All of our cars have coolant temp gauges, and they dont "jump to center" they are all accurate. I wish they all had oil temp gauges though =/. Vehicles should at least be equipped with a coolant temp gauge, but I guess people never check them anyway.
No Engine Temperature Gauge?
- Thread starter LOLVO
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Originally Posted By: LOLVO
when the RPM needle goes down to one after starting the car, that is when you know the car is a bit warmed up. I was thinking, "huh?"
No temp gauge scares me. I was driving over a mountain into Death Valley & noticed the Temp climbing, so I slowed down to let it cool a little bit. If that gauge had not been there, I might have overheated the car and left myself stranded in 120 degree heat.
In another case I was coasting down a mountain in Colorado and I saw the temp gauge drop. I was confused, but then I realized it was because the engine was not burning any fuel. Therefore not staying warm.
The Prius has no RPM gauge, which I find frustrating.
I want to know what the engine is doing at all times, and think that is more important than having some flashy touchscreen.
when the RPM needle goes down to one after starting the car, that is when you know the car is a bit warmed up. I was thinking, "huh?"
No temp gauge scares me. I was driving over a mountain into Death Valley & noticed the Temp climbing, so I slowed down to let it cool a little bit. If that gauge had not been there, I might have overheated the car and left myself stranded in 120 degree heat.
In another case I was coasting down a mountain in Colorado and I saw the temp gauge drop. I was confused, but then I realized it was because the engine was not burning any fuel. Therefore not staying warm.
The Prius has no RPM gauge, which I find frustrating.
I want to know what the engine is doing at all times, and think that is more important than having some flashy touchscreen.
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OVERKILL
$100 Site Donor 2021
Originally Posted By: blackman777
Cars rev to near-2000 rpm to heat-up the catalyst as fast as possible.
Depends on the car. The M5 rev's to a whopping 1,100RPM on cost start. The Expedition rev's to around 1,500.
Cars rev to near-2000 rpm to heat-up the catalyst as fast as possible.
Depends on the car. The M5 rev's to a whopping 1,100RPM on cost start. The Expedition rev's to around 1,500.
Originally Posted By: supton
IMO gauges have gotten useless; they are programmed to show dead center so as to not confuse the consumer. For me I'm kinda insulted by that,
The same is true in modern airplanes (Boeing Dreamliner, Airbus, etc). It has nothing to do with insult, but because it makes it easier for the crew to spot a discrepancy. All gauges should be dead center, and if they aren't, the pilot instantly knows something is wrong. It's about improving safety.
IMO gauges have gotten useless; they are programmed to show dead center so as to not confuse the consumer. For me I'm kinda insulted by that,
The same is true in modern airplanes (Boeing Dreamliner, Airbus, etc). It has nothing to do with insult, but because it makes it easier for the crew to spot a discrepancy. All gauges should be dead center, and if they aren't, the pilot instantly knows something is wrong. It's about improving safety.
If you're talking about oil temps, then I thought this has been the norm for decades now. I think only 1 or 2 of my cars (out of many) had an oil temp gauge. Coolant temp is a bit more common, but still not the norm.
It's funny that MPG gauges seem to be more common than temp gauges.
It's funny that MPG gauges seem to be more common than temp gauges.
I agree with the designers.
Engine management has become much more sophisticated, and can alert the driver when some parameter is dangerously out-of-bounds. Since gauges typically report the same data that the engine computer is using, rather than from an independent sensor, they aren't even useful as a back-up.
For most drivers in most cars, it's only useful to report actionable information. That is "pull over immediately" or "have this checked out sometime soon".
The few drivers that want more information can use something like ScanGauge or Torque.
It's a bit different at the high end. I expect a car to have sensors for everything. There shouldn't be a dipstick or a sight gauge needed. Oil, transmission, power steering, brake, etc. fluids should be accessible from the information display or remotely. And every diagnostic code should be reported as a full description, although with a streaming video on how to diagnose and fix the underlying problem.
Engine management has become much more sophisticated, and can alert the driver when some parameter is dangerously out-of-bounds. Since gauges typically report the same data that the engine computer is using, rather than from an independent sensor, they aren't even useful as a back-up.
For most drivers in most cars, it's only useful to report actionable information. That is "pull over immediately" or "have this checked out sometime soon".
The few drivers that want more information can use something like ScanGauge or Torque.
It's a bit different at the high end. I expect a car to have sensors for everything. There shouldn't be a dipstick or a sight gauge needed. Oil, transmission, power steering, brake, etc. fluids should be accessible from the information display or remotely. And every diagnostic code should be reported as a full description, although with a streaming video on how to diagnose and fix the underlying problem.
The vast majority of drivers only pay attention to speed and fuel gauges, other gauges are of no value to them. Personally I like to have a complete functional gauges: coolant temperature, oil pressure and temperature gauges on top of speed, RPM and fuel gauges.
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: blackman777
Cars rev to near-2000 rpm to heat-up the catalyst as fast as possible.
Depends on the car. The M5 rev's to a whopping 1,100RPM on cost start. The Expedition rev's to around 1,500.
Our newer VVT motors rev to almost 1500 rpm. That takes a bit of getting used to!
My 6.1 in the SRT only goes to about 1000 rpm, but you can hear the engine mgmt has the throttle open a bit and then slams it down on startup.
And it should be noted that mixture enrichment lights off the catalyst, the revs these days are for getting oil to the valve gear.
Originally Posted By: blackman777
Cars rev to near-2000 rpm to heat-up the catalyst as fast as possible.
Depends on the car. The M5 rev's to a whopping 1,100RPM on cost start. The Expedition rev's to around 1,500.
Our newer VVT motors rev to almost 1500 rpm. That takes a bit of getting used to!
My 6.1 in the SRT only goes to about 1000 rpm, but you can hear the engine mgmt has the throttle open a bit and then slams it down on startup.
And it should be noted that mixture enrichment lights off the catalyst, the revs these days are for getting oil to the valve gear.
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Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR
The vast majority of drivers only pay attention to speed and fuel gauges, other gauges are of no value to them. Personally I like to have a complete functional gauges: coolant temperature, oil pressure and temperature gauges on top of speed, RPM and fuel gauges.
Our fleet trucks all have these as well as a nifty "check gauges" idiot light to alert you when one is out of normal range.
And GM trucks still have real working readouts, their gauges in our fleet trucks are actually ACCURATE.
The vast majority of drivers only pay attention to speed and fuel gauges, other gauges are of no value to them. Personally I like to have a complete functional gauges: coolant temperature, oil pressure and temperature gauges on top of speed, RPM and fuel gauges.
Our fleet trucks all have these as well as a nifty "check gauges" idiot light to alert you when one is out of normal range.
And GM trucks still have real working readouts, their gauges in our fleet trucks are actually ACCURATE.
Some engines have significant operational temperature swings for emissions reasons so if a temp gauge is provided it's buffered to read normal. This keeps owners from nagging the dealer about irregular temp fluctuations. Some owners of particular marques are prone to complain more than others.
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Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: blackman777
Cars rev to near-2000 rpm to heat-up the catalyst as fast as possible.
Depends on the car. The M5 rev's to a whopping 1,100RPM on cost start. The Expedition rev's to around 1,500.
It definitely varies by vehicle. With stock ECU programming, my Jeep went right to the stock 720 rpm idle on cold start. If the coolant temp was under 40* F, it would idle around 800 for the first few seconds. With the current programming, it's a little more progressive. Hot idle is 650 rpm. In the summer, on a cold start, it'll idle around 720 - 750 at first and slowly drop. In cold weather, I've seen it as high as 900 on first start (it drops a bit when put in gear though).
Originally Posted By: blackman777
Cars rev to near-2000 rpm to heat-up the catalyst as fast as possible.
Depends on the car. The M5 rev's to a whopping 1,100RPM on cost start. The Expedition rev's to around 1,500.
It definitely varies by vehicle. With stock ECU programming, my Jeep went right to the stock 720 rpm idle on cold start. If the coolant temp was under 40* F, it would idle around 800 for the first few seconds. With the current programming, it's a little more progressive. Hot idle is 650 rpm. In the summer, on a cold start, it'll idle around 720 - 750 at first and slowly drop. In cold weather, I've seen it as high as 900 on first start (it drops a bit when put in gear though).
The German company, VDO had oil pressure,oil temp and H2o Temp gauges that also had a warning light in the unit.
More and more drivers are treating their vehicles like appliances and manufactures are responding to satisfy that mindset. I find that sad for us who truly enjoy driving and appreciate the mechanics of our vehicles. Ed
My car revs to over 2k briefly on a reaaaallly cold start (like 5 degrees other day) usually it's 1100-1500 depending.
Originally Posted By: Bamaro
Do cars with temp gauges still have a warning light?
Warning light with no gauge is safer than no warning light with gauge.
People generally dont stare at gauges but will notice warning lights.
Go back a few, I stated earlier that all our fleet trucks have an idiot lite that says "check gauges" whenever something is awry...
Do cars with temp gauges still have a warning light?
Warning light with no gauge is safer than no warning light with gauge.
People generally dont stare at gauges but will notice warning lights.
Go back a few, I stated earlier that all our fleet trucks have an idiot lite that says "check gauges" whenever something is awry...
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Originally Posted By: Bamaro
Do cars with temp gauges still have a warning light?
Warning light with no gauge is safer than no warning light with gauge.
People generally dont stare at gauges but will notice warning lights.
Go back a few, I stated earlier that all our fleet trucks have an idiot lite that says "check gauges" whenever something is awry...
My Jeep has one of those as well.
Originally Posted By: Bamaro
Do cars with temp gauges still have a warning light?
Warning light with no gauge is safer than no warning light with gauge.
People generally dont stare at gauges but will notice warning lights.
Go back a few, I stated earlier that all our fleet trucks have an idiot lite that says "check gauges" whenever something is awry...
My Jeep has one of those as well.
My ciera has only a speedo and gas gauge. not even a trip meter.
It does have dummy lights for temp and oil pressure that do a good enough job, but I would love gauges.
I could buy the optional cluster from ebay, but then I would have to upgrade the temp and oil switches as well.
Id rather spend the money elsewhere, like on struts for example.
It does have dummy lights for temp and oil pressure that do a good enough job, but I would love gauges.
I could buy the optional cluster from ebay, but then I would have to upgrade the temp and oil switches as well.
Id rather spend the money elsewhere, like on struts for example.
I'm constantly monitoring my digital coolant temperature gauge.
If they want to manufacture a car without a coolant temperature gauge, they won't be selling it to me.
If they want to manufacture a car without a coolant temperature gauge, they won't be selling it to me.
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