when 12v and ground are applied to the lead. When connected to the sender it reads 120 Degrees all the time. BUT the problem may be in the connector on the back of the pod because this morning the oil pressure went to zero and stayed there but the engine was running fine and NOT making any tappet noises as would be expected with low oil pressure.