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NEW VINTAGE INSTRUMENT AND GAUGE KIT INSTALLATION
INSTRUCTIONS
3-1 INSTRUMENT KIT
REV.02 07.11.11
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INDEX
Thank you for choosing New Vintage USA products. We strive to
provide the finest quality and design components available on the
market. If you need technical assistance, please call 248.259.4964
or email [email protected]
New Vintage USA 5-Year WarrantyNew Vintage USA warrants all
merchandise against defects in workmanship and materials for 60
months. After the 60 month period, a pro-rated service fee of no
more than 50% production costs may be applied. This warranty
applies to all instrumentation products, excluding senders. The
warranty does not apply toa product used in a manner for which it
was not designed, of if it has been altered in any way.; New
Vintage USA LLC is not responsible for any damage or costs
associated with any product that has been purchased. This is a
limited warranty as identified in the Magnunson-Moss Warranty Act
of 1975.
Warranty ServiceService can be obtained during the normal
warranty period by contacting New Vintage and obtaining a Return
Authorization Number (RZA#). New Vintage will repair or replace any
item found to be defective and return ship to no cost via ground or
post office services. Other shipping/international services will be
applied at additional cost. Buyer is responsible for shipping to
New Vintage for warranty repair. Return shipping will be the
responsibility of the customer if the product is found to be
damaged or out of warranty. An RZA number must be obtained and
proper return/warranty form accompanied with the product.
Missing items/ReturnsMissing items/returns must be processed
within 15 days of end user receiving the product. All returned must
be shipped back to the place of purchase. Any return shipping costs
to New Vintage are the responsibility of the purchaser. An RZA
number must be obtained and proper return/warranty form accompanied
with the product. A restocking fee not to exceed 10% may be applied
to items that must be repackaged. Any item returned in a non-usable
condition will be returned or charged to the customer.Missing items
must be reported within 15 days of receiving the product. Items
found to be missing will be shipped via ground or postal service at
no charge. Expedited/international shipping options are available
at an additional charge. It is the policy of New Vintage to quickly
replace any items that may be missing in a timely manner but not to
overnight or expedite shipping in any way at no cost.
THE BASICSFUNCTIONS AND SENDERSTACHOMETER OPERATIONSPEEDOMETER
OPERATIONTROUBLESHOOTINGWIRING DIAGRAM
pg.2 pg. 2pg. 3pg.3-4pg.5pg.6
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BEFORE YOU BEGIN:Read these instructions completely.
Plan out your wiring scheme ahead of time. Use the included
wiring diagrams to help guide your wire routing
Use 14 ga. wire on all connections to sending units.
Use electrical solder and heat shrink tubing or appropriate
solder less connectors to make all wiring connections
Disconnect the vehicle's battery
Do not use thread sealer on the sending units, they have a
tapered thread
Have a plan. Mock up parts or layout as needed. It takes a
little more time, but will save time and money in the end.
Recommended Tools and Materials Needed for Installation14 and 16
ga. stranded wireSpade or Bullet connectorsMomentary
push-buttonPressure sender for hour meterElectrical solder
(optional)Heat shrink tubing (optional)Soldering iron
(optional)Measuring tape or rulerEngine adaptors for senders4 3/8
hole sawWire cuttersWire stripper/crimperFilesVarious hand
tools:wrenches, screwdriver, etc
Installation of gauges:
2. Slide gauge through hole and add backing clamp over the
retaining studs. Using the included washers and nuts, tighten to a
snug fit
Wiring the gauges:
Run the power wiring from the gauges to an appropriate positive
(+) on the fuse block after the battery. This applies to the
switched 12V+ and gauge lighting
Connect the ground to a good dedicated ground on the chassis
Run each wire to the appropriate sender and use the proper
connector for each item (eyelet, spade, etc.) from the sender to
the dash. Leave some extra slack in the wire and label it.
Ensure that wires will not chafe on holes by using grommets and
that they will clear any moving objects.
Once wires are run from the appropriate sender location to the
gauges location, connect to the corresponding wire on the Packard
connector with solder and heat shrink tubing or a solder less
connector.
Sender installationYou must use senders with the proper ohm
match for your gauge, using mis-matched senders will result in
improper readings on your gauge.
Water temperature 29.5-450ohmThe water temperature sender has a
1/8 NPT end. It should be installed close to the thermostat on the
intake manifold. There are usually ports for temperature on the
block in the water jackets, which can be used as well.
Oil pressure. 240-33ohm The sender has a 1/8 NPT end on it.
Check for your factory location for a pressure port and
install.
Fuel level This kit uses a 0-90 GM match fuel gauge which is
compatable with most 60-up GM factory fuel level senders. If
required in your installation, a universal 0-90ohm fuel sender can
pe purchased.
VoltmeterThe voltmater does not use a sender but picks up the
voltage from the wiring harness (see wiring diagram)
1. Locate suitable positions foryour gauges. The gauges fit in a
4-3/8" holes. Take note of the anti-rotation notches and add this
feature where required.
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Warning lamp use and wiring connectionsEach New Vintage 3-1
gauge has up to 3 warning lamps, each are used for various uses
depending on the model and product line. Each lamp is triggered by
a 12V+ signal. If your lamp trigger requires a ground signal, you
will require a relay, available at most auto parts or electronic
stores. When wiring the signal warning lamps, follow the wiring
diagram and refer to the diagram below for the function location on
each gauge.
Gauge lightingThis 3-1 combination gauge set uses high-intensity
LED lamps for illuminating the dial. The lamps are powered
internally and require no resistors to work properly. The lamps
triggered to power up by the tan/black wire on the P2 portion of
the wiring harness. This is a trigger only, dimming the gauge via
this wire will not work properly. To properly dim the gauges, a
specialty LED dimmer may be required, this is available through
your retailer. It should be wired according to the instructions in
the dimmer kit, through the power leads of the gauge.
Tachometer installation and useThe tachometer works on the same
basic principal as most speed-sensing units, by pulses per minute.
This signal can be picked up on the negative side of the coil or
ignition box. Follow the wiring diagram for proper connection.The
tachometer is set at the factory for 4 cylinder use. To change to 6
or 8 cylinder mode, temporarily ground (1 sec) the CYLINDER SET
wire. With each momentary grounding of the wire, the gauge
illumination will be triggered, lighting the dial confirming the
cylinder setting has been changed. After installation, start the
engine to confirm that the setting is correct and cap the wire with
ape or suitable heat shrink tubing.
Speedometer installation and uWiring the speedometerFollow the
wiring diagram provided; the most critical connections are the
wires that lead from the speedometer sender. These should be
soldered and covered with heat shrink tubing. 99% of speedometer
problems come down to a poor connection. This connection had a
large amount of information coming through it and should therefore
be very well connected.
The speedometer functions on input form a speed sender. The
speed sender sends pulses to the speedometer, which calculates how
many are input per mile and then indicates the proper speed on the
dial by moving the pointer. The speedometer will accept anywhere
from 3000-150,000 pulses per mile. There are two basic types of
speedometer senders in use: 1. Hall effect style sender. This is
usually referred to as a 3-wire sender. A hall-effect sender
essentially sends a square wave signal to the speedometer( a
combination of positive and ground signals) 2. Magnetic/optical
sender. This is often referred to as a 2-wire sender. This sends a
sine wave (on-off-on-off) of ground signals to the speedometer.
This is the style most often used in factory transmissions and may
only have one wire coming form the transmission harness. Sometimes
this is referred to as the VSS (vehicle speed sensor) This would be
the signal wire with the ground for the sender being internal to
the transmission.
Many wiring harnesses have a VSS signal coming from the ECU.
This is a signal that may be generated by the VSS or the ECU
itself. Sometimes it is just a pass-through from the ECU/PCM. If
the speedometer will not register a signal from the ECU/PCM, pick
the signal up directly from the VSS itself. This will not affect
the accuracy or input to the ECU/PCM.Which sender is right for your
application? It depends on the transmission used. Either will
operate properly.
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The odometer features a trip odometer and can be accessed by
using the discreet momentary switch provided in the kit. Depress
the switch briefly and the user can switch between trip and total
mileage. To reset the trip odometer, depress the momentary switch
until the display resets to zero.The total mileage odometer will
retain the total mileage on the unit and cannot be erased or
changes, even with the power removed for an amount of time.
Speedometer settingThe speedometer may require calibrating to
show a reading on the first drive. The speedometer accepts an input
from the VSS and calculates the pulses per mile and then displays
the proper speed. To calibrate the speedometer sender:1. Locate an
area that has a measured mile. Either mark on off yourself or find
an area with mile markers.2. Start the vehicle, depress the
discreet momentary switch for 30 seconds the display will show
“SET”:
3. The speedometer is now waiting for input form the VSS. Drive
a measured mile. This should be done in as straight a line as
possible. The speed at this point is not important. The operator
may even stop and wait, as long as power is not turned off and the
measured mile or kilometer is followed as straight as possible, the
operator may not turn around and go in the opposite direction. Also
for the maximum accuracy, the operator should not enter any off
road parking as this would deviate from a straight mile or
kilometer measurement.4. At the end of the measured mile, stop the
vehicle and once again depress the switch. The pulses accepted will
be displayed on the LCD screen and the odometer will then resume
normal mode. This process may be repeated as needed after gear or
tire sized have been changed, or if there was an error during the
process.
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GENERAL GAUGE TROUBLESHOOTING
Before you call, please check these items, they are sometimes
obvious, but in the large scope of a build, sometimes can be
missed.
Double check grounds! Instruments operate on resistance to
grounds. The connections should be secure, soldered if possible.
Remember, no Teflon or sealant on senders.Senders have a tapered
pipe thread and do not require sealant.
Double check with the wiring diagrams. There are a lot of wires
to hook up to a gauge set.
GENERAL
Gauge "sticks"Loosen nuts that attach the back clamps. This can
sometimes pull on the housing enough to distort the dial and
contact the pointer.Gauge inoperative/reading incorrectlyCheck for
12V at the gauge on the + and ground. Check for the correct
resistance on the senderWith power on, temporarily ground the
sender lead, this will peg the gauge to its highest reading.
TACHOMETER TROUBLESHOOTING
Erratic reading:This is caused 99% of the time by a loose
connection. Check spade or ring connectors.Sometimes these are
connected well enough to work for a while, but do not hold up.Dead
tachCaused by no power, or no signal. Check for power. Turn on
ignition and watch the pointer, it should "jump"Reads too
high/low:Usually this is caused by the incorrect # of cylinders on
the back of the gauge. When using a magneto or alternator to drive
the tach, an adjustment pot. Is behind the label at the 8:00
position on the rear of the gauge.
SPEEDOMETER TROUBLESHOOTINGSpeedometer problems are very similar
to tachometer issues. Check the obvious first, grounds, power,
correct connections. What type of sender are you using? Check for
pointer "jump" These refer to all speedometer problems from dead to
will not calibrate. Most speedometer problems can be traced to a
problem with the signal to the gauge.Hall effect sender test: With
the speedometer and sender wired up (sender removed from
transmission) turn on ignition and slowly rotate the sender shaft.
You should get a signal of 10V+ then 10V-,etc… If this is not the
case, you may have a loose connection.Another avenue to try is
changing the signal input from L to N or H. This procedure is
described under the BOOT MENU section of this booklet. This is also
a good way to remedy a "floating" pointer. When a pointer kind of
roams but is not steady. This is usually from a weak signal to the
speedometer.Another option is to directly ground the sender and
apply a switched 12V+ source to the positive input side of the
sender.
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P1P2 P1P2
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