5 GT Turbo Fluffy

[DaveL485]

I'll take your word on it if the instrument panel isn't fused... seems odd, but hey ho! Long time since I worked on a five lol.

So, your two connectors at the mushroom should have voltage coming down them to the mushrooms connectors. 5v would be a standard/normal assumption/expectation. The mushroom regulates the voltage that the gauges then display. Think of the mushroom (at least for the pressure readout) like your dash lighting dimmer. You roll that up and down to increase or decrease the dash display brightness. The mushroom does exactly the same thing, but instead of your finger rolling the voltage regulator up and down, the oil pressure does it instead. The switch part of the mushroom is essentially the same but it doesn't give a variable readout, just an I/O signal set to trip on or off at a certain pressure.

 

[TNT Andy]

The dash number isn't the boost pressure required to compress the spring, per-se, in fact IIRC the -31 is actually part number -0031.

I may be talking shite here but I vaguely recall, if the part numbers are not arbitrary, that the last 2 numbers of the part number (-0031 or -0034) might be the pressure in inches of mercury that the actuator is fully extended.... [-31= 31Hg = 15.2psi], [-34 = 34Hg = 16.7psi]. But as I say, I may have made that up in the vast realms of shite that whirl around my brain.

This is gold, thanks guys, I hope this is as helpful to others as it is to me.

On with the pressure switch issue. I decided to have a look at the drawings this morning and prove a couple of things. Firstly there are no fuses in line, at all the feed comes directly from the switched ignition side of things along with a number of other feeds, one being the rear brake lights, which still work. This feed is common to the pressure switch.

Secondly, I need to stop thinking like an installation electrician and start thinking more like an auto electrician as I had got the switching arrangement the wrong way around, it looks like this may be a little simpler when I

 

[TNT Andy]

Ok - I've got the original gauge working ok now, and as Dave has pointed out the oil pressure sensor has 2 functions - unfortunately there are no markings on it to indicate what does what as far as I can see. And it breaks down like this -

Power goes from battery to ignition switch
From ignition switch to the dashboard
From the dashboard passenger foot well connector
From foot well connector to connector of death
from connector of death to sensor.

To put more detail into it -
for oil pressure (1 wire)

The live goes from the battery through the oil warning lamp down to the switch as detailed above, and when there is no oil pressure, the switch is closed and grounds the live which brings the oil pressure warning lamp. I found this wire by method of grounding the pin out using the wiring diagrams until the lights came on. (cheers Brigsy)

For oil pressure reading (1 wire)

This follows exactly the same procedure than above, but there was no grounding this out as I pretty knew which pin it was by using the wiring diagram, this was then connected to the remaining post on the sensor.

Hey presto - a sound warning light and good solid pressure readings all round.

So there it is - good times.

 

[Adey]

good stuff. always good to have warning features working well

 

[TNT Andy]

Just to clarify Dave - some of the Dash is fused, some of it isn't - this bit isn't. I think the lighting is Fused, but that's it.

 

[TNT Andy]

Next - LOL - I've been for a short run, and everything checks out ok. One thing that bothers me though is the turbo - I''ve never had a RB turbo before, so don't really know them that well. If I start the car and stop it the Turbo runs on for a short while but not as smooth as after I've been for a run. After a run, the turbo keeps spinning longer than a Spinal tap Feedback. I love it.

 

[DaveL485]

Always let your turbo spin down especially with a RB. You may think it's great that it keeps running after the engine is turned off but remember.....the longer it runs on, the longer it's turning with no oil pressure.

As cool as it is, I hate it, always worries me. I give it 30secs of idle minimum before I turn off a RB Turbo. More if it's been driven hard and is very hot. I'm soon going to be buying a GTX35-series for the 21, with the stored inertia of that size of Turbo I reckon i'll be able to get out and take the inlet pipe off and stop the thing before it stops spinning naturally lol

 

[DaveL485]

ETA: Glad you fixed the oil gauges, makes all that typing worthwhile LOL

 

[TNT Andy]

Sure does Dave thanks for the guidance chappy, and I know a wee bit more now. I hope it's helped others also, for those that have just goto know.

 

[TNT Andy]

Hi all - done a few miles @ 10psi now with no major issues, I have the new oil pressure ref line as per Jon B, and everything runs sweet - looking forward to mapping now with the Scoff in mid March.

I'll get some vids and pics up as soon as I can work out how to upload vids on here as I'm struggling to get it to work atm.

 

[TNT Andy]

This is a hot run down

 

[TNT Andy]

This is a cold run down

 

[TNT Andy]

Just a bit of am update, nothing major to report other than new driving around for a couple of weeks at about 10psi without issue.
Just need to get the mapping sorted, planned for 2 weeks time with Scoff.

After that, it's time to start on getting the near side paintwork up to scratch.

 

[TNT Andy]

Big thanks to Oli - AKA Ipswich for lending me some standard height strutts on the front for mapping reasons as Ol' Fluff sits too low and with the current exhaust system it's just too low. As it is, my springs look like they are -50's. I'm happy with the feel of standard, I'll have to wait till it settles and have a look in the day time to see if it's gonna stay up there, or I might just plum for some -30's and have a happy medium. I'm thinking the Camber correction is a must though, as the steering feels much better with the standard springs on there.



Sorry about the crappy picture, and Fluff needs a clean, but I'm popping wheelies yo!

 

[Brigsy]

Standard rideheight is pants, sort it out as soon as lol. The geo will be all over the place compared to with your lowered springs. You want a bit of camber

 

[TNT Andy]

Standard rideheight is pants, sort it out as soon as lol. The geo will be all over the place compared to with your lowered springs. You want a bit of camber

You're not wrong me owd fruit. Need step leaders to get in and out lol. I have a couple of sets of springs kicking around. I'll mix and see what have I.

 

[TNT Andy]

Standard rideheight is pants, sort it out as soon as lol. The geo will be all over the place compared to with your lowered springs. You want a bit of camber

You're not wrong me owd fruit. Need step ladders to get in and out lol. I have a couple of sets of springs kicking around. I'll mix and see what have I.

 

[TNT Andy]

WTF is going on with that rear torsion bar - am I the only one that struggles to line it up? I get it out no worries, but putting it back in is a cock LOL.

It will have to wait till Thursday now.

Too much banging for now.

 

[Brigsy]

Just twist it spline by spline until it slides in, lube it up lol

 

[TNT Andy]

I know - lubed to the max. But there may be something wrong here. I'll post up later - goto go defrost the van and the Mrs Car - Grrrrrrrrrr - I need to be getting up at 4 LOL