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coolant system sensor when doing a reroute

1K views 8 replies 4 participants last post by  speedworks 
#1 ·
ok, this may have been answered already, but i couldn't find the answer. i have a 1.6 and i'll be doing a coolant reroute on my car soon as part of my full project build. now, when i do the coolant reroute, the sensor that normally sits on the front water neck is my concern. i thought i read somewhere that if i am running a Megasquirt computer that i can eliminate that sensor from the equation altogether. i do plan on running the megasquirt, so is it ok for me to now reroute that sensor to the back of the head to the new water neck?

i know that normally with a reroute and the stock ecu, you would have to reroute that sensor to the back and plug it in along with the regular coolant sensor that is already located on the back.

i just need to know if i'll be needing this sensor to run the car if i'll be running a megasquirt ecu to control things.

anyone wanna help on this one.

thanks
 
#2 ·
a megasquirt only needs one coolant temp sensor input, and you can put it anywhere you want as long as it's 'behind' the thermostat (i.e. heats up quickly when the car cold starts)

Now with 1.6's I'm not sure how it works- on a 1.8 there are two sensors, one on the back of the block that's just basically an on/off switch that is connected to your gauge cluster, and then the one on the t-stat housing is the 'main' one. I think on 1.6's the 'main' one is just an on/off switch to control the fans.

I'd only recommend moving it to the rear coolant neck if you're also relocating the thermostat
 
#3 ·
a megasquirt only needs one coolant temp sensor input, and you can put it anywhere you want as long as it's 'behind' the thermostat (i.e. heats up quickly when the car cold starts)

Now with 1.6's I'm not sure how it works- on a 1.8 there are two sensors, one on the back of the block that's just basically an on/off switch that is connected to your gauge cluster, and then the one on the t-stat housing is the 'main' one. I think on 1.6's the 'main' one is just an on/off switch to control the fans.

I'd only recommend moving it to the rear coolant neck if you're also relocating the thermostat
well, with the reroute, i am relocating the thermostat to the back of the cylinder head and completely blocking off the front of the head.

i just need to know if i can eliminate the front sensor while running a megasquirt or if i need to keep it and relocate it to the back.
 
#4 ·
well as I said, I don't know if the 1.6 has the two-sensor setup like a 1.8 but I think it does. That said, the following advice may or may not end up with your dummy coolant gauge on the stock cluster not working (but who gives a ****: )

I'd just remove all the stock coolant sensors then drill/tap a hole in your rear coolant neck before the thermostat for a GM closed element sensor (available at diyautotune.com) so then you have a cheap easily available and accurate sensor that works easily with megasquirt

The way a megasquirt handles it is that you're gonna end up with a digital temp output in megatune, and you set a certain temp value for when the fans should turn on/off.
 
#5 ·
well as I said, I don't know if the 1.6 has the two-sensor setup like a 1.8 but I think it does. That said, the following advice may or may not end up with your dummy coolant gauge on the stock cluster not working (but who gives a ****: )

I'd just remove all the stock coolant sensors then drill/tap a hole in your rear coolant neck before the thermostat for a GM closed element sensor (available at diyautotune.com) so then you have a cheap easily available and accurate sensor that works easily with megasquirt

The way a megasquirt handles it is that you're gonna end up with a digital temp output in megatune, and you set a certain temp value for when the fans should turn on/off.
got it. thanks alot
 
#6 ·
the 1.6l has actually a three sensor setup:

a small 1wire sensor at the back of the head for the temp gauge
a 2wire sensor on the back of the head (blockoffplate) for the OEM ecu
a 1wire sensor on the front as a fan switch.

Note: if you flip the front thermostat cover to the back of the head, there is not enough space to mount the fan switch sensor like you intented.

And if you linearize your tempgauge, you'll get a fast reacting, accurate gauge, that works great. Modding is quite easy
 
#7 ·
the 1.6l has actually a three sensor setup:

a small 1wire sensor at the back of the head for the temp gauge
a 2wire sensor on the back of the head (blockoffplate) for the OEM ecu
a 1wire sensor on the front as a fan switch.

Note: if you flip the front thermostat cover to the back of the head, there is not enough space to mount the fan switch sensor like you intented.

And if you linearize your tempgauge, you'll get a fast reacting, accurate gauge, that works great. Modding is quite easy
ok, so you confused me quite a bit. all i want to know is if i can eliminate the front sensor since i'll be running a megasquirt ecu?

and by the way, i never stated i'd be using the front thermostat cover on the back of the head. i'm going to be using a Kia unit which doesn't have any ports on it.

i just want to know if eliminating the front sensor is possible as it'll make my reroute alot easier to finish.

thanks
 
#8 ·
front sensor is to turn on the fan at 212 degrees only. and it is mounted AFTER the t-stat (i think nev stated opposite)
 
#9 ·
front sensor is to turn on the fan at 212 degrees only. and it is mounted AFTER the t-stat (i think nev stated opposite)
ok, so if the front sensor is only used to turn on the fans, i can go ahead and eliminate it completely since i'll be running a megasquirt ecu. with the megasquirt i can control the fan on/off setup, so i won't really need that front sensor for anything and i can go ahead and eliminate it altogether from the equation.

sounds good from here.
 
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