[Vwdiesel] VDO temp senders (long rant)

[Shawn Wright]

I'm still battling with my assortment of VDO senders, trying to get something that 
works as it should. I'm really quite pissed that I spent good money on VDO stuff 
expecting that it should fit like OEM, but it doesn't!

I am trying to do the following:

-oil pressure gauge off head, using VDO dual sender with warning light contact (#360 
006D). It says that it is M10x1 threads, but they are tapered, even though there is a 
sealing surface for a crush washer just like the OEM sender. But with the taper, I can 
only get maybe 2/3 way in with moderate force.

-Then I want to use a VDO M10x1 brass T (#240-850) on the oil filter flange so I can 
use stock high pressure switch along with a VDO 300F temp sender (#310-012). But 
the temp sender is too long to fit in the T without bottoming out (even though it is sold 
to work with this T fitting) , and this time the threads are straight M10x1, so it must 
bottom out to seal. But when this happens, it will interferes with the other sender on 
the T (the OEM one) which must also bottom out to seal! So I can space each 
sender out with 3-4 copper washers, and hope it doesn't leak. And the make matters 
worse, the male T threads are yet again tapered, so they won't fit nice and flush as 
they should on the filter flange or head. 

Does VDO make a 250F oil temp gauge? If so, I could just use the stock 250F/125C 
coolant temp sender that fits nicely. I don't like the idea of fudging oil senders that 
could later leak, and certainly didn't expect this kind of junk from VDO - I thought they 
were supposed to be good.

Sorry for the rant, but if I wanted fudged together gauge senders, I would have just 
bought them from the local Chevy shop and saved a pile of money and headache! 
So don't assume if you order all the "right" stuff from VDO, that it will fit...



Shawn Wright
http://zuiko.sls.bc.ca/~swright
'85 Jetta D 
'88 Westy 2.1L, soon to be 1.6TD 5 speed
 (see progress at http://members.shaw.ca/vwdiesels)
'82 Diesel Westy