Hi, just completed this task in about an hour. Very simple and straightforward since, thanks to your video, I knew what to expect. Thank you, and see you at Helen 2024!!
Hey Brent, First thanks for alllllllll of the videos! Have watched and them all and they’re a huge help. Really appreciate you taking the time to record them and for being such a positive force in the 944 community. Congrats on the new shop! Looks amazing and you’ve certainly earned it. I bought a white ‘88 951 this past weekend and the gauge cluster face - not the gauges them,selves but the surround - has a similar “condition” as what I see at the 5:20 mark. Is that just a sign that it needs a good cleaning? - Thanks!
had my car for 2 years now and just slowly working on it, hoping i can get a lot done this year, ill be posting videos slowly, but yes you have all the information I need, I've been searching and cant ever find anything, thanks a lot for these videos man!!! might actually have some questions for you later on :)
Dude, you are awesome! Thanks for making this video (and all of your others as well). Looks like someone's timing belt broke judging from the valves in the background. Yikes.
Thanks Edredas! Your videos are fantastic. I never would have taken on my 944 projects without them. It’s like going to Porsche mechanic school. They are much appreciated. Can I send you a check?
Hey, awesome video. Quick question! The copper strip connected to the copper wire on my fuel level sender broke at some point in my car's lifetime. Is it worth it to solder a new piece of copper and reconnect the wire? Thanks!
Awesome tutorial. I did this procedure to try and fix a fuel gauge that only goes up to about 80% when full. This did not fix the issue. What else should I look at?
Excellent video (and explanation). I recently acquired a 1985.5 944 (67K miles) that had been covered and garage parked for over 10 years. I have replaced the in gas tank screen, fuel pump, fuel filter, DME relay, and plugs (and was hopeful she'd fire up). The engine actually started for about 3 seconds, died, but nothing since. I noticed my fuel gage also didn't work and followed your procedures to remove the sender unit. The old fuel sender unit is completely gummed up, very corroded, and beyond repair so I just ordered a new unit. Question - do you know the purpose of the 2 hoses that come out of the fuel sender (and do you think the corrosion and gummed up old varnished gas would affect whether or not the car will start)? Thanks for your assistance!
One of the lines is for the return hose and I believe the other is for an overflow/expansion tank. That said, all the corrosion and gum is caused by the ethanol in the fuel absorbing moisture. The previous owner using a fuel stabilizer before storing it could have saved you a big headache since it can gum up the entire fuel system. I often find myself replacing fuel pumps, cleaning fuel rails, and sending fuel injectors out once these cars have been sitting. So if the car isn't running there is a very good chance the fuel system is clogged up and will need to be gone though. I hope that helps!
I ended up swapping my sending unit with a URO aftermarket instead of trying to clean the existing one since it was practically falling apart. After I installed the new unit, my fuel gauge needle bounces so bad now. Do you think I got a defective unit? It never bounced like this before the install. If I accelerate or brake the needle goes crazy.
It's possible to get a bad one, however its more than likely you have a short some where. Try unplugging the unit and grounding the wire that goes to the gauge and see how it behaves.
Hi so I removed the unit in my 87 however the bottom thick seal is falling apart not the thin one against the tank. I saw u put it back in with out it can I run the unit with out the bottom seal ?
From what I have seen they weren’t on the very early late cars and so they might not be in some parts catalogues. It covers the holes on the top of the unit, but I’m not exactly sure why. The holes are there to help relieve the air inside the tube so the float can move. Maybe they added the seal to either slow the float down keep fuel gauge from moving too much or to keep fuel from going in through the top. Either way I don’t see any difference between cars with or without them.
Great video. Before and after cleaning the tank gauge, testing it was great (tilting it back and forth). The fuel gauge was indicating full then empty - as it should be. But when I install it back into tank, the gauge still rests at empty.. any thoughts? I have about 1/4 tank.
It's been a while since I've dropped a late plastic tank so I don't remember exactly since you don't really have to mess with them. The parts catalog only shows one hose and it connects to the top of the tank... from what I can tell. There's also another hose in the diagram close by that is likely just drawn incorrectly which connects to the fuel filler neck. I hope that helps!
I just did this repair and when I was checking If it was working I could only get my fuel gauge to move between empty and half full even when moving it the whole length. Any advise appreciated
I followed your instructions, not because my meter was dead but because the meter is a bit "nervous" it fluctuates a lot when cornering or driving uphill/downhill. Is this normal? Everything in the sender seemed fine, no missing parts etc, so the "mechanical" damper (the plastic tube that contains everything) seems to be working. Is there an electronic damper in the meter-cluster? Or maybe it is just 1980's technology and everything is as it should be? Great video, without it I would have hesitated doing this clean.
As far as I know there's no electronic damper. As you noticed the tube around the float pretty much is the damper, so if it's acting erratic, then its most likely just build up on the wires not allowing a good connection. I would spray them off then test the gauge and see how the gauge behaves. It may take multiple cleanings. I hope that helps!
You probably missing the rubber sleeve that comes around the aluminium tube, most of them are solved by years in fuel. Fuel then can freely goes up and down in the sender housing and so the sender. Google 94464103701 for pics of the rubber sleeve.
It can be very difficult. I used a pair of oil filter pliers but sometimes you might have to go bigger and even tap gently with a rubber mallet to break it free.
It might! The gauge in my '88 924S would not go to full and this fixed it, but in other cars I've worked on the issue was the gauge itself. In this case it was the not getting any reading so I figured that it was the sender, I also tested this sender in another car with known working gauge and it still didn't work. That said, there's no real way of knowing whether its the sender or the gauge until you test. You can easily test the gauge by ground in Terminal 1 or G on the plug at the sending unit. If it still doesn't go to full when grounded then it is the gauge. I will eventually be making a video on repairing the gauge. Hopefully that gives you an idea of where to start!
Sounds like it might be. Usually the fuel light coming on is a good indicator that the float is at the bottom and its time to refuel, despite what the gauge says. That said, Clark's Garage has a nice write up on testing the gauge. It involves connecting a potentiometer to the terminal at the sender and using a multi-meter to check if the gauge is reading correctly. I hope that helps! www.clarks-garage.com/shop-manual/elect-13.htm
