BrewCityCobra
09-15-2025, 08:38 AM
So I am running a 427W with an Aviaid oil pan. As part of my build, I replaced the clock with an oil temperature gauge and ultimately installed the sensor for that gauge in the boss provided in the pan (e.g., in the front driver corner).
I've been driving with that setup for a few days and have been getting some strange readings that I'm not sure if I should attribute to the sensor, pan layout, or the engine performance. My guess is the pan, but I wanted to see what the board thought/experienced
What is happening is I'll drive the car for some time and the gauge more-or-less remains pinned at "LOW" (e.g., 140 degrees). I will see some movement but not much over my 15 minute drive to work - maybe rise to 160 degrees or so but not much more. At first, I thought this was likely just a result of the oil taking longer to warm up than the water (which would reach operating temp well before I got to work), and me just taking the temp from the pan and that larger volume needing to warm up.
What changed this thought was that yesterday I had an issue with the cooling fan (the relay crapped out on me and needed to be replaced) so after getting home I turned the car off, messed with the relays for a bit, and then turned the ignition back on (without starting the engine) to test if the fan was now working. To my surprise, the oil temperature now read significantly higher than it did when I arrived (upwards of 180-200 degrees if I recall correctly). This made me think that the baffle layout of the pan may somehow be limiting the flow of oil to the temperature sensor and that is why the sensor stays so low when the car is running.
Anyways, I wanted to check with the board to see if 1) this was normal behavior, and 2) if not is there any easy fixes I should be looking into.
I've been driving with that setup for a few days and have been getting some strange readings that I'm not sure if I should attribute to the sensor, pan layout, or the engine performance. My guess is the pan, but I wanted to see what the board thought/experienced
What is happening is I'll drive the car for some time and the gauge more-or-less remains pinned at "LOW" (e.g., 140 degrees). I will see some movement but not much over my 15 minute drive to work - maybe rise to 160 degrees or so but not much more. At first, I thought this was likely just a result of the oil taking longer to warm up than the water (which would reach operating temp well before I got to work), and me just taking the temp from the pan and that larger volume needing to warm up.
What changed this thought was that yesterday I had an issue with the cooling fan (the relay crapped out on me and needed to be replaced) so after getting home I turned the car off, messed with the relays for a bit, and then turned the ignition back on (without starting the engine) to test if the fan was now working. To my surprise, the oil temperature now read significantly higher than it did when I arrived (upwards of 180-200 degrees if I recall correctly). This made me think that the baffle layout of the pan may somehow be limiting the flow of oil to the temperature sensor and that is why the sensor stays so low when the car is running.
Anyways, I wanted to check with the board to see if 1) this was normal behavior, and 2) if not is there any easy fixes I should be looking into.